Modified tractors to lead farmers' protest march, intelligence agencies alert police

By Saurabh Trivedi
New Delhi [India], February 11 : Tractors modified to remove barricades and boulders will lead farmers planned to march to Delhi on February 13.
According to Central intelligence agencies, they have alerted Punjab, UP, Haryana, and Delhi police regarding the mass movement of farmers. More than 25,000 farmers and around 5000 tractors will start their movement from various districts of Punjab and Haryana on Monday to reach Delhi on Tuesday.
"Tractors have been fitted with hydraulic tools to remove barricades, fire-resistant hard-shell trailers being readied to fight tear gas shells. They have also performed drills with these modified vehicles," said an official.
The official added that the horsepower of the machines is being doubled to ferry maximum protesters to the site.
Earlier, police had placed sand-laden dumpers, huge concrete blocks, and containers on the road to block protesters from reaching Delhi, but farmers reached the Delhi border.
In the report, police and paramilitary forces have been informed to prepare themselves to counterattack with swords and sticks. In 2021, a large number of policemen got injured in a sword attack in violence that broke out during a farmers' protest.
On Saturday, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar-led Haryana government announced the suspension of mobile internet, bulk SMS and all dongle services in several districts till February 13 when farmers are scheduled to march to Delhi to press for a host of demands.
According to a notification issued by the Haryana administration, bulk SMS and all dongle services provided on mobile networks, except voice calls, will remain suspended.
According to an official order, mobile internet services will remain suspended in seven districts--Ambala, Kurukshetra, Kaithal, Jind, Hisar, Fatehabad and Sirsa--from 6 am on February 11 till 11.59 pm on February 13.