Total bandh in Punjab; road, rail traffic hit in Haryana

Tribune News Service

New Delhi/Chandigarh, March 26

Road and rail traffic was disrupted in several parts of Punjab and Haryana during the “Bharat Bandh” called by farmers on Friday as part of their nationwide protest against the three farm laws. The response was partial in other parts of the country. Punjab saw a complete shutdown. Roads and markets wore a deserted look. Bus service in the state was severely hit with both private operators and Punjab Roadways buses keeping off road.

A press note by the Northern Railways said 10 trains, including the Amritsar-New Delhi Shatabdi and the Kalka-New Delhi Shatabdi, were cancelled. At last five trains were diverted and more than 39 “short- terminated.”

Impact barely 0.5% nationwide: Rlys

New Delhi: The Railways said on Friday barely 0.5 per cent of the trains were impacted by Bharat Bandh. “Barring a limited number of trains in Punjab and Haryana, the bandh had nearly zero impact across the nation,” said official sources. TNS

All passenger and goods trains passing through Ropar district were cancelled or terminated mid-way. The bandh received a massive response in Patiala, Bathinda, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Amritsar, Mansa, Sangrur and Barnala. “All sections of society supported the bandh today,” said Jagtar Kalajhar of the BKU-Ugrahan.

Under the banner of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, farmers in Amritsar held a protest bare-chested. They blocked the Amritsar-New Delhi rail track and the Amritsar-Jalandhar GT road. In Fatehgarh Sahib district, farmers gathered in front of the shop of BJP’s Sirhind unit president, asking him to shut his shop.In Haryana, farmers blocked highways and other key roads and squatted on rail tracks at several locations. As many as 35 passenger trains were detained and the movement of 40 goods trains was affected. The movement of trains was disrupted at 44 locations under the Delhi, Ambala and Ferozepur divisions. Road traffic was hit at Ambala, Panipat, Sonepat, Jhajjar, Jind, Panchkula, Kaithal, Karnal, Kurukshetra, Yamunanagar, Hisar, Sirsa, Fatehabad, Palwal, Rohtak and Bhiwani districts.

Shops remained shut in Rajasthan’s Sikar, Jhunjhunu, Sriganganagar and Hanumangarh districts. Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, and Odisha saw a mixed response.