Title: India farmers protests: Thousands swarm Delhi against deregulation rules - CNN
Headings: Tens of thousands of farmers swarm India's capital to protest deregulation rules
Tens of thousands of farmers swarm India's capital to protest deregulation rules
What the protests are about
Why it's such a hot political issue

Content: We don't get even the minimum support price that is presently declared -- removing these protections and making it easier for corporates to enter will completely buy us out." Why it's such a hot political issue
Agriculture is the primary source of livelihood for about 58% of India's 1.3 billion population, meaning farmers are the biggest voter block in the country. That's made farming a central political issue, with farmers arguing for years to get the minimum guaranteed prices increased. Security personnel deployed to stop farmers from entering the national capital during a protest against the Centre's new farm laws at Singhu border near Delhi, India on November 30, 2020. In a bid to win over farmers, Modi's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said in its 2014 general election manifesto that all crop prices should be fixed at a minimum of 50% higher than the production costs. In 2016, Modi promised to boost the country's agriculture sector with a target of doubling the income of farmers by 2022. Modi and his government continue to insist that they are supporting farmers. He hailed the new laws as a " watershed moment " which will ensure a complete transformation of the agriculture sector. But besides calling the move long overdue, Modi has not said why he opted to introduce these measures during the pandemic, which has caused India to suffer its first recession in decades. "The Indian government under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi has always stood in full commitment to resolving the problems faced by farmers and will continue to stand by them," said Narendra Singh Tomar, the Minister of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare.