Punjab: Farmers Launch Three-Day Rail Blockade Demanding MSP Guarantee And Debt Waiver

Multiple farmers' associations have launched a three-day rail blockade commencing today (28 September) to underscore their key demands.

These demands encompass a financial relief package to compensate for the losses incurred due to recent floods, a legally binding assurance for Minimum Support Price (MSP), and the waiver of agricultural debt.

The decision to orchestrate this rail blockade was communicated by Sarwan Singh Pandher, the general secretary of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee.

While the majority of participating farmer groups hail from Punjab, this movement has garnered support from agricultural outfits in Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and other regions.

According to Pandher, the farmers are advocating for financial relief packages to aid those affected by the recent floods in northern India.

Furthermore, they are pressing for a legally binding assurance of MSP for all crop categories and comprehensive debt waivers, among other demands.

The 'rail roko' action will unfold in 12 different locations across Punjab, including Moga, Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur, Jalandhar, Tarn Taran, Sangrur, Patiala, Ferozepur, Bathinda, and Amritsar.

Numerous farmer organizations are lending their support to this movement, including the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, Bharti Kisan Union (Krantikari), Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Azaad), Azaad Kisan Committee Doaba, Bharti Kisan Union (Behramke), Bharti Kisan Union (Shaheed Bhagat Singh), Bharti Kisan Union (Chottu Ram), Kisan Mahapanchayat (Haryana), Pagri Sambhal Jatta (Haryana), Progressive Farmer Front (Uttar Pradesh), Bhoomi Bachao Muhim (Uttarakhand), and the Rashtriya Kisan Sangathan (Himachal Pradesh).

Earlier this month, approximately 100 farmers in Maharashtra's Sangli district staged a 'rail roko' protest against the railways' land acquisition efforts.

This resulted in a four-hour interruption of the Kolhapur-Gondia Maharashtra Express in the Bhilwadi-Nandre region of Palus tehsil.