UP, Haryana borders being fortified to prevent farmers from entering Delhi, says police

New Delhi, Feb 9 (PTI) Bracing for another agitation by farmers, police are fortifying the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh and Delhi-Haryana borders with barricades and deploying more than 5,000 security personnel, a senior police officer said here on Friday.

On Thursday, farmers from Uttar Pradesh went on a sit-in demonstration on the Noida-Greater Noida Expressway as police blocked their protest march to Delhi, resulting in massive traffic chaos.

Several farmer associations, mostly from Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab, have called for another protest on February 13 to demand a law guaranteeing a minimum support price (MSP), one of the conditions they had set when they agreed to withdraw their agitation against the now repealed farm laws in 2021.

Besides a legal guarantee for an MSP, the farmers are also demanding 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.

“We are in contact with our counterparts in Haryana, Punjab, and Uttar Pradesh to know how many farmer organisations will join the protest and the number of expected people. After a proper review, we will chalk out a plan to ensure law and order situation,” said another senior police officer.

On Thursday, thousands of farmers from around 100 villages of Noida and Greater Noida took to streets, bringing traffic to a standstill in several parts of Delhi-NCR as they made an unsuccessful bid to march towards the Parliament.

Farmer leader Rakesh Tikait on Thursday joined the protesters in Greater Noida where his Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) members have been protesting outside the local authority office.

Barricades were set up at the Chilla border with the Noida Police on one side and the Delhi Police on the other to prevent protesters, who started their march from the Mahamaya Flyover in Noida around 12 pm, from entering the national capital.

“The city police is also in contact with the paramilitary forces and a proper security plan will be there. We had already heightened security and installed barricades at different borders of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. Police personnel will be equipped in anti-riot gears,” said the police officer.