The one line summary of what is keeping the agitation alive is that while the downside of the new agri-laws is clear, the upside is uncertain.
As per these “reforms”, the possibility of farmers making more money ultimately rests on private players being nice and playing fair. Would that happen? You tell me. Once upon a time we just had a private airline in India (run by Tata) that was then taken over by government and then later more private players were allowed to compete. If you have ever flown, who do you think are nicer, better and easier to deal with?
Of course an average farmer is much more vulnerable (can’t really be compared with people who fly) and so is more likely to get exploited. Unfortunately, the Modi government has not put in place enough measures to ensure that doesn’t happen - and that pretty much is the problem. A half-baked “reform” is likely to cause more damage than benefit.
Talking about Modiji, inspired by his motivational talk delivered online to college students in Lucknow this week, I edited a 1 minuter funny clip.