Farmers' Protests: Chakka Jam to be observed for 3 hours today, Delhi among exempted places

The block, called by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), will be observed for three hours from 12 pm to 3 pm.

However, security has been beefed up in the national capital to avoid any untoward situation.

"There will be no road blockade in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand tomorrow; roads will be blocked in the rest of the country excluding Delhi. The reason is that they can be called to Delhi any time, so they are kept on standby," Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait said as quoted by NDTV.

Security has been heightened in all protests sites at the Delhi borders.

The farmers, mostly from Punjab and Haryana, are camped at the Delhi borders since Nov 26, 2020, protesting against the agricultural reforms which they fear would leave them at the mercy of big corporate houses.

The Centre beefed up security at Delhi borders after the farmers' tractor rally turned violent on Jan 26 in the national capital claiming the life of at least one farmer and injury to more than 100 police personnel.

Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Friday said the protests against the new farm laws are limited to one state, at a time the Narendra Modi government is facing its stiffest challenge over reforms in the last six-seven years.

In his address to Rajya Sabha in Parliament, Tomar said as quoted by NDTV, "The world knows that farming is done with water. Only Congress can do farming with blood."

"Farmer unions, opposition parties have failed to point out a single flaw in three new farm laws," he said.

"We are not standing on prestige. We have been asking what is black in this law and no one is forthcoming," the minister added.

Slamming the Centre, the Opposition said the government should have built bridges instead of barbed wires and spikes to stop the farmers from entering into the national capital.