Tear gas fired as farmers regroup at Shambhu Border

Punjab farmers to renew efforts to breach barricades at Haryana border, aiming to reach Delhi for demands.

Chandigarh: Security personnel fired some tear gas shells on farmers Wednesday morning at the Shambhu border near Ambala as the peasants gathered there to resume their ‘Dilli Chalo’ protest, the agitators claimed.

The protesting farmers from Punjab plan to make a fresh attempt to break past the multiple layers of barricades at the border with Haryana in attempt to march to Delhi to press for various demands.

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The Haryana security personnel lobbed a few tear gas shells at around 8 am on Wednesday when some farmers gathered near the barricades at the Shambhu border, the protesters claimed.

On Tuesday, farmers had clashed with Haryana Police at two border points between the states, facing tear gas and water cannons as they tried to break the barricades blocking their protest march to the national capital.

After a face-off with police that lasted several hours on Tuesday, farmer leaders called off the protest for the day. They said they would resume the march from Shambhu on Wednesday.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha are spearheading the Delhi Chalo’ agitation to put pressure on the Centre for their demands, including a law on minimum support price for crops and loan waivers.

During their protest on February 13 at the Shambhu border, farmers, with the help of tractors, managed to remove some of the cemented barricades and iron nails which were part of the elaborate arrangements made by the Haryana authorities to prevent protesters from heading to Delhi.

Twenty-four police personnel, including a deputy superintendent of police, were injured as protesters hurled stones at them, officials said.

Police used tear gas and water cannons against the protesters at the border in state’s Jind district as well. According to police, nine of their men suffered injuries in this clash at Data Singhwala-Khanauri border.

Farmer leaders on Tuesday blamed the Centre for the “attack” on protesters marching towards Delhi and claimed that 60 of them were injured as police used tear gas shells at Punjab-Haryana border points.

The Haryana government on Tuesday had extended the suspension of mobile internet services, bulk SMS and dongle services in seven districts- Ambala, Kurukshetra, Kaithal, Jind, Hisar, Fatehabad and Sirsa ?till February 15.

The Punjab government has sounded an alert in hospitals located near the border with Haryana in the wake of many farmers getting injured following clashes with police at Shambhu and Khanauri borders.