The Minister of Railways says he is ready to start trains in the Punjab on condition that the state provides security. (File)
New Delhi:
Train services to Punjab will only be restored after the state government secures railway property and personnel and clears the tracks of all agitators, the Minister of Railways said on Thursday. of iron Piyush Goyal.
He had previously met with leaders of the BJP and Congress in separate delegations, where they had requested Mr. Goyal’s intervention in the resumption of rail services in the state, saying the suspension was having a negative effect on the economy. from Punjab.
“The railways are ready to begin operations in Punjab provided the state government assures us of the safety of the trains and clears the tracks of protesters,” Goyal said in a tweet.
The Chief Minister of Punjab, Amarinder Singh, in a letter delivered personally to Mr. Goyal by lawmakers, ensured the safety and security of railway property and personnel.
“The state government is fully committed to ensuring the safety and security of railway property in Punjab. It is relevant to mention that there were no incidents of arson or damage to railway property during the current turmoil among farmers, ”Amarinder Singh said in his letter.
“We will deploy adequate police and security personnel with the RPF during the day and at night to ensure full protection of railway personnel and property,” the CM said, urging the Minister of Railways to restore rail traffic in the Punjab.
Railways Council Chairman VK Yadav said the Punjab government has given assurances that all blockades on rail facilities by protesters will be lifted by Friday.
Lively discussions marked a meeting between Congressmen of Lok Sabha of Punjab and Minister of Railways Piyush Goyal on restoring rail traffic in the state, with four of them staging a strike following the remarks of the minister.
Sources said four of the eight congressional deputies – Gurpreet Singh Aujla, Ravneet Singh Bittu, Santokh Choudhary and Mohammed Sadique – came out after Mr. Goyal resurfaced accusing the congressional government in Punjab of “provoking and provoking. help farmers “protest against the Central government’s agricultural laws, which have resulted in a disruption of rail traffic.
The four congressmen who remained at the meeting were Preneet Kaur, Manish Tewari, Amar Singh and Jasbir Singh Gill.
The BJP delegation that met with him included Union Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, Party National Secretary General Tarun Chug, Spokesman RP Singh and Punjab Unity Chairman , Ashwani Sharma. In a letter to the Minister of Railways, Sharma alleged that the Congressional government was holding the Punjab “under siege” and playing politics on the issue.
“We demand immediate redress by your august office to make a state government commitment for safety and protection to start freight and passenger trains with immediate effect. The common man is under great economic stress “, he said.
Mr Sharma also said that the shortage of fertilizers and pesticides was a huge problem for the agricultural sector.
“This letter aims to bring to your attention the dire circumstances imposed on Punjabis as the Congressional government (in the state) is busy sponsoring the agitation on behalf of farmers,” he said.
BJP State President Sharma also called for the Chief Minister of the Punjab to be immediately called upon to give assurances that rail roadblocks will be cleared and freight and passenger trains will begin with immediate effect.
Goyal told the delegation that the railways were ready to begin operating in the state provided that assurance was given by the state government on the safety of its personnel.
Punjabi congressmen Pratap Singh Bajwa and Shamsher Singh Dullo also separately met Goyal and handed him a letter in which they said rail services should resume as soon as possible. Otherwise, the safety and security of Punjab as well as that of the armed forces and civilians living in Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh will be negatively affected, they said.
“Due to the suspension of railroad operations, our farmers and the wider Punjab economy will be irrevocably damaged,” Congressmen said, adding that the three private thermal power plants in Punjab have closed their operations due to lack of coal availability.
Train services have been suspended for more than a month in the state due to agitation by farmer groups against three farm reform laws recently passed by parliament. The national carrier said it had already suffered losses due to this to the tune of Rs 1,200 crore.
The three agricultural laws – the Agricultural Trade and Trade (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, the Agreement on Agricultural Price Insurance and Services (Enabling and Protection) of Farmers Act 2020, and the Act of 2020 on essential products (amendment) – were recently adopted. .
Farmers’ organizations protesting against the laws expressed fear that the laws would pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price system, leaving them at the “mercy” of big business. They are asking that the laws be withdrawn.
(Except for the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is posted from a syndicated feed.)
