136 trains cancelled, farmers refuse to budge from tracks
Chandigarh, September 29
Hundreds of commuters in different parts of the state continued facing harassment on the second day of the ‘rail roko’ agitation by farmers today. They were seeking a compensation for their crops damaged during the monsoon, besides a legal guarantee for the MSP.
The agitation is being staged by 19 farm unions from six states, seeking a financial package for losses.
The Northern Railway’s (Ferozepur Division) cancelled 136 trains today and 217 had been affected since yesterday. Official sources said 25 trains were short-terminated, 16 were diverted. The list included Amritsar-Hisar, Sealdah-Amritsar, Howrah-Amritsar, Indore-Amritsar, Mumbai-Amritsar, Haridwar-Amritsar, Pathankot-Amritsar, Ludhiana-Chheharta, Amritsar-Qadian and Pathankot-Amritsar.
The agitation would continue on Saturday also, said Sarwan Singh Pandher of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee. Farmers from Haryana will also join the ongoing protest, he added.
Railway tracks were blocked at Moga, Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur, Jalandhar Cantonment, Tarn Taran, Sunam, Nabha, Basti Tankiwali, Mallanwala (Ferozepur) and Rampura (Bathinda), Devidaspura, Samrala and Malout.
In Jalandhar, farmers, under the banner of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, have been sitting on the tracks since Thursday. The blockade has affected all trains, including Vande Bharat Express.
Hundreds of commuters were harassed as the Railways had to cancel 11 passenger trains on the Pathankot-Dinanagar-Gurdaspur-Batala-Amritsar section following the farmers’ protests. Long distance travellers, who had booked their tickets weeks in advance, were left stranded at various stations. Passengers were stranded on the Abohar-Fazilka and Abohar-Bathinda routes. Trouble for commuters is set to increase on Saturday as the Bhartiya Kisan Union has decided to block Abohar-Sriganganagar stretch of NH 62 also.
A spokesman of the farm unions said, “We understand that the common man is put to inconvenience. However, we were left with no option except to block the tracks because this is the only way the government listens to us.”
