Protesting Punjab farmers lift rail blockade

Protesting farmers in Punjab today lifted their week-long rail blockade that crippled train services and caused a whopping economic loss to the state but said their protest in support of their demand for higher compensation would continue.
"We have called off our 'Rail Roko' agitation and started lifting blockade at different places in the state," BKU Ekta (Dakunda) General Secretary Jagmohan Singh said.
However, BKU Ekta (Ugrahan) General Secretary Sukhdev Singh Kokri said their agitation against the state government would continue for non-acceptance of all of their demands including higher compensation for cotton crop loss.
"Our agitation will continue. We will now change the format of our agitation. We have decided to gherao residences of all the state ministers, ruling party MLAs and other party leaders on October 23.

He said they would launch a protest tomorrow, stop ministers from entering villages and show them black flags.
Agitating farmers arrived at the decision after holding their core committee meeting which continued till late night at Kisan Bhawan here.

The farmers' agitation, which began on October 7, hit rail movement in Punjab as over 1,200 trains were affected because of protest in Ambala and Ferozepur divisions of railways, causing inconvenience to passengers and heavy loss to financial loss to railway authorities.
The talks between protesting farmers and Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal failed to break the deadlock over peasants' demands yesterday, following which farmers had announced to continue with their agitation till today.

The BKU leaders also hit out at Badal for expressing "inability" to raise the quantum of compensation for cotton crop loss and basmati prices.
"During the meeting, Badal told us that state government has nothing to offer. But said our demands are genuine and farmers are in pain. Badal said his government's financial position was worse than the cotton crop which has been extensively damaged by the whitefly attack," Singh said.
"Should such kind of response be given by a CM to protesting farmers?" asked Singh.
"Badal has flatly refused to honour our main demand of increase in cotton crop loss by pest attack and basmati rates which forced to continue our agitation," said Kokri.