Farmers protest: Haryana extends mobile internet lockdown in 7 districts till February 19

Due to the farmers’ unrest, the Haryana government on Saturday extended the ban on mobile internet and bulk SMS in seven districts for two more days until February 19.

The affected districts are Ambala, Kurukshetra, Kaithal, Jind, Hisar, Fatehabad and Sirsa. The government had already extended the mobile internet ban on February 13 and 15.

Protesting farmers remained at Shambhu and Khanauri posts on the Punjab-Haryana border for the fifth consecutive day after their “Delhi Chalo” march to press the central government on various demands, including a legal guarantee of minimum price for crops, was stopped by security forces, leading to clashes.

Besides a legal guarantee of MSP, farmers are demanding implementation of Swaminathan Commission recommendations, pensions for farmers and agricultural labourers, debt relief for agriculture, no hike in electricity tariffs, cessation of police cases and “justice” for the victims of the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence, reinstatement of the Land Acquisition Act, 2013 and compensation for the families of farmers killed in earlier unrest in 2020-21.