LAHORE: Farmers in Pakistan have planned a countrywide protest on April 13, 2025 against a new type of farming called corporate farming, which is part of the Green Pakistan Initiative (GPI).
This decision was made in a meeting held by several farmer groups, including the Pakistan Kissan Rabita Committee, Anjuman Mazareen Punjab, Hari Jedojehad Committee, and Crofter Foundation. They will organize rallies and meetings in different towns and at government farms on April 13, which is next Sunday.
The farmers want to stop corporate farming and prevent peasants from being removed from the lands they have been farming for many years.
They also want to stop the building of some canals in southern Punjab, have government farmland given to peasants, cancel demands for tenants to pay large amounts of money they owe, and set the wheat buying price at Rs4,000 for 40kg during the current harvest season.
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The GPI is a government plan to improve farming and help the environment by turning unused land into productive farms with modern tools, better watering systems, good seeds, AI monitoring, and improved farming equipment.
Farmers and activists are worried that this shift to big farming businesses might affect small landowners, push peasants off state lands, and make it harder for them to get important farming resources.