New Delhi: The farmers have issued a 7-day ultimatum to the central government to accept their demands after they were stopped at the borders. The farmers began marching towards Delhi from different parts of Uttar Pradesh demanding adequate compensation for their lands acquired by the government.
As they were stopped at the Noida-Delhi border, they sat on a dharna there. The farmers said if their demands were not met within seven days, they would again march towards Delhi.
The farmers body has urged Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to immediately accept the "genuine demands" of farmers affected by the Greater Noida, Noida, Yamuna Expressway, UPSIDC and other projects. Announcing the sit-in dharna, the SKM said on Monday and added that their stir would continue till the demands were met.
In a statement, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) — an umbrella organisation of 12 farmers' bodies — said that the Monday march was to bring their issue to the notice of Parliament, which is sitting for the Winter Session.
Raising slogans of "Bol Kisan, Halla Bol", the protesting farmers gathered at the Mahamaya flyover on the Dadri-Noida link road and began their 'Delhi Chalo' march around 11:30 am on Monday.
Massive traffic snarls caused inconvenience to commuters crossing the Delhi-Noida borders as police set up multiple layers of barricades and deployed heavy security to stop the march.
Bumper-to-bumper traffic was witnessed at Noida's Chilla border for several hours as the protesters, waving banners and flags of various farmer groups, crossed the initial barricades. They were finally stopped near Dalit Prerna Sthal, around a kilometre from the Chilla border, an entry point to Delhi, where senior police officers tried to pacify them.
The farmers are now sitting on a dharna at Dalit Prerana Sthal on the Noida-Delhi Highway.