RailEnquiry

Chandigarh: Protesting FDI in retail and hike in diesel prices, farmers from 17 organisations, including factions of BKU, on Friday blocked rail and road traffic at several places in Punjab for about three hours.Commuters by vehicles and trains had to face hardships for few hours in the afternoon due to blockades laid by farmers, officials said in Chandigarh.The protest on the call given by coordination committee of farmers and labourers went off peacefully, they said.At Raya town around 40 km from Amritsar, farmers squatted on the Amritsar-Delhi railway track, police said.They blocked traffic near Attari border on the national highway at Rajasansi airport road and blocked the national highway at Raya, a report from Amritsar said.The farmers led by Kisan Sangrash Committee also demanded that the Punjab government should fulfill its promises which were made before Assembly elections, Kisan Sangharsh Samiti head Kanwalpreet Singh Pannu said.They demanded compensation for losses caused by drought. "We demand Rs 10,000 to Rs 20,000 per acre compensation to drought-hit farmers depending upon the circumstances, besides Rs 10,000 compensation per labourer working in the village at the earliest possible, since labourers also became jobless due to drought," Pannu said.   The protesters urged government to bring a Bill to stop forcible acquisition of fertile land of farmers on the pretext of bringing big projects.Many trains, including Shatabdi, Tata and local trains were affected as these ran behind schedule, officials said.Activists of Kisan organisations and labourers blocked rail traffic at Moga and on Moga-Barnala road for three hours protesting FDI and diesel price hike.   Sukhdev Singh Kokarikalan, General Secretary BKU (Ekta) and spokesperson of Coordination Committee of Kisan and Farm Labourers Organisation said the blockade was peaceful.   The activists criticised the Centre's decision to set up nuclear power station at various places in the country, he said at Moga.  The farmers blocked railway traffic at Raipur village near Nurpurbedi and Gohlni near Nangal in Ropar district.