Delhi Chalo LIVE: Fresh Rounds of Tear Gas Fired at Shambhu Border; Key Meet Today

BKU (Kadian) president Harmeet Singh Kadian after the meeting of SKM Punjab Chapter in Jalandhar said, “Today, we (SKM Punjab chapter) held a special meeting (in Jalandhar) regarding the situation in Punjab. Peaceful protest is our right and the government is stopping us from doing so. We condemn the behaviour being meted out towards the farmers of Punjab. We will continue with our call for a nationwide strike on February 16. In addition to that, on February 15, farmers will gather on toll plazas across the state (from 11 AM to 2 PM) and will protest there.”

Interstate Buses and HGV Commercial Trucks for Haryana/Punjab/Himachal etc., are to take DIVERSION on Outer Ring Road at Majnu Ka Tilla to proceed towards Signature Bridge to Khajuri Chowk Via Loni Border towards Eastern Peripheral Road. 

Trucks originating from Azadpur Mandi bound for Sanjay Gandhi Transport Nagar are to take Diversion from Azadpur Mandi, take service road towards Outer Ring Road, Haiderpur Water Plant and take U-turn for Rohini Jail Road Sector-18 to Badli Metro Station to Sanjay Gandhi Transport Nagar.

Only DTC Buses and Cars/four-wheelers allowed from Mukarba Chowk towards NH-44 to take EXIT No. 2 on NH-44 at DSIIDC Cut to go towards Narela and Safiabad Border.

With school board exams slated to begin from Thursday, residents of areas near Delhi's Tikri and Singhu borders are worried about how children will reach exam centres amid traffic and security restrictions in view of the farmers' protest.

Adding to their woes, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) has called a 'Bharat Bandh' on Friday in support of the 'Delhi Chalo' agitation -- a march by farmers of Punjab to the national capital to press the Centre to accept their demands, including the enactment of a law guaranteing minimum support price (MSP) for crops.

The restrictions in areas around the Delhi-Haryana border points, which have been fortified with metal barricades and concrete blocks to stop farmers from entering the city, came into effect on Tuesday, the day the march began.

Senior Union ministers, including Rajnath Singh and Arjun Munda, on Wednesday held discussions on the ongoing farmers' protests and ways to address the issues, according to sources.

The meeting in the national capital assumes significance against the backdrop of farmers from Punjab marching towards Delhi and Haryana Police using tear gas shells to stop them at the Shambhu border between the two states.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, also a former agriculture minister, deliberated upon various farmer issues with Munda, who is currently in charge of the agriculture ministry. Munda is also one of the ministers who held discussions with farmer groups, the sources said.

Details about the meeting could not be immediately ascertained.

Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury on Wednesday condemned the government action against farmers at the Shambhu border near Haryana's Ambala and expressed solidarity with the Grameen Bandh called on February 16.

"The kind of atrocities that are being meted out to farmers, the barbaric suppression should be stopped immediately," Yechury said in Hindi in a video the CPI(M) shared on ‘X’.

"Their valid demand of MSP, for which they were given an assurance, needs to be fulfilled by the Modi government. If they (the government) try to go back on their word, they will not succeed," he said.

“Comrade Sitaram Yechury condemns Narendra Modi-led BJP govt's actions against farmers at Shambhu border, expresses solidarity with struggling peasants and workers for their upcoming strike on February 16, 2024," the CPI(M) said in the post.

Haryana security personnel lobbed tear gas shells on farmers from Punjab at Shambhu border between the two states as thousands of protesters stayed put there on Wednesday, the second day of their 'Delhi Chalo' march.

The police action came whenever any group of the protesting farmers tried to move towards the barricades.

Some farmers also pelted stones at the security personnel who were positioned close to the barricades.

The police have deployed a drone to keep an eye on the protesting farmers who are demanding a legal guarantee to minimum support price (MSP).

A few youths even flew kites at the Singhu border in order to bring the drone down by entangling the unmanned aerial vehicle in the kite strings.

One of the youths, who was flying the kite, expressed anger over the use of drones to drop tear gas shells on the protesters.

The farmers stayed put at the Data Singhwala-Khanauri border in Haryana's Jind district on Wednesday.

Responding to non-stop protests in the Capital, the Delhi Police are now set to tame unruly protesters with a high-tech sound device.

A Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD), which emits a piercing sound and was originally used by the navy to disperse pirates, will soon be used to chase away the protesting crowds in the city.

The idea behind using the device, powerful enough to make a person temporarily rattled, is to make them leave the place without the use of violence.

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: “I would like to urge all the leaders from different farmers' organizations to cooperate and communicate so that the common people shouldn't have to suffer, central government is determined in this regard," said Union Minister Arjun Munda who is also negotiating with farmer leaders. 

“I request all the farmer unions that solution to any issue can be found through dialogue and mutual understanding.” said Munda. 

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: On security arrangements amid farmers' 'Delhi Chalo' protest, Jhajjar SP Arpit Jain said that law and order is in control so far. 

“There is peace so far in our district. However, we have placed barricades as a preventive measure. If someone doesn't follow law & order, legal actions will be taken. Pedestrians have been given space... I urge everyone to maintain peace and harmony.” said Jain. 

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: "When farmers started moving from Amritsar, they (Congress) did not even try to stop them. This clearly means that they want the farmers to create terror in Delhi. Stone pelting is going on and one of our DSP & 25 other police officers are injured in this..." said Haryana minister Anil Vij. 

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: Responding to Punjab Government's notice of asking Haryana to not use drone within its territory, Haryana Minister Anil Vij said that he was surprised. 

“The report on MSP came in 2004 when Congress was in power. Why didn't they do anything in 10 years?... The farmers want to go to Delhi and have a conversation with representatives of the Govt but when they came to Chandigarh, the farmer leaders refused to talk to them. I am surprised that the Punjab Govt has released a notice asking us not to send drones to our border,” said Vij. 

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has spoken with a farmer injured in police action during the tillers' protest march, and accused the Modi government of having a "dictatorial attitude" towards the country's food providers. Gandhi spoke to the farmer Gurmeet Singh through phone. 

Gurmeet Singh, was facilitated by Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Raja Warring who visited a government hospital in Rajpura town of Patiala district after the farmers clashed with Haryana Police.

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: "There is an attempt to make a perception about us. We have not come here for confrontation with the government," said farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher during a press conference at Shambhu border on Wednesday as he requested PM Modi to agree to the demands of the farmers. 

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: Farmers have put forth multiple demands including- Minimum Support Price (MSP), implementation of the Swaminathan Commission's recommendations, pensions for farmers and farm labourers, farm debt waiver, withdrawal of police cases and "justice" for victims of the Lakhimpur Kheri violence, reinstate the Land Acquisition Act 2013, withdraw from the World Trade Organisation, compensation for families of farmers died during the previous agitation, among others.

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra Teni said BJP has always been a party of farmers and has worked for ensuring positive changes in their life. Teni said the BJP government started the crop insurance scheme to compensate the farmers for the loss of crop, and added that it always works to end the problems of the farmers.

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: Farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher addresses a press conference at Shambhu border

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: Union Minister Arjun Munda said that the central government is ready to hold discussion as he requested the agitating farmers to maintain positive environment for discussion.  

“I have said this before that we (government) are ready to hold constructive talks with the farmers. We should consider all points and then hold a discussion. Secondly, the farmers should understand that the protest should not create problems for anyone and does not affect the normal life,” said Munda. 

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: Security personnel fired some tear gas shells on farmers Wednesday morning at the Shambhu border near Ambala as the peasants gathered there to resume their 'Dilli Chalo' protest

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: Punjab authorities have raised an objection to Haryana's use of drone inside its territory at Shambhu border. Haryana has used drones on Tuesday to air-drop tear gas shells to disperse farmers who were trying to break barricades in an attempt to march towards Delhi. 

Punjab's Patiala Deputy Commissioner (DC) Showkat Ahmed Parray has written to the Ambala Deputy Commissioner, asking him not to send their drone inside Punjab's territory at the Shambhu border near Ambala.

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: Farm Unions have condemned the action on agitating farmers of the borders of Delhi. The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) ondemned the Central Government for resorting to what it termed was the excessive use of state power and mass arrests to prevent the Delhi Chalo March. 

SKM said that it was shocking that drones were used to drop tear gas shells on the farmers by the administration. SKM also called on all its member organisations and their units across India to strongly protest against the attack on farmers in Punjab on February 16, in all the villages across India and make the Grameen Bandh and Industrial/Sectoral Strike across India even more massive, extensive and successful.

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: "We have come for MSP of our crops, to demand compensation for our brothers who died in Lakhimpur (Kheri) and loan waiver. Farmers should get pension, we have come for our rights," says Amandeep Kaur, who has come from Punjab's Khanna district, at Shambhu border.

Delhi Chalo March: In view of the ongoing Farmers agitation, mobile internet services along with bulk SMS and all dongle services provided on mobile networks, except the voice calls in the jurisdiction of districts Ambala, Kurukshetra, Kaithal, Jind, Hisar, Fatehabad and Sirsa of Haryana State to remain suspended till 15th February.

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: Delhi Traffic Police today issued a traffic advisory, alerting commuters about restrictions on vehicular movement at various border areas and alternative routes for seamless travel due to diversions.  READ FULL STORY 
 

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: Police personnel are carrying out security checks at Shambhu border in Ambala, Haryana on second day of farmers' protest. 

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: Massive traffic snarls were witnessed in several areas of  Delhi-National Capital Region on Wednesday as multiple layers of barricades stopped the movement of vehicles. 

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: As the farmers are all set to resume their march to the national capital, the security has been beefed up at the borders including Singhu, Tikri, Ghazipur among others. 

Workers were seen pouring more concrete between the slabs at Tikri Border early in the morning. 

Delhi Chalo March LIVE UPDATES: Farm Unions Will resume the protest on Wednesday morning after halting for a night. The protest began on Tuesday as the farmers under the aegis of farm unions Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha announced Delhi Chalo Mach to press the Centre.