Farmers Movement Archive

Farmers block Delhi-Meerut Expressway again, traffic hit

GHAZIABAD: Farmers protesting at UP Gate blocked the whole of Delhi-Meerut Expressway (DME) on Tuesday morning as their counterparts from several other districts of west UP were stopped from reaching the protest site. The blockade caused traffic snarls in Kaushambi and the arterial roads of Vaishali. The situation eased somewhat aft-er the blockade was lifted around 6pm. “The UP government is testing our patience. Despite repeated warnings, farmers on their way to the protest sites are being stopped by police. Some of them are being harassed too. A group of farmers called us from Rampur and complained of police excesses. This is something we could not have tolerated any more. So, we blocked the whole of DME on Tuesday,” said Rakesh Tikait, a Bharatiya Kisan Union leader who has been spearheading the protests at UP Gate. The trans-Hindon area was the most affected by the blockade. Traffic had to be diverted at all major intersections. “We are in touch with our Delhi counterparts, who also effected the diversion on their side and did not allow traffic on DME as it was closed,” said Ramanand Kushwaha, SP (traffic). “In Ghaziabad, the traffic load increased on the city’s arterial roads, causing snarls. The areas that were affected the most were Kaushambi and Mohan Nagar. We had to divert traffic through internal roads of Vaishali,” he added. The number of protesters is likely to swell at UP Gate on Wednesday as scores from other districts are expected to join an event where farmers will pay homage to prominent leaders. “We will conduct a havan at the protest site. It is for this that farmers from other districts are coming here,” said Tikait. Asked if they were planning a major agitation on Wednesday, Tikat said, “We would be protesting the way we had been for the past few weeks. It would be peaceful. No major agitation is planned for Wednesday.” Early on Tuesday morning, Choudhary Dheeraj Pawar from Baghpat, a farmer who had participated in the relay hunger strike on Monday, suffered a minor heart attack and was rushed to MMG Hospital. He was then referred to AIIMS. “The farmer who suffered the heart attack had participated in a relay hunger strike on Monday. His condition is stable now” said Shamsher Rana, BKU’s national media in-charge.

The Times of India

2020-12-23

Gurgaon