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‘Inadequate’ compensation: Delhi-Katra Expressway: Passengers suffer as farmers squat on rail tracks in 7 dists
Farmers squatted on tracks at seven places in Punjab on Thursday to lodge their protest against ‘inadequate’ land compensation for the Delhi-Katra Expressway under the Centre’s the Bharatmala Pariyojana
AMRITSAR
Eight trains were cancelled, 12 rescheduled and two short-terminated as farmers squatted on tracks at seven places in Punjab on Thursday to lodge their protest against ‘inadequate’ land compensation for the Delhi-Katra Expressway under the Centre’s the Bharatmala Pariyojana.
Farmers under the banner of Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMSC) blocked rail tracks in Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Tarn Taran, Jalandhar, Ferozepur, Fazilka and Moga districts. The protesters alleged that the government and the national Highways Authority (NHAI) started the work on the expressway before depositing the compensation amount in the affected farmers’ accounts.
Amid sloganeering against chief minister Bhagwant Mann and his government, the agitators started the protest around 1pm causing inconvenience to passengers.
The blockade was lifted after around three hours following an assurance of fixing a meeting with the CM at Punjab Bhawan in Chandigarh on May 24 to resolve the issue, according to KMSC president Sukhwinder Singh Sabhra, general secretary Rana Ranbir Singh and state secretary Sukhjinder Singh.
On Wednesday, some protesting farmers scuffled with the police in Gurdaspur district after the work on the expressway project started.
Gurdaspur deputy commissioner Himanshu Aggarwal ruled out the allegations that the possession of land was taken without paying compensation to the farmers. “We have given the compensation to almost all the farmers,” he said, adding that some farmers are demanding hike in compensation. “We have asked them to lodge a plea with the divisional commissioner for arbitration in the award. We held camps and received 200 applications from farmers in the last two month in this regard. And in some cases, compensation amount was enhanced,” the DC said.
He said farmers have been given adequate compensation, which is more than the market price of the land. It varies from ₹40 lakh to ₹1 crore per acre, he added.
About the project
The expressway, to be constructed at a cost of ₹35,000 crore will reduce the distance between Delhi and Katra by 40km and the travel time from the present 11 hours to around six hours. The travel time from Delhi to Amritsar will also be reduced to around four hours, according to NHAI officials.
As per the detailed project report, the expressway will promote religious tourism as the road will connect two important holy cities —Katra-Vaishno Devi and Amritsar— before it teaches Delhi.
The expressway will also provide shortest connectivity to important Sikh shrines at Dera Baba Nanak, Goindwal Sahib, Khadoor Sahib and Tarn Taran.
(Inputs from Navrajdeep Singh and Gaurav Sagar Bhaskar)
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Cop ‘slaps’ woman, probe ordered
A Punjab Police cop allegedly slapped a woman who was protesting against the acquisition of land for the Delhi-Katra Expressway at Bhambri village in Gurdaspur district on Wednesday. The video of the incident went viral on social media.
The KMC registered a protest against the incident. “The highhanded attitude of the government and its police which applied force to uproot the farmers from their agriculture land is condemnable,” KMC spokesperson Gurbachan Singh Chabba said.
The cop has been sent to police lines and an inquiry has been ordered to probe the incident.
Gurdaspur DC Himanshu Aggarwal said: “The protesting farmers tried to hit the cops with a tractor and it made them retaliate. The viral clip of the video is telling one side of the story. We have asked police to handle the situation peacefully. The inquiry of the incident has been marked to the SSP, he added.
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Thursday condemned the incident and demanded a high-level probe into the matter. In a statement, senior SAD leader Daljit Singh Cheema said: “The AAP government and its chief minister, who heads the home department, have been exposed. Instead of listening to the grievances of the protesting farmers, this anti-farmer government has chosen to thrash and detain them. They don’t even spare women and elderly,” he said.
