Letters | India farm law U-turn: sadly, the deaths and violence could have been avoided
- Readers discuss the lessons in India’s farm laws saga, the detention of Chinese citizen journalist Zhang Zhan and Hong Kong’s wild boar problem

Farmers had been concerned that the new laws could lead eventually to loss of their land. For a farmer, particularly in my state of Punjab, land is wealth, land is pride, land is heritage. Even in arranging a marriage, both parties are keen to know, discreetly, how much land each family owns. Often, land comes first, not love. If a man loses his land, it is almost tantamount to losing his virility.
There are serious lessons in India’s farm laws saga. Governments should discuss any proposed legislation with the people before enacting them. However powerful or popular a government may be, it should know that reforms have to be sold and marketed. Reforms must have buy-in to be effective.
In India, farmers have died, agricultural production has suffered with workers busy protesting instead of ploughing their land, transport arteries have been snarled during the agitation, and police forced to rain blows on those who grow crops to feed the nation.
All these horrors could have been avoided if consensus had been secured first. It is a serious error to underestimate the power of the masses.
Rajendra Aneja, Mumbai
