Farmers Movement Archive

Tricolour atop tractors, Punjab farmers continue march to Delhi

Bathinda/Ferozepur/Phagwara/Patiala: Thousands of farmers from across Punjab on Saturday continued to leave for Delhi in tractors to participate in the proposed march to the national capital on Republic Day, being organised in protest against the three contentious agriculture laws. BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) general secretary Sukhdev Singh Kokri said nearly 20,000 tractors had left for Delhi via the Khanauri and Dabwali borders of Punjab and Haryana by late afternoon on Saturday. The tractors, many of them especially decked up for the protest, bore flags of the Tricolour and farm organisations. He said they were planning to cross the state borders at 11am, but started leaving early in small batches due to bad weather. The biggest convoy, however, left around noon. Most convoys were expected to reach Tikri by evening. Kokri said youth wings had been established to keep a tab on rumour-mongers and those who wanted to create disturbance. Jagtar Singh, press secretary of BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) in Sangrur, said, “Earlier, we had planned to stay in Haryana, but we decided to move ahead and complete the journey in a day. The farmers sitting at the agitation on the Delhi borders will be made sit in these trolleys during the march.” In Punjab’s Ferozepur and Kapurthala districts, several tarctor-trolleys could be seen on the highways to Delhi, with all of them carrying ration supplies. Younger protesters travelling in tractor-trolleys shouted slogans. From many tractors, protest music could be heard as they headed for the national capital. Bhupinder Singh of Khai Pheme Ki village in Ferozepur said their only aim was to make the January 26 ‘Tractor Parade’ a “record-breaking success”. “(PM Narendra) Modi government has tried everything to sabotage this movement, which is going on uninterruptedly for two months. Our morale is so high that we won’t return without getting the laws revoked,” he said. The entire stretch of Ferozepur-Delhi highway was doted with langers serving meals, snacks, tea and fruits. The movement of protesters was massive on the Jalandhar-Delhi national highway too. There was a clear difference in the quantum of traffic going to Delhi and that moving in the other direction. At Jamalpur village, which falls on the national highway and is around 5km from Phagwara, Bhartiya Kisan Union (Doaba) was providing lodging and fuel for free to protesters. Free diesel is being provided with the help of volunteers. Gursharan Singh, one of the volunteers, said diesel was being given to only those who genuinely needed it. Before heading towards Delhi border on Saturday, Bhartiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) activists had held tractor marches in 16 districts of Punjab on January 21 and 22. Activists of the farm group had been inspecting tractors for the last one week and getting them repaired. A large number of farmers even decorated the tractors. It was learnt that though the farm organisations had asked farmers to start crossing both borders at around 11am, farmers started crossing at nearly 9am. Kokri said farmers were ready for a bigger fight. “The central government wants to impose the failed system of the US and European countries, but farmers will not allow it,” he ended. Tractors tow tractors to save fuel To save fuel, many tractors were seen towing two-three tractors behind them along with multiple trollies. Enquiries from farmers who have already made a round of Delhi revealed that the average cost of one a to-and-fro trip for a tractor was around Rs 15,000. “It is a substantial cost and people are now taking two-three extra tractors to ensure participation of maximum tractors and also saving on the fuel cost,” said Kandhi Kisan Sangharash Committee vice-chairman Jarnail Singh Garhdiwal.

The Times of India

2021-01-24

Chandigarh