Kisan Mahapanchayat HIGHLIGHTS: Farmers Arrive At Ramila Maidan, Delhi Sees Major Traffic Restrictions
Farmers' 'Kisan Mahapanchayat' HIGHLIGHTS: Please follow this space for all updates from the Ramlila Maidan in Delhi, where farmers are gathering for the mahapanchayat.
"A meeting was held and the government got a message that the farmers of the country are united. The government should resolve the issue through talks, this agitation is not going to end," Bhartiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait told PTI.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said the opposition INDIA alliance, if voted to power, will be the "voice of farmers" and frame policies to protect them.
He was addressing a farmers' rally at Chandwad in Maharashtra's Nashik district along with NCP (SP) head Sharad Pawar and Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut, as part of the Congress' ongoing 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra'.
"The INDIA alliance government will be the voice of farmers and work to protect their interests," Gandhi said.
He promised loan waiver for farmers, restructuring of crop insurance scheme to benefit cultivators, to protect crop prices in formulation of export import policies and to make efforts to exclude agriculture from GST and work on only one tax.
The Lok Sabha member from Wayanad also reiterated the Congress' promise of a legal guarantee to minimum support price (MSP) as per the Swaminathan committee report.
The former Congress president claimed 20 to 25 people in the country have wealth equivalent to 70 crore of the country's population.
The Narendra Modi government waived off Rs 16 lakh crore debt of industrialists, he further claimed.
"This amount is equivalent to 24 years of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA) under which Rs 35,000 crore is spent every year to give employment to the poor people," Gandhi said. (PTI Input)
Farmers gathered in large numbers at Delhi's Ramlila Ground on Thursday to participate in a "Kisan Mazdoor Mahapanchayat" organised to protest the BJP-led Centre's agricultural policies.
VIDEO | Delhi Kisan Mahapanchayat: Farmers Raise Slogans Against Centre At Ramlila Maidan
Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKWU) leader Rakesh Tikait told reporters: "Our leadership here will discuss and later we will announce their decision. MSP guarantee law is a big issue. Whatever decision is taken today, the people gathered here will inform about to people in their respective villages, cities, and states. There is a need for a big agitation in the country".
DCP Central M Harsha Vardhan told ANI: "We have made elaborate arrangements to ensure that law & order is maintained. The organising group has also given a written undertaking in which there are various points relating to maintaining law & order. A lot of farmers have come & it is an ongoing process. But we are hopeful that it will be under the limit of what the SKM leaders have told us. Sufficient forces are available with us. We are trying that without any law & order disturbance and with minimal traffic disturbance everything happens".
Heavy traffic in Noida as police tighten security because of Kisan Mahapanchayat being held today at Delhi Ramlila Maidan.
Security heightened near Delhi's Ramlila Maidan where farmers are scheduled to hold 'Kisan Mahapanchayat' later today. (PTI Input)
Farmer leader Gurnam Singh Chaduni told reporters, "The government has not fulfilled the demands of farmers and workers so far. We have organised Kisan Mazdoor Mahapanchayat at Delhi's Ramlila Ground to push for all the pending demands. We are going there".
The Delhi Police granted permission to the farmers to hold their 'Kisan Mazdoor Mahapanchayat' under certain conditions, including limiting the gathering to no more than 5,000 individuals, prohibiting tractor trolleys, and disallowing marches at the Ramlila Maidan, news agency PTI reported.
Police also said on Wednesday that elaborate security measures have been put in place, which may result in heavy traffic congestion in the national capital on Thursday.
According to a Delhi Traffic Police advisory, farmers are expected to congregate on Jawaharlal Nehru Marg, Barakhamba Road, Bahadurshah Zafar Marg, Tolstoy Marg, Asaf Ali Road, Jai Singh Road, Swami Vivekanand Marg, Sansad Marg, Netaji Subhash Marg, Baba Kharag Singh Marg, Minto Road, Ashoka Road, Maharaja Ranjeet Singh flyover, Connaught Circus, Bhavbhuti Marg, DDU Marg and Chaman Lal Marg.
According to the advisory, traffic will be diverted on Delhi Gate, Mir Dard Chowk, Ajmeri Gate Chowk, Guru Nanak Chowk, Kamla Market, Paharganj Chowk, Jhandewalan roundabout, Maharaja Ranjeet Singh flyover from Barakhambha Road to Guru Nanak Chowk, Barakhamba Road, Janpath Road, KG Marg crossing and GPO (Gol Post Office) roundabout beginning at 6 am on Thursday.
According to a PTI report, another police officer stated that the farmers were asked to leave the grounds shortly after the conclusion of their programme after 2.30pm. He stated that if they do not follow the undertakings and continue to violate Delhi's law and order, they will face severe consequences.
M Harsha Vardhan, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central), told the news agency PTI that farmers can hold the'mahapanchayat' with a gathering of less than 5,000 people. He stated that the farmers gave them an undertaking in which they were asked not to come with tractors or weapons, and that they would not hold a march in Delhi.
According to Manjit Dhaner, head of the Dhaner faction of BKU (Ekta-Dakaunda), which is affiliated with the SKM, over 30,000 farmers from Punjab are expected to travel to the national capital.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the SKM stated that the Delhi Police had given them permission to hold the mahapanchayat at Ramlila Maidan on March 14 and to arrange parking space and other basic amenities such as water, toilets, and ambulances with the support of Delhi's municipal administration. (PTI Input)
The Samyukt Kisan Morcha has announced that a 'Kisan Mazdoor Mahapanchayat' will be held at the Ramlila Maidan, with a resolution to intensify the fight against the government's policies.
Background
Farmers' 'Kisan Mahapanchayat' HIGHLIGHTS: Hello, and welcome to ABP Live's Live Blog. Please stay tuned for the most recent developments from the Ramlila Maidan in Delhi.
The Samyukta Kisan Morcha, a coalition of farmers' groups, is set to convene a ‘Kisan Mazdoor Mahapanchayat’ at Ramlila Maidan in Delhi on Thursday (March 14), with a probable resolution to escalate opposition against central government policies.
Delhi Police have granted permission for the gathering, stipulating a cap of 5,000 attendees and barring tractor trolleys near the venue, according to officials briefed by news agency PTI.
Though the SKM anticipates over 50,000 farmers from Punjab to participate, emphasizing the event's peaceful nature, scores of farmers have already commenced their journey to Delhi, mobilizing via over 800 buses, trucks, and trains.
Anticipating disruptions, authorities caution about potential traffic congestion across the capital due to the assembly at Ramlila Maidan. The Gautam Buddh Nagar Police have advised commuters to expect delays on the Noida-Delhi routes.
Security measures have intensified at Delhi's borders – Singhu, Tikri, and Ghazipur – aiming to deter farmers currently protesting there from entering the city. Despite this, hundreds of farmers remain encamped at the Punjab-Haryana borders for over a month.
According to Manjit Dhaner, head of the Dhaner faction of BKU (Ekta-Dakaunda), which is affiliated with the SKM, over 30,000 farmers from Punjab are expected to travel to the national capital.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the SKM stated that the Delhi Police had permitted them to hold the mahapanchayat at Ramlila Maidan on March 14 and to arrange parking space and other basic amenities such as water, toilets, and ambulances with the support of the Delhi municipal administration.
M Harsha Vardhan, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central), told the PTI that farmers can hold the'mahapanchayat' with a gathering of less than 5,000 people. He stated that the farmers gave them an undertaking in which they were asked not to come with tractors or weapons, and that they would not hold a march in Delhi.
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