00:00 In a renewed wave of protest, security forces at the Punjab-Haryana border have fired tear
00:13 gas shells as farmers, undeterred by previous setbacks, in talks with the Centre, prepare
00:19 to resume their Delhi Chalo March.
00:21 Union Minister Arjun Munda has extended an invitation for further negotiations, expressing
00:27 the government's willingness to discuss issues like MSP demands, crop diversification, stubble
00:33 burning and FIRs related to the 2020 protests.
00:37 The Haryana police have urged their Punjab counterparts to seize equipment brought by
00:42 the protesters to dismantle police barricades.
00:45 Approximately 14,000 farmers, accompanied by 1,200 tractor trolleys, 300 cars and 10
00:52 minibuses, have gathered along the border.
00:55 In response to the escalating situation, Delhi police are on high alert, conducting drills
01:02 to secure entry points as farmers, halted at the interstate border since February 13,
01:08 gear up to advance towards the national capital.
01:11 Efforts by the Centre and the Haryana government to seek judicial intervention were denied
01:17 by the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
01:19 Meanwhile, Kisan Mazdoor Morcha leader Sarwan Singh Pandher reiterated the farmers' commitment
01:26 to peaceful demonstrations, appealing to the government to remove barricades and allow
01:31 them to proceed to Delhi unimpeded.
01:34 "We are trying to remain peaceful.
01:37 If the Centre feels that there is some confusion in the demands, we say, 'Prime Minister,
01:45 it is your duty to protect the constitution.
01:50 You protect the constitution.
01:52 Allow us to peacefully protest and go to Delhi."
02:00 The Home Ministry estimates 4,500 protesters with 500 tractors at the Dhabi-Gujran border
02:07 point.
02:08 Concerns over the law and order situation were expressed in a letter from the Ministry
02:12 of Home Affairs to the Punjab government, attributing the situation to miscreants posing
02:18 as farmers.
02:19 Traffic congestion is expected around Delhi's border points due to road closures and heavy
02:25 police deployment.
02:26 In the lead-up to the protest's resumption, farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher called
02:31 for a day-long parliament session to enact legislation guaranteeing MSP for crops.
02:37 The situation remains tense as the farmers reject the Centre's proposal for government
02:42 agencies to procure pulses, maize and cotton at MSP for five years.
02:48 Deeming it against their interests, they declare their intention to march towards the national
02:53 capital.
02:54 Despite the Punjab and Haryana court's directive not to allow farmers to gather in large numbers
03:00 and the observation that tractor trolleys cannot be run on highways, the farmers remain
03:05 resolute in their determination to continue the Delhi-Chalo march.
03:09 For more information visit www.fema.gov.il/delhi-chalo
