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 ‘You are all working for the good of the farmers. We are not going to treat you like normal criminals. In this jail there is no separate provision for A or B class prisoners; so you will have to stay with other ordinary prisoners. But from our side, we shall provide you with all the possible facilities.’ Later on he also added, ‘I am also growing onion on my three acres of farm and if onion continues to get such low prices even I wont be able to afford this farming.’ So they all seemed brothers in suffering! Of course this pleasant experience was an exception for SS. On every other occasion, police used to thrash farmers mercilessly. On 3 June, when the ten-day remand got over, they were released on bail at the Khed Court. During the days of the onion struggle, Babulal Pardeshi and Shankarrao Wagh were virtually two extra hands of Joshi. For many years both stood by him without any desire for position or praise. Joshi was also particularly grateful for those like Mama Shinde who kept morale of the farmers upbeat while other leaders were in jail. Selecting onion for the first struggle was not a calculated decision; but it turned out to be a very effective choice. Out of the total onion consumed in the country, almost one third came from just five talukas of Pune and Nashik Districts. It is very rare that in such a limited area so much of the crop is concentrated. Impact of the agitation was felt throughout the nation. That gave Joshi some idea of the importance of choosing a specific limited crop growing area for maximum impact. Joshi had envisaged that if farmers collectively refused to sell their produce below certain price, then consumers all over the country would certainly pay that higher price, the ripples of 116

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Sharad Joshi : Leading Farmers to the Centre Stage