Day 3 Farmers’ Protest: Rail Blockades Today, Round 3 Talks with Centre Scheduled

Day 3 Farmers’ Protest: Rail Blockades Today, Round 3 Talks with Centre Scheduled

The Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ugrahan) and BKU Dakaunda (Dhaner faction) planned to stage “rail roko” (stop trains) across the state on Thursday, February 15, between 12 and 4 p.m. Several well-known farmers’ unions are supporting the Punjabi farmer unions protesting at the borders of Shambhu and Khanauri. Thirty-seven farm unions under one roof, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha, have also backed the continuing demonstrations. A minimum support price, or MSP, for their crops is what the demonstrators are requesting.

These unions joined the current protests in response to the “condemnable use of violence” against farmers, and they had been major players in the fringe demonstrations in Delhi in 2021. The BKU (Ugrahan) general secretary, Sukhdev Singh Kokri Kalan, has chastised the police action. “We are united in our support of them. He declared, “Our supporters will stop trains, or rail roko, at as many locations as we can to demonstrate this. One day ahead of the larger nationwide strike set for February 16, he announced that the group will close train lines in Punjab on Thursday from 12 to 4 p.m.

Farmers’ ‘Delhi chalo’ protest: Key points

• The reported that about ten protest sites have been decided upon, and that the BKU Ugrahan and BKU Dakaunda (Dhaner faction) will jointly participate in the rail roko demonstration. More locations are probably going to be added by tonight.
• According to the source, Rajpura, Sunam (on the borders of Shambu and Khanauri, respectively), Jethuke hamlet in Bathinda, Moga, Mansa, Malaut, Valla railway crossing in Amritsar, Barnala, Sangrur, and Budhlada have been selected as the locations for the rail roko protests. BKU Ugrahan general secretary Sukhdev Singh Kokrikalan has stated that the Amritsar-Jalandhar-Delhi line, the Mansa-Bathinda-Delhi line, the Ludhiana-Ferozepur line, and many other regions will be affected.
• At the Punjab-Haryana border, where protesters and police are engaged in a standoff that has resulted in numerous skirmishes, three Union ministers and leaders of the farming community will meet on Thursday for the third round of discussions in Chandigarh. “Inconclusive” results were obtained from the two previous meetings that took place prior to the march.
• At five o’clock in the evening, federal ministers Arjun Munda, Piyush Goyal, and Nityanand Rai will meet with Sarwan Singh Pandher, the leader of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee.
• According to reports, agricultural minister Arjun Munda and defense minister Rajnath Singh discussed ways to resolve the problems facing farmers in New Delhi.
• On Wednesday, security personnel shelled the “Delhi Chalo” demonstrators intermittently at the Shambhu border post near Ambala. Security forces would always use tear gas if a group of farmers approached the barriers. According to reports, the demonstrators threw stones at the security officers.In the Jind district of Haryana, a similar standoff was observed to be ongoing at the Data Singhwala-Khanauri border. However, things were still less tumultuous than they were on Tuesday, when farmers attempted to advance toward the national capital by using their tractors to move cement barriers at Shambhu.
• Farmer leaders reported that tear gas and rubber bullets struck more than 100 demonstrators on Tuesday, causing injuries. According to the police, protestors’ stone-throwing on the first day of the demonstration injured 24 of their own soldiers.Farmers with their tractor-trolleys along the road at the border of Shambhu, and more coming from various parts of Punjab, are still more than 200 km away from their destination.
• The borders between Delhi and the states of Haryana at Singhu and Tikri, as well as between Uttar Pradesh and Ghazipur, are marked with several levels of concrete blocks and metal spikes. Traffic from Delhi to Sonipat at Singhu and the flow of cars to Bahadurgarh.
• The Singhu border in Delhi caused congestion for commuters because of the area’s closure and the significant presence of police and paramilitary forces.

Also Read: Delhi Liquor Policy: No-show Kejriwal Receives Another Call from the ED After Five Summonses

Final Thought

A major intensification of the ongoing farmer demonstrations in Punjab and the surrounding area is highlighted by the planned “rail roko” protest by the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ugrahan) and BKU Dakaunda (Dhaner faction), which has the backing of many other farmers’ unions and the Samyukt Kisan Morcha. The farming community’s ongoing complaints and demands are brought to light by these rallies, which call for a minimum support price (MSP) for crops. The goal of the planned broad disruption on Thursday, February 15, is to raise awareness of these problems and compel action from the government.

Coordinating their protests across important railway lines, standing united against perceived unfairness and neglect by the authorities, and receiving strong support from the Samyukt Kisan Morcha are all signs of this. The scheduled conference in Chandigarh between union ministers and representatives of the farming community indicates the possibility of a discussion; however, previous meetings have not produced much of a result, so the chances of a resolution are dimmed. The context of these protests, which includes the “Delhi Chalo” campaign and earlier run-ins with the law, highlights a pervasive discontent in the agriculture industry. The farmers’ tenacity in the face of police barriers, tear gas, and rubber bullets illustrates their desperation and will to be heard.