Title - Cops derail farmers’ protest in Rampura

Rampura:
Heavy police presence today prohibited the members of various farmer unions from blocking train services in Rampura. All entry and exit points to the city were barricaded to check the entry of protesting farmers.Male and female police personnel were seen rounding up the farmers amidst raising of slogans by the latter.Packed in different private and police vehicles the farmers were taken to various police stations of the district. The entire operation was supervised by SSP Ravcharan Brar.The farmers gathered near the Maur Road in view of their call to disrupt rail traffic in to pressurise the government to get their demands met. The farmers have been demanding an increase in the MSP of wheat by Rs 2,000, as per the Swaminathan Committee report, more subsidies for the poor and checks on the hike in prices of diesel and other farm inputs.The farmers gathered at Maur Chowk at around 1 pm and 200 of them were taken to Sadar Rampura police

station. The farmers raised slogans against Central and state gvernments, the deputy commissioner and the police.

BKU (Ekta-Ugraha)'s Rampura block president Sukhdev Singh Jawanda said they will hold two state-level dharnas for three days in Bathinda and Amritsar starting from March 10.

He said the farmers from nearby villages were stopped by police at near Phul, Bhunder, Balianwali and other villages.

SSP Ravcharan Brar talking to TNS in the evening said all the farmers rounded up from Rampura had not been released yet.

Fazilka: The police rounded up 68 activists of different farmers unions en route to railway tracks to participate in the agitation at the district headquarters here.

District police head SS Kahlon said the arrests were made from various parts of the town.

It is stated that the police had rounded up 87 farmers out of which 9 farmers over the age of 65 were released by the police without taking any action against them.

After the arrests, the 'Rail Roko' agitation virtually fizzled out as all the trains arrived and departed as per schedule.

Barnala: The police arrested 15 activists in the town. Senior Superintendent of Police Snehdeep Sharma said the arrested persons were produced before the SDM who sent them in judicial custody.