Day 3 Of Protest: Rail Roko Across Punjab, Big Centre-Farmer Leaders Meet

New Delhi:

Amid the ongoing standoff between protesting farmers and security personnel at the Punjab-Haryana border, a panel of three Union ministers is set to engage in another round of talks with farmer leaders in Chandigarh today. Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, and Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai will convene at 5 pm to address the farmers’ various demands, prominently the implementation of a law guaranteeing Minimum Support Price (MSP) for crops.

This marks the third attempt at dialogue between the two parties, as previous rounds of talks on February 8 and 12 remained inconclusive. Farmers from Punjab, who have been camping at the Shambhu and Khanauri borders of Punjab and Haryana, are seeking to march towards Delhi to convince the Centre to accept their demands.

A similar standoff persists at the Data Singhwala-Khanauri border near Haryana’s Jind district.

Rail Roko Across Punjab 

The farmer leaders have insisted that they will refrain from making any fresh attempts to move towards the national capital until the meeting is held. They said that their next course of action will be determined based on the proposals put forth by the Centre.

However, the Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) and BKU Dakaunda (Dhaner) have declared a ‘rail roko’ (rail blockade) in Punjab today. Farmers plan to squat on rail tracks at seven locations from 12 noon to 4 pm in protest against the use of tear gas shells and water cannons by Haryana security personnel at the Shambhu and Khanauri borders.

The police have deployed tear gas shells to disperse the protesters in the past two days, prompting the farmers to take precautions. The farmers equipped themselves with water bottles, wet clothes, and even protective gear to minimise the impact of tear gas.

Simultaneously, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha has decided to hold protests at toll plazas from 11 am to 2 pm. 

The police have sealed the border with barricades, preventing farmers from travelling to Delhi on their tractor-trolleys.

With the protests affecting traffic in the National Capital Region (NCR), the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) last night issued an advisory urging students to plan their commute early. The board recommended using the metro.