On Wednesday, in a meeting with the Chief Ministers amid growing alarm over the resurgence of Covid-19, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged them to act fast against the emerging "second peak" of the pandemic, warning "if we do not stop this now, a country-wide outbreak can occur".

 

Amid the rising Covid cases, Section 144 has been imposed in Ghaziabad.

 

Talking about the Covid-19 surge, Ghazipur border protest committee spokesperson Jagtar Singh Bajwa told IANS, "Farmers are here from the last four months but not a single Covid-19 case has been reported from here. The government is spreading the fear so that people don't come here to participate in the protest. This is a conspiracy to end the protest. We condemn this act of the government."

 

Bharatiya Kisan Union president of Uttar Pradesh Rajvir Singh Jadaun said, "We started the protest amid the pandemic outbreak and now when we have vaccine then why the government is spreading the fear. Rather than sending the vaccine to the foreign countries, for free, the government should provide it to its citizens."

 

"The Prime Minister's concern about the villages is fine but Covid-19 surge is not the only concern in the villages. Not a single farmer has been infected while working on the farms. Instead of spreading fear, the government should proactively think about saving the lives of the people," he added.