BATHINDA: All of 70, Gamdoor Singh, one of the protesters at Badbar village toll plaza on the Bathinda-Chandigarh highway in Barnala district, feels he is part of the Satyagraha and non-cooperation movement. “Many such movements were undertaken against impreial forces before Independence and this is our answer to the Union government which wants to sacrifice the interests of its own people to corporates. Blocking toll plazas and debarring Reliance and Essar fuel stations is our way of non-cooperation,” he said.
Seventeen days have passed since the 30 farm organisations protesting against three agri laws stationed themselves at toll plazas, a major source of revenue collection by private players who use it to construct and maintain highways. The farmers are allowing vehicles to pass through without payment or any withdrawal from their fastag accounts.
“These plazas impose extra burden on small-time vehicle owners and stopping them from collecting money from road users is a small relief to them,” said Gurwinder Singh, a protester sitting at Mehal Kalan toll plaza on Barnala-Ludhiana highway.
Punjab has 23 toll plazas on National Highways which used to record daily collection of over Rs 1 crore a day before protesting farmers took over on October 1. According to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), toll collection agencies have suffered a loss of nearly Rs 50 crore so far. The authority is raising the matter with the state government to get compensation.
Farmers have put up tents around all lanes of toll plazas, leaving only one on each side for commuters to pass by without paying toll fee. Protesters have even erected makeshift stages at some of the plazas from where farm leaders address protesters and plays are staged to boost their morale. A number of volunteers even spend nights at the plazas. Many protesters leave for home late in the evening to resume the protest in the morning.
Social activist Sadhu Ram Kusla said, “In my entire life, I have not seen such protests, that too held simultaneously against private concerns and government property with such intensity. When we pass through the tolls, it seems unbelievable how farmers are controlling the places, keeping the cadre under complete command.”
Out of the 23, farm organisation BKU Ekta Ugrahan alone has taken 10 plazas under its command, apart from protesters blocking 23 Reliance petrol pumps, 10 Essar petrol pumps, staging demonstrations at residences of 10 BJP leaders, at four shopping malls of corporate houses apart from a silo of Adani group and an independent power plant of Vedanta group.
“It is our idea of protest against corporates and leaders of the ruling party which supports the corporates. We want the Union government to start thinking about the welfare of farmers besides corporates. We may be too small for the big powers but when people come together, even the mighty can be made to face the heat, which is what we are trying to do,” said farm organisation BKU Ekta Ugrahan general secretary Sukhdev Singh Kokri.
NHAI regional officer R P Singh said 23 toll plazas in Punjab have suffered a loss of about Rs 50 crore in 17 days. There is a clause in agreements with the state government to reimburse toll running agencies if collection could not be made due to issues like protests. The matter has been raised with the state government for compensation of the loses suffered by toll running agencies.
Punjab PWD minister Vijayinder Singla said, “The state government has no direct control on the working of toll plazas. It is an agreement between NHAI and toll collecting agency but if there is any clause in the agreements pertaining to the role of state government where a highway is passing, we will look into it.”