Kolkata: Train services were affected in at least five districts of West Bengal on account of a 12-hour rail roko agitation called by two tribal parties, namely the Jharkhand Disom Party and the Adivasi Sengal Abhiyan. The organisations were protesting against the Centre and Jharkhand Government's decision to implement the Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Jharkhand Amendment Bill), 2017 and the Jharkhand Freedom of Religion Act-2017.
The call for the rail roko from 6:00 am started with agitations at three stations in Purulia district namely Kantadih, Madhukunda and Indrabil under the Adra division and resulted in delay in arrival and departure of trains in West Bengal. Rail services were mainly affected between Adra in Purulia district and Bankura district and Tatanagar station railway junction in Jharkhand and Purulia station railway junction in Bengal. The other districts which bore the brunt were Malda, Uttar Dinajpur and Purba Bardhaman.
Several trains including the Rajdhani Express was held up around 6:20 am at Jhatiphari railway station in Bankura district while many trains were cancelled. The disruption in train services affected passengers of long distance trains and daily passengers availing of the circular railway services which included office goers and school students. Both Bengal Police as well as the Railway Protection Force were deployed at various stations to control the agitations called at various places by the tribal outfits.
The agitators were protesting against the amendments made to the Bill on land acquisition which states that land can be taken away from adivasis without any assessment being made on the significant social impact of the project in cases of building a school, college or hospital. The other contentious issue is the Bill on conversion which prohibits religious conversion and comes with a punishment of jail term of four years.
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