Farmers protest: Protesters block railway track at Rajpura in Patiala

PATIALA: Protesting farmers from Rajpura in Punjab’s Patiala are sitting on rail tracks and blocking trains at Rajpura Railway Station as the farmer’s protest enters its third day on Thursday, which has escalated into a full-blown crisis ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

Meanwhile, due to the ongoing farmers’ protest, rail traffic on the Ambala division of the Northern Railway has been affected, an official said.

According to Captain Shashi Kiran, the Chief Public Relations Officer of North Western Railway, the following rail services will be impacted due to the farmers’ protest:

Cancelled Rail Services (from the originating station):

Train number 04753, Bathinda-Shri Ganganagar service, will be cancelled on February 15.Train number 04756, Shri Ganganagar-Bathinda service, will be cancelled on February 15.

Partially Cancelled Rail Services (from the originating station):

Train number 14736, Ambala-Shri Ganganagar service, which was supposed to depart from Ambala on February 15, will only run up to Bathinda, meaning it will be cancelled between Bathinda and Shri Ganganagar.

Train number 14735, Shri Ganganagar-Ambala service, will depart from Bathinda on February 15, meaning it will be cancelled between Shri Ganganagar and Bathinda.

Route Altered Rail Service: Train number 19612, Amritsar-Ajmer Express, will be operated via a changed route through Tarn Taran Jn.-Beas on February 15, 2024.

Meanwhile, the ‘Delhi Chalo’ march of the farmers from Punjab against the central government entered its third day on Thursday.

A meeting of the farmer unions and the central government is scheduled for Thursday at 5 pm to discuss the issues.

The farmers have put forth 12 demands before the central government for which they’re marching to Delhi. The protest this time has been called by Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (non-political) and the Punjab Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, led by farmer union leaders Jagjeet Singh Dallewal and Sarwan Singh Pandher.

According to the protesting farmers, the Center promised them better crop prices, after which they ended the 2021 protest. They are demanding to enact a law guaranteeing a minimum support price (MSP) for all crops, in line with the Swaminathan Commission report.

They are also demanding a complete debt waiver and a scheme to provide pensions to farmers and farm labourers.