Farmers Movement Archive

Commuters bear the brunt as farmers hold up traffic

Mohali, October 9Various factions of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU and workers of political parties, including the Congress, SAD and AAP, blocked the Chandigarh-Ambala national highway in Lalru and the Kharar-Landran road today against the farm Acts passed by the Centre.‘30 km extra travel’Sushil Kumar, a resident of Phase 6, Mohali, said he had gone to Kurukshetra for official work on Friday and on returning, he was stopped near Jharmari by the police. He said he had to travel 30 km extra to reach Dera Bassi after passing through various villages, including Jeoli, Bhukri and Samgauli.Commuters were at the receiving end as they had to “go the extra mile” to reach their destinations due to the protest. The police had diverted the traffic coming from the Ambala side on the Jharmari-Naraingarh road, while the traffic from the Chandigarh side was diverted on the Lalru-Handesra road to avoid any inconvenience to the commuters.Sushil Kumar, a resident of Phase 6, Mohali, said he had gone to Kurukshetra for official work this morning and on returning, he was stopped near Jharmari by the police. He said he had to travel 30 km extra to reach Dera Bassi after passing through various villages, including Jeoli, Bhukri and Samgauli.At Kharar, the BKU (Sidhupur), the BKU (Lakhowal) and the Kul Hind Kisan Sabha, Mohali, blocked the Landran road at the Badala T-point for nearly an hour. They also burnt an effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, showing their opposition towards the three farm Acts passed by the Central Government. Naib Tehsildar Puneet Bansal, DSP Manjeet Singh and DSP Rupinderjit Kaur, along with a police party, managed the protesters and said the protest was peaceful.The kisan union, supported by various political parties, blocked the Ambala-Chandigarh Highway at Lalru in protest against the farm Acts. Manpreet Singh Amlala, vice-president, BKU (Lakhowal), and Karam Singh Baroli blocked the highway along with 125 to 150 supporters.A huge traffic jam was witnessed on the Banur-Kharar and Kharar-Landran highways and also on the Ambala-Chandigarh highway near Lalru. The Mohali traffic police diverted the traffic on alternative routes to reach Mohali and Chandigarh.The leaders, while addressing the protesters, threatened that they would close the Dappar toll plaza if their demands were not met.

The Tribune

2020-10-10