Tribune and PTI news service
Chandigarh, November 21
Punjab farmers protesting against the Center’s recent agricultural laws have decided to allow passenger trains to run for 15 days, starting Monday night. Farmers unions warned they would re-block the roads if the government did not address their concerns.
Hours later, the Railways said they would resume freight and passenger train services in Punjab following communication from the state government that the tracks were clear for operations. Sources indicated that services would resume from Tuesday.
DISCORDING NOTE: two unions disagree
- Kirti Kisan Union distances itself from the decision of 29 unions
- Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee will continue ‘rail roko’
Thirty agricultural unions met here on Saturday morning and then called the chief minister, Captain Amarinder Singh.
“We have given the BJP-led union government 15 days to start discussions with us on the three controversial farm laws, otherwise we will resume our agitation on the Railways property,” warned Balbir Singh Rajewal, head of BKU-Rajewal.
Without a roadmap, conversations are meaningless
The state government has failed to control the liquor, sand and earth mafia. This has hurt the growth of Punjab. It is wrong to relate the fall of the state economy to our cause. The Center and the Government of Punjab do not have a road map to solve our problems. Having conversations is pointless. —SS Pandher, Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee
Meanwhile, unions will continue to protest in front of the residences of BJP leaders and toll plazas and businesses owned by certain corporate houses.
Train services in Punjab were suspended on September 24 when farmers launched “Rail Roko”. While farmers in October allowed the movement of freight trains in Punjab, the Board of Railways refused to resume services until the Railways property was cleared of all protesters.
CM welcomes the decision of the farmers
I welcome this step as it will restore normalcy to our economy. I urge the Central Government to resume rail services to Punjab immediately. —Capt Amarinder Singh, CM
Sources said the Kirti Kisan Union refused to move the protest from the Railways property, arguing that this would make the farmers look weak. Therefore, he stayed away from the meeting with the CM where issues such as the subsidy for stubble handling machines, the withdrawal of FIR for agricultural fires, the release of quotas for sugarcane producers and the increase of the state recommended price at Rs 360 per quintal.
An Amritsar report said that the Majha-based Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee had also decided to continue the agitation, arguing that any dialogue with the Center was futile. In its previous appeal, the CM had urged farmers to allow train services to resume, as the blockade so far had caused a loss of Rs 40 billion to the state. Noting the shortage of coal, fertilizers and other basic products, he said that a large number of units had closed in Ludhiana and Jalandhar due to a shortage of raw materials.
