The Republic Day tractor parade by farmers will feature a number of tableaux from across states depicting village life, the protest against the Centre’s contentious farm laws and will also hail their courage, according to the organisers.
A farmer leader said directions had been issued to all organisations participating in the protest to prepare tableaux for the parade, much like the official Republic Day parade of the government.
“Around one lakh tractor-trolleys from across the country will participate in the parade. Around 30 per cent of these will have tableaux on different themes, including the history of the farmers’ movement in India, the role of women farmers and the farming practices followed in different states,” he said.
Children from Maharashtra’s Vidarbha region have planned a tableau on farmer suicides. “Children of farmers who committed suicide are expected to participate in the parade. Their tableau will depict the hardships faced by farmers of the region wracked by water scarcity,” a member of Swaraj India said.
Tableaux from states such as Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand will show how fruits and vegetables are cultivated in the hilly regions.
Participants from Punjab and Haryana will showcase traditional and modern farming technology and will also have statues of women milking cows and farmers driving bullock carts.
Each tractor will carry a Tricolour and there will be folk music and patriotic songs.
A war room has been set up at each protest site to ensure effective coordination during the parade. There will be 40 members, including doctors, security personnel and social media managers, in each of these rooms, the SKM member said. Around 40 ambulances will be stationed along the route.
Another farmer leader said around 2,500 volunteers had been deployed to ensure that the parade remained peaceful and no untoward incident took place. The volunteers have been given badges and identity cards. A team of ex-servicemen participating in the protest will also keep an eye on the security situation.
