Bharat bandh: Farmers block roads, squat on railway tracks in Punjab, Haryana; partial response elsewhere

Chandigarh: Rail and road traffic were hit on Friday in Punjab and Haryana as farmers blocked various highways and squatted on railway tracks at many places in the two states as part of their Bharat Bandh call in protest against the Centre's three farm laws. There was partial response to it in other parts of the country.

Shops too remained closed at several places in Punjab and some places in Haryana in support of the farmers' Bharat Bandh call.

Both the public and private transport remained off roads in Punjab.

There was, however, no impact of bandh in the Union Territory of Chandigarh, the common capital of the two states. Also, the bandh had minimal impact in Delhi with no report of disturbance in the metro and road transport services while the major markets of the city also remained open, even as police made adequate security arrangements to deal with any situation.

The Samkyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), which is spearheading the farmers' stir, had called for the bandh from 6 am to 6 pm to mark four months of the farmers camping at various points of Delhi borders — Singhu, Ghazipur and Tikri.

SKM leader Ruldu Singh Mansa claimed they got the full support of various sections of the society, which made the Bandh successful.

He said the stir will continue till their demands including that of the repeal of the three farm laws are met.

Sukhdev Singh, Punjab general secretary of BKU Ekta-Ugrahan, one of the largest farmers' outfits in the state, said the Bandh in the state was complete.

The SKM claimed various farmer organisations, trade unions, student bodies, bar associations, political parties and representatives of state governments have supported the bandh call. Since morning, farmers in the two states gathered at several highways and roads, including those in Amritsar, Bathinda, Ludhiana, Patiala, Mohali, Hoshiarpur, Phagwara, Ferozepur, Pathankot, Rohtak, Jhajjar, Jind, Panchkula, Kaithal, Yamunanagar, Sirsa, Hisar and Bhiwani districts.

Farmer union leaders said ambulances and other emergency vehicles, as well as marriage processions, had been permitted to pass.

The Bharat Bandh had its effect on rail services as well in Punjab and Haryana.

Protesters squatted on railway tracks at several locations in Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Ferozepur, Ambala, Jind, Jhajjar, Panchkula and some other districts in the two states, leading to the disruption of rail traffic.

The agitating farmers blocked several key roads, including Chandigarh-Delhi, Amritsar-Delhi, Hisar-Delhi, and Bhiwani-Delhi national highways. They parked their tractors and other vehicles in the middle of the carriageways.

They also blocked the Ambala-Rajpura Highway on the Haryana-Punjab border near the Shambhu barrier and the Ambala-Hisar Highway near Ambala City.

In Punjab's Rupnagar district, farmers also blocked the national highway section from Chandigarh to Mandi. The protesters, many of them carrying placards, squatted on key roads and raised slogans against the BJP-led central government. There were sit-ins at toll plazas also in several places.with agency inputs