On December 18th, farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher urged Punjabis to support the ‘Rail Roko’ campaign

New Delhi: Punjab state residents were urged to join the ‘Rail Roko’ movement on December 18 by farmer activist Sarwan Singh Pandher. “I want to appeal to the people of Punjab to participate in the ‘Rail Roko‘ agitation on December 18,” Pandher said in an interview with a media report on Sunday. We want everyone who lives close to a railway track in Punjab’s 13,000 villages to block the closest railway crossings and stations between 12 and 3 p.m.

Pandher said that on December 16, a tractor march would take place outside of Punjab, and on December 18, there would be a “Rail Roko” inside Punjab. The declaration was made only hours after the police withdrew a ‘Jathha’ of 101 farmers from the Shambhu border for the day owing to security concerns.

According to Pandher, the police deployed water cannons and tear gas to scatter demonstrators at the Shambhu Border, injuring 17 farmers. In addition, he said that a number of farmers were in grave danger and charged the government with being careless in their medical treatment.

“101 farmers were subjected to violence by the Indian government, which has the fifth-largest economy in the world. Bombs were thrown, tear gas shells were fired, and cannons were used to pour chemical water at us.

The hospital is not providing the necessary care for the 17 farmers who have been hurt; several of them are in critical condition. “We implore the Punjabi government to guarantee proper care,” he had previously said.

“We have called for a ‘Rail Roko’ in Punjab on December 18, and a tractor march will be held outside of Punjab on December 16. We urge all Punjabis to take part in great numbers,” he said.

During the current winter session of Parliament, Pandher criticized the opposition for failing to adequately address the concerns of farmers. In particular, he charged Rahul Gandhi, the head of the Congress, for not keeping his pledges to the farmers.

On Saturday afternoon, the ‘Jathha’ of 101 farmers was prevented from reaching the capital city at the Haryana border point at Shambhu. Police cited security concerns and the necessity to control protestors’ progress into Delhi as reasons for the tensions that developed at the demonstration site when the farmers tried to proceed.

Following the farmers’ announcement of their new effort to march into Delhi, the police presence at the border was greatly strengthened. Farmers are stepping up their protests to force the government to take action as the movement gathers steam.