Farmers Movement Archive

Farmers plan national road blockade on Nov. 5

Over 500 farmers groups plan to block roads across the country on November 5, as part of an all-India chakka jam, the next step in their protests against the three controversial farm laws passed by Parliament last month. The groups, which include several major federations such as the Bharatiya Kisan Union and the All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee, are also planning a march to the national capital on November 26 and 27, if their demands to repeal the laws were not accepted. They are also opposing the Electricity Bill 2020, which could affect the power subsidy given to farmers. Some leaders estimated that more than 40,000 farmers from Punjab alone could take part in the protest. The farmers groups also slammed the Centre’s ban on the movement of goods trains to Punjab, terming it ‘blackmail’ of the people. The Railway Ministry had refused to run goods trains unless the State ensured that the tracks were completely cleared of protesting farmers who are still preventing some trains from running. “We have mostly ended our rail roko five days ago itself on October 22. There are still some protesters near Amritsar, blocking passenger trains and trains running to some private power plants,” said Darshan Pal, president of the Krantikari Kisan Union, which is one of the leaders of the protests. After a meeting at Gurudwara Rakabganj in the Capital on Tuesday, it was decided that the November protests would be coordinated under the leadership of a committee including AIKSCC convener V.M. Singh, BKU-Ekta president Balbir Singh Rajewal, BKU’s Haryana chief Gurnam Singh, former Maharashtra MP and Swabhimani Paksha head Raju Shetti and Swaraj India president Yogendra Yadav.

The Hindu

2020-10-28

NEW DELHI