On September 20^th, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi implemented three new farm market reform laws which Indian farmers have now been widely protesting for the past two months. While the government claims that these rules will benefit farmers by increasing their freedom, the farmers worry they risk exploitation due to the potential drop in prices.

The Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill shifts farmers from dealing with the government to dealing directly with corporations. Because Minimum Support Pricing, which fixed crop prices, has been eliminated, it is possible that privatising the agriculture sector will lead to corporations driving prices down. This would effectively reduce farmers’ income. Since agriculture is arguably the largest sector in India, this law may negatively impact the country’s economy – according to basic economics, less income leads to less consumption of a country’s overall goods and services. This naturally implies that the Indian economy will suffer critical effects in the long run.

The next law is called the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill. The bill primarily promotes the negotiation of prices between the farmers and corporations themselves, eliminating government regulation from the equation.

The last law, the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, removes goods like cereals, pulses, oilseeds, onions and potatoes from India’s list of essential commodities. The law’s intent is to modernize by reducing stockpiling.

Prime Minister Modi acknowledged the backlash through Twitter, tweeting, “For decades, the Indian farmer was bound by various constraints and bullied by middlemen. The bills passed by Parliament liberate the farmers from such adversities. These bills will add impetus to the efforts to double the income of farmers and ensure greater prosperity for them.”

Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators have gathered in New Delhi to protest the new laws, and have been subjected to violent response from the police, including the use of tear gas, batons, and water cannons. This is unsurprising, scholar Simran Jeet Singh says, “In the past, when Indian agricultural workers have protested for fair prices and working conditions, the Indian government has responded with violent crackdowns that include documented torture, human rights abuses, and extrajudicial killings.”

However, the farmers are not dissuaded. Ghazipur farmer Darshan Singh says, “We are determined to win this fight. We will go back only after the laws are dismissed.” New Delhi’s biggest wholesale farmer’s market has shut down in support.

That kind of support may be necessary, Simran Jeet Singh says, to keep the farmers safe. “It is critical that, in this moment of peaceful protest, we keep our eyes trained on India’s response, and ensure that they do not again resort to repressive tactics as a way to thwart free speech and protest.”

Farmers are some of the poorest people in India. It is vital for them to be able to peacefully protest laws, like these, that will threaten their livelihood, without provoking further violence from the authorities.

Decent living wages are a necessity. Allowing corporations to exploit those wages would be unwise.