Chandigarh: Train services across Punjab were disrupted on Wednesday as farmers staged a three-hour 'Rail Roko' protest to press the Centre to meet their demands, including a legally binding Minimum Support Price (MSP) for crops.

The protest was organised by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha. According to Kisan Mazdoor Morcha leader Sarwan Singh Pandher, farmers occupied rail tracks in several locations from 12 noon to 3 pm.

Key rail routes were blocked in areas such as Moga, Faridkot, Kadian, Batala in Gurdaspur, Phillaur in Jalandhar, Tanda, Dasuya, Mahilpur in Hoshiarpur, Makhu, Talwandi Bhai in Ferozepur, Sahnewal in Ludhiana, Shambhu in Patiala, Mohali, Sunam and Lehra in Sangrur, Rampura Phul in Bathinda, and Devidaspura in Amritsar.

Major train services were halted as a result. The Humsafar Express from Jammu to Sealdah, the Dadar Express from Amritsar to Mumbai, and the Shan-e-Punjab Express from New Delhi to Amritsar were stranded at different platforms of the Ludhiana railway station. The Shatabdi Express from New Delhi to Amritsar was stopped at Khanna railway station.

A protesting farmer remarked, "We are demanding a legal guarantee for MSP from the government."

Farmers under the banners of Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha have been staging sit-ins at the Shambhu and Khanauri border points between Punjab and Haryana since 13 February, following the security forces’ decision to halt their march to Delhi.

For the past three weeks, Punjab farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal has been on a fast-unto-death protest at the Khanauri border, demanding that the Centre address the farmers’ concerns. Among these are the legal guarantee for MSP on crops, a debt waiver, pensions for farmers and farm labourers, a freeze on electricity tariff hikes, withdrawal of police cases, and "justice" for victims of the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence.

Additional demands include reinstating the Land Acquisition Act, 2013, and providing compensation to the families of farmers who lost their lives during the 2020–21 agitation. 

Efforts by a "jatha" (group) of 101 farmers to enter Delhi on foot on 6, 8, and 14 December were blocked by Haryana security personnel. 

PTI