Delhi Police has placed orders for over 30,000 tear gas shells as part of the preparation to prevent Punjab farmers from marching into the national capital under their Delhi Chalo 2.0 protest. A Delhi Police source informed that the police force is determined to stop the hundreds of farmers who are marching towards Delhi to avoid a similar situation like the one witnessed in 2020 from arising, PTI reported.
Another official informed that the Delhi Police had already stocked up tear gas shells and ordered 30,000 more now from the BSF’s Tear Smoke Unit (TSU) at Tekanpur in Madhya Pradesh’s Gwalior. The shells are currently in transit from Gwalior to Delhi.
Haryana security forces had stopped the protesting farmers at the state’s border with Haryana near Ambala, which is 200 kilometres away from Delhi, and used tear gas on them to disperse them.
A tear gas is an anti-riot equipment that is often used by security forces to disperse crowds. Under the Delhi Police norms, once a stock is acquired, the shells are distributed to the district police and other security forces. A police official said that the age of a tear gas is usually three years after which its impact weakens. However, the forces use it for up to seven years for practice purposes.
The fresh shell stock might be distributed to the outer, outer-north, and east district police, the potential protest sites in the national capital, an official said. All logistical arrangements to stop farmers at Tikri (Bahadurgarh side), Ghazipur (Ghaziabad side), and Singhu (Sonipat side) borders have been made by the Delhi Police, PTI reported.
The border security forces stationed there are equipped with a substantial stock of tear gas shells, water cannons, and other riot-control gear. They have been instructed to prevent any farmers or their tractor-trailers from crossing into the national capital’s territory.
The Delhi Police has implemented prohibitory orders for one month under section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). These orders prohibit gatherings of five or more individuals, processions, rallies, and the entry of tractor-trailers transporting people. The Haryana police deployed tear gas shells on the farmers assembled near the Shambhu border between Punjab and Haryana, close to Ambala. Additionally, they utilised drones to air-drop some of these tear gas shells onto the protesting farmers.
The farmers aim to march towards the national capital to urge the Centre to meet their demands, which include securing a legal guarantee on Minimum Support Price for crops, implementing the recommendations of the Swaminathan Committee report, and providing relief such as loan waivers, among other issues.