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A section of the trade unions and civil society groups held a protest at Jantar Mantar in solidarity with the "Bharat Bandh" called by farmers against three agriculture laws of the Centre.



The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of over 40 farm unions spearheading the agitation against the tree contentious laws, had appealed to people on Thursday to join the bandh.

Holding banners that read "Long Live Farmers Unity", demanding a repeal of the three farm laws and equal opportunities for all, the protesters held a march at Jantar Mantar.

Organisations including the All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU), the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), the All India Kisan Sabha, the Janwadi Mahila Samiti and the United Trade Union Congress (UTUC) participated in the protest and also raised their voice against issues apart from those related to farmers.

Farmers from different parts of the country, especially Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh, have been protesting at Delhi's borders since November last year and demanding a repeal of the three farm laws that they fear would do away with the Minimum Support Price (MSP) system, leaving them at the mercy of big corporates.

The government, however, has been projecting the three laws as major agriculture reforms. Over 10 rounds of talks between the two sides have failed to break the deadlock.

Security was beefed up along the borders of Ghaziabad and Noida with Delhi while traffic movement on some key routes was hit on Monday morning due to the Bharat Bandh called by a section of farmers against the Centre's three agri laws.

The Ghaziabad Police closed a national highway that connects Ghaziabad and Nizamuddin in Delhi.

Heavy police force and the provincial armed constabulary (PAC) has been deployed in the district and routes have been diverted, Senior Superintendent of Police Pawan Kumar said, adding that the forces are on alert.

Farmer leaders had declared that the 'Raj Talkies' intersection of Modi Nagar would be blocked, and therefore vehicles have been diverted from Partapur, Meerut, to the expressway. Vehicles arriving from Hapur and Ghaziabad have been diverted towards Noida as the peripheral expressway is closed, the police said.

At the UP Gate, which is also the protest site of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) since November last year, police have put up barricades on the highway to check vehicles.

Nobody is allowed to travel from this route between Delhi and Ghaziabad due to the Bharat Bandh call, Superintendent of Police (second) Gyanendra Singh told PTI.

Apart from UP Gate at Ghazipur border, all three borders between Delhi and Ghaziabad -- Ananad Vihar, Dilshad Garden-Apsara Cinema, and Tulsi Niketan -- are open, the SP said.

Meanwhile, the Noida traffic police cautioned commuters against taking the routes passing through Ghazipur in adjoining Ghaziabad for travelling to or from Delhi.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of over 40 farmers' unions leading the 10-month-old agitation for withdrawal of three contentious farm laws, has called for the Bharat Bandh on Monday.

Routes between Noida and Delhi via Chilla and DND flyway are open. But there was an increased traffic on these routes during the peak office hours. The traffic movement had slowed down a bit because of the pressure, a traffic police official told PTI.

On the other side, the expressways, including the Yamuna Expressway, leading from Greater Noida into the interior districts of Uttar Pradesh like Mathura, Agra, Aligarh, Lucknow, among others were open without any hindrance in the morning, according to officials.

In Greater Noida, hundreds of farmers, chiefly supporters of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU), took out a procession which included scores of tractors and two-wheelers.

Similar processions and demonstrations were also witnessed in other western Uttar Pradesh districts like Meerut, Baghpat, Hapur and Bulandshahr among others.

In Baghpat, members and supporters of the Rashtriya Lok Dal joined the demonstrations along with farmers unions.

The Delhi Police also increased security checks at its border points which led to the slowing down of traffic.

The dual carriageway at the Ghazipur border was closed for traffic by the Delhi Police, which informed commuters about road closures and traffic snarls on Twitter.

Due to blocking of National Highway 24 and 9 by protesters, commuters coming from Sarai Kale Khan can take alternate route for Ghaziabad i.e. Vikas Marg for Ghaziabad and for Noida via DND, the traffic police said on Twitter.

The Ghazipur border is closed for traffic from both sides due to farmers' protests. Commuters wishing to commute to and fro between UP and Delhi may use DND flyway, Vikas Marg, Signature bridge, and Wazirabad road. Traffic on NH 24 and 9 is being diverted towards Maharajpur, Apsara and Bhopura borders, it said in a tweet.

In Muzaffarnagar, BKU activists blocked the Delhi-Dehradun national highway at Rampur Tiraha, Chapar and Nawla Kothi, a spokesperson of the union said.

He said BKU activists have also blocked the Meerut-Karnal highway at the Vaiwala checkpost in Budhana block. The Khatima-Panipat highway was blockaded at Lalukheri under the Baghra block.

In addition, roads were blocked in Morna, Jansath, Miranpur and Shahpur as well.

The Kerala High Court on Monday said that the ban on the game of online rummy is unconstitutional when played for stakes, because the game is primarily a game of skill, Bar and Bench reported