Forces deployed, highways shut, flag marches done in Haryana

Thousands of paramilitary and police personnel in riot gear stood guard behind multiple layers of metal and jersey barriers, concertina wire, spikes, and sandbags as Haryana sought to seal its border with Punjab in a bid to halt the proposed "Dilli Chalo" march by certain farmer groups scheduled for Tuesday.

- Bhavey Nagpal and Sunil Rahar

However, discussions between a central panel of Union ministers Piyush Goyal and Arjun Munda and protesting farmers ended in a deadlock late on Monday night, with spokespersons of farmers organisations confirming the march will resume at 10am on Tuesday.

Top officials posted at the Haryana chief minister's office (CMO), police, and home department held back-to-back meetings Chandigarh on Monday to fine-tune the police response while handling any untoward situation.

The Manohar Lal Khattar-led BJP-JJP coalition government said it is leaving no stone unturned to ensure that there is no repeat of the 2020 agitation, when farmer groups had marched in a similar manner through Haryana and blocked Delhi borders for almost a year.

By Monday, Haryana deployed thousands of paramilitary personnel along with state police to deal with what is being dubbed as "Dilli Chalo 2.0".In view of the protests, prohibitory orders have been imposed in 16 of 22 the districts in the state even as Internet remained suspended in seven districts of North and North-West Haryana till Tuesday midnight.