Resisting the Neoliberal Project in India: Punjab and the Struggle against Corporate Encroachment into Agriculture

Abstract

The imposition of the Three Farm Laws by the union government of India in 2020 was intended to further corporate encroachment in agriculture. However, this resulted in an unprecedented resistance movement of farmers and workers. The union government of India eventually had to retreat, and the Three Farm Laws were repealed in 2021. In this article, we intend to briefly review with special reference to Punjab, the historical context of corporate encroachment into Indian agriculture, the unfolding of the resistance to this corporate encroachment, and a prognosis on the political economy of the neoliberal project in India.