Farmers sit on railway tracks in India to mark fourth month of protest

NEW DELHI: Farmers marked the fourth month of their protest on Friday by squatting on railway tracks in northern India, disrupting traffic.

Tens of thousands of farmers have been camped on the outskirts of the capital New Delhi since last year, saying new farm laws enacted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government will leave them at the mercy of big corporations.

Farm unions called for a 12-hour nationwide shutdown to keep up the pressure on the Modi government which says the reforms will help farmers realise better prices for their produce and bring investment.

“Four months ago, this day, farmers came to the borders of Delhi with their demands. But this government isn’t listening to the farmers,” said union leader Gurinder Singh Pannu.

“This protest will continue,” he added.

Across the northern states of Haryana and Punjab, protesters blocked railway tracks at 32 locations, leading to the cancellation of at least four passenger trains.

“Around 30 trains are held up,” Deepak Kumar, an Indian railways spokesman, said.

Freight movement had also been affected, with around 20 goods trains currently stalled, Kumar said.

At a major protest camp in Delhi’s Ghazipur, protesters blocked a highway connecting the capital city with neighbouring Uttar Pradesh state.