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A6 WORLD NEWS
Monday 21 SepteMber 2020
Indian lawmakers pass farm bills amid uproar in Parliament

NEW DELHI (AP) — Amid an ing in the Parliament de-
uproar in Parliament, Indian bate, former Prime Minister
lawmakers on Sunday ap- H.D. Deve Gowda, now a
proved a pair of controver- lawmaker, asked Modi to
sial agriculture bills that the explain the short- and long-
government says will boost term impact of the bills on
growth in the farming sec- farmers.
tor through private invest- "The prime minister should
ments. The two bills were explain why there's a hurry
approved even though to pass the bills amid the
most opposition parties pandemic," he said. Modi
and some allies of Prime should "explain how it will
Minister Narendra Modi help in achieving the gov-
called them anti-farmer. ernment's goal of dou-
The legislation is aimed at bling farmers' income," he
reforming India's deeply added. Farmers have long
stressed farming sector and been seen as the heart and
will give farmers freedom soul of India, where agricul-
to market their produce, ture supports more than
Agriculture Minister Naren- half of the country's 1.4
dra Singh Tomar said while billion people. But they've
tabling the proposed laws also seen their economic
in the upper house of Par- clout diminish over the last
liament. The bills are also In this June 13, 2018 file photo, an Indian woman separates grain from the husk in a paddy field in three decades. Once ac-
aimed at removing middle- Mayong village on the outskirts of Gauhati, India. Associated Press counting for a third of In-
men from the farm trade dia's gross domestic prod-
and making farming mar- on Thursday. The passed farmers against any sharp port plans in the agriculture uct, farmers now account
ket-oriented, the govern- bills will have to be signed fall in prices of their agricul- sector will double farmers' for only 15% of the country's
ment has said. by India's ceremonial presi- tural produce. income by 2022. $2.9 trillion economy.
The upper house passed dent, a formality before be- However, the opposition The critics say the bills cre- India's farmers, often com-
two out of three bills, amid coming law. leaders launched scath- ate an undemocratic plaining about being ig-
a war of words between On Thursday, Shiromani ing attacks on the govern- mechanism by which bu- nored, hold frequent pro-
ruling lawmakers and those Akali Dal party lawmaker ment, calling the legislation reaucrats become arbitra- tests to demand better
opposing the legislation. Harsimrat Kaur resigned as "black law" and "pro-cor- tors to settle any contract crop prices, more loan
The third bill, intended to be minister for food processing porate." disputes between farmers waivers and even water
part of the farm liberaliza- in protest against the bills. Rahul Gandhi, a top lead- and buyers, rather than civ- delivery systems to guar-
tion plan, could not be tak- The party is one of the Modi er of the main opposition il courts. They also say that antee irrigation during dry
en up because the upper government's most trusted Congress party, said in a in the absence of better spells. Sometimes they
house adjourned for the allies. Tomar sought to al- tweet Sunday that Modi "is infrastructure like climate- stage sit-ins or dump truck-
day amid chaotic scenes, lay critics of the legislation making farmers 'slaves' of controlled storage facilities, loads of vegetables onto
with opposition lawmak- by saying that the govern- the capitalists, which the proper roads and reliable highways to disrupt traffic.
ers tearing documents and ment's market intervention country will never allow to irrigation and power sup- Several protests by farm-
shouting slogans against policy to procure agricul- succeed." ply, removing middlemen ers were reported against
the bills. The lower house ture crops from farmers will The government has pro- will not be helpful to the the bills in northern India on
had approved all three bills continue. The policy insures jected that its massive sup- farming sector. Participat- Sunday.q

Hong Kong’s first CBD cafe opens its doors to customers

drinks that contain parts of finance in Hong Kong, said tional, a cannabinoids sup-
the cannabis plant without consuming CBD coffee is plier in Asia that operates
breaking any local laws. relaxing. Found. "Unlike other parts of
The cafe, named Found, "The coffee is delicious, and the region — Australia, New
is the city's first to offer a I like the effect that the Zealand, Singapore — it's
range of coffees, biscuits, CBD has on me," Hussey actually quite a progressive
beer and fruit juices that said. "Cognitively and phys- cannabinoid law in Hong
contain cannabidiol, or ically, it kind of helps me Kong." Mullen said that he
CBD, a substance from the get through the aches and hopes the cafe can help
cannabis plant that is said pains of a normal day." break down the stigma sur-
to offer therapeutic effects A bottle of cold CBD-in- rounding CBD products,
without getting users intoxi- fused coffee costs 80 Hong and wants to distance CBD
cated. Kong dollars ($10) at Found, from cannabis and the rec-
Cannabis's tetrahydro- while a can of CBD beer is reational use of drugs.
cannabinol compound — HK$70 ($9). The cafe, which According to the Hong
Coffee, biscuits, green tea and chocolate mooncake that commonly known as THC had a soft opening this Kong government's Centre
contain cannabidiol, or CBD, a substance from the cannabis — is the psychoactive in- month, is expected to be for Food and Safety, under
plant, are displayed at the Found Cafe in Hong Kong on Sept. gredient that gives users a fully operational in Octo- the Dangerous Drugs Ordi-
13, 2020. high. But unlike THC, CBD ber. "Hong Kong is actually nance, the illicit import of
Associated Press
is typically used to help one of Asia's most progres- cannabis or any products
By ALICE FUNG nabis may be illegal in Hong reduce stress without the sive cannabinoid markets," that contain controlled
Associated Press Kong, but a new cafe is of- high. One Found customer, said Fiachra Mullen, co- cannabinoids constitutes a
HONG KONG (AP) — Can- fering a range of food and Killian Hussey, who works in owner of Altum Interna- criminal offense. q