Rail services were badly hit in Punjab due to the farmers' two-day long 'Rail Roko' agitation which started today to protest against SAD-BJP government's "anti-farmer" policies.
Agitating farmers who would continue with their protest till tomorrow claimed that 5,000 farmers were "arrested" by Punjab police from different locations in the state.
Due to the farmers' rail blockade, as many as 13 trains were cancelled while 6 trains were diverted with Ludhiana-Amritsar, Ludhiana-Jammu, Fazilka-Ferozepur, Ferozepur-Bathinda, Kotakpura-Fazilka sections being "severely" hit, railway officials said.
Among 13 trains which were cancelled included Amritsar-Chandigarh intercity (12412), Amritsar-Howrah (13050), Amritsar Dehradun (14632), Hirakund Express (18508), Amritsar-Darbhanga (15212) and a few DMUs between Ferozepur -Fazilka, and Fazilka-Bathinda, official said.
Farmers' protest forced railway authorities to divert six trains via Tarn Taran which included Amritsar-Sahrasa (14604), Chhattisgarh Express (18238), Golden Temple (12904), Amritsar-Howrah mail (13006), Delhi-Pathankot (14037) and Jammu Tawi-Tata Nagar Muri (18012), they said.
Two trains Swarn Shatabdi (12029) and Garib Rath (14606) were short terminated near Beas, railway officials said. They would return from Jalandhar and Beas respectively.
Not paying any heed to the request of railway authorities for not halting trains, farmers in large numbers went ahead with their protest and squatted on railway tracks at various places to stop train movement, causing inconvenience to passengers.
In the wake of Rail Roko agitation, railway authorities deployed senior staff at Jalandhar, Ferozepur, Ludhiana, Amritsar and Fazilka for faster implementation of decision such as train diversion to minimise the impact of agitation.
