Farmers fly kites to counter drones dropping tear gas canisters on them
Protesting farmers waiting at Shambhu border are using creative methods to counter tear gas shells on them. They are also using body gear, wet clothes and water bottles to protect themselves
The protesting Punjab farmers, who are waiting at the Shambhu border near Ambala before they proceed on their 'Delhi Chalo' march, are cleverly resorting to flying kites to counter drones deployed by the government to drop tear gas canisters on them.
The farmers are committed to march to Delhi, to push the Centre to accede to their demands, which includes a legal guarantee for a minimum support price (MSP). However, the farmers were stopped at the Shambhu border, near Ambala on February 13, and the situation got tense as security personnel released tear gas shells at them.
On the second day of the protest march, the farmers devised this creative strategy to use long strings to fly kites so that they can get entangled with the rotors of the drones and cause them to crash.
Farmers gear up for clash
Since the talks between the Centre and farmer leaders have hit a roadblock, (though the government has recently made new overtures to the farmers) the farmers, largely from Punjab continued to gather at the Shambhu border, getting ready to break through the multi-layered barricades set up by the police.
Young farmers on their tractors seem to be gearing up to dismantle the cemented blocks and other hindrances set up by the authorities on the roads to block their progress. Even roads are being dug up at a village near Singhu border to stop the farmers.
On Feburary 14, when Haryana security personnel deployed tear gas shells to disperse the stone-pelting farmers, the protestors tried to minimise this attack with wet clothes, and even protective gear. The farmers also got water tankers in order to minimise the impact of any tear gas shell. One of the protesters was seen wearing body protective gears along with eye protective safety goggles at the Shambhu border, said a media report.
Some of the farmer leaders have urged the government to create a positive atmosphere and said they were ready for talks with the government.
The demands
A key demand of the farmers is the enactment of a law guaranteeing an MSP for crops. Other points of contention revolve around the repeal of the Electricity Act 2020, compensation for farmers killed in Lakhimpur Kheri, and the withdrawal of cases against those involved in the farmers' movement.
Meanwhile, the Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) announced that farmers would squat on rail tracks at seven places in Punjab on Feburary 15 in protest against the Haryana Police action against protesting farmers at the borders. BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) president Joginder Singh Ugrahan said their agitation will be held from 12 noon to 4 pm.
