Tailoring stall for farmers sitting on pins and needles at Singhu border
New delhi: In the list of facilities available to the farmers camping at the Singhu border point of Delhi, the latest is a tailoring stall, with two sewing machines, catering to the growing stitching needs of the protesters.
From standard clothing alterations such as hemming and sewing to zipper replacement, hole and tear repair, and velcro placement, nothing is out of bounds for Dalbir Singh, a professional tailor from Punjab's Barnala district who is running the stall.
"I had come to the protest site a week ago with my friends. That is when I realised that there is a lot of wear and tear in the clothes people are wearing.
"Later, someone came to my shop in Barnala and said 'stitch my clothes I need to go Delhi for protest'. That is when the idea of opening this stall at Singhu struck us," said the 38-year-old Singh.
He has found a helping hand in Baljinder Kaur (35) from Ludhiana who until recently sew clothes as a hobby.
Singh said such is the crowd at the stall that he has to struggle to find time even to attend nature's call. It is their second day and the duo have already attended to over 400 people.
But he is not complaining.
"This is sewa and I won't stop till the time the government fulfils the demand of the protesting farmers. I told my wife not to expect me to come back anytime soon. For my shop back home, I have asked my father and brother to take care of it till the time I am here," said Singh foot-pedalling the sewing machine without a break.
Gurpreet Singh, 40, the man who had met Dalvir at his shop and is the brain behind opening the stall, said he had brought over 300 new zips and now they are hardly left with 10.
Hailing from Jalandhar, Gurpreet, who is a member of 'Guru Sikh Sewa Society', which is also serving langar, said they will soon put up a stall for turbans, muffler, caps and inner-wears for those in need.
"Much of the things that we required were already present here. A tailor shop was missing and now we have that too. I guess this would help many people, especially those putting up here for the past one month, to get their clothes in shape," said Deepjot Bajwa, who had come to fix his ripped jacket.
The protest site already has washing machines, a 'salon sewa' started by a Haryana man, a 'champi parlour' and foot massagers installed by international NGO Khalsa Aid.
Amid all this, the borders remained blocked on Wednesday as well as farmers continued their agitation against farm laws. According to police, the Chilla and Ghazipur borders were closed for traffic coming from Noida and Ghaziabad to Delhi. Commuters were advised to take alternate route for entering Delhi through Anand Vihar, DND, Apsara, Bhopra and Loni borders.
"Singhu, Auchandi, Piau Maniyari, Saboli and Mangesh borders remained closed. Commuters were told to take alternate route through Lampur, Safiabad, Palla and Singhu school toll tax borders. Traffic has been diverted from Mukarba and GTK road. Travellers were told to avoid Outer Ring Rd, GTK road and NH-44," official said.
As per official, "Available open borders to Haryana are Jharoda (only single carriageway, road), Daurala, Kapashera, Badusarai, Rajokri NH-8, Bijwasan, Bajghera, Palam Vihar and Dundahera borders."
The Delhi Police has also requested farmers to get themselves tested at the Covid care centres near the protesting sites. "Delhi Police, besides protecting the farmers even when they are asleep, is also concerned about their health and has been requesting them from time to time to wear masks, maintain social distancing and personal hygiene," police said.
(With Agency inputs)
