The government’s decision to repeal the three new farm laws comes when elections to the legislative assemblies of Uttar Pradesh and Punjab are less than four months away. While there was a debate on whether the farmers’ movement against the laws was nationwide or limited to UP and Punjab, the farmers from these two states were the most active in the year-long protest.

       In the farming scene, however, UP and Punjab lie on the opposite ends of the national average. While an average Indian farmer earns Rs 10,218 from agricultural activities—including wages, dairy and ...