CHANDIGARH — Haryana security personnel on Saturday lobbed teargas shells to disperse protesting farmers who were attempting to cross multi-layered barricades erected as a preventive step at Shambhu border point between Punjab and Haryana.
The farmers were demanding to go to the national capital in support of their long-pending demands, including a legal guarantee for minimum support price (MSP) for crops, loan waiver and reforms to improve conditions in the agricultural sector.
The police, who were trying to convince a batch of 101 farmers that they should not enter Haryana as they didn’t have permission to go to the national capital, and should go back, also used water cannons to disperse them.
This was the third attempt by the 101 farmers to march towards the national capital as part of the ongoing protest that has now completed 10 months. Earlier, they attempted to march towards Delhi on December 6 and 8.
The protesting farmers have been camping at the Shambhu and Khanauri borders, both in Punjab, since February 13, after security forces stopped their attempts to proceed to Delhi.
Protest leader Sarwan Singh Pandher slammed the Central government’s silence over farmers’ demands. He called on the government to engage in dialogue with the protesters, warning that the movement could intensify.
He criticised the authorities for repeatedly stopping their march and asking them to seek permission from the Delhi administration. He questioned how a group of 101 farmers marching on foot could pose any threat, emphasising their peaceful approach.
Mobile internet and SMS services were suspended in several parts of Ambala district till December 17 a precautionary step amid farmers’ protest.
Another farmer leader Jagjit Dallewall has been observing fast for the past 19 days to mark his peaceful protest at the Khanauri border.
As per reports, his health is deteriorating day by day and he has reportedly lost over 12 kg weight so far. –IANS
