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Caste agitation ends as Jats accept govt offer

Chandigarh - Army takes over Munak canal, water crisis ends

The army took control of the Munak canal in Haryana's Sonipat district, traffic was restored on the busy NH-1 and curfew was relaxed at various places as Haryana crawled towards normalcy on Monday, officials said here.
Army personnel took control of the Munak canal and efforts were being made to restore the water supply to national capital Delhi, police sources said here.
"Thank u army, thank u centre for securing munak canal back. Great relief for delhi," tweeted Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
Reports said that traffic had been restored on National Highway No. 1 (NH-1) between Delhi and Ambala after security forces removed Jat protestors at some places while protestors left the blockade points on their own on Monday morning.
Traffic was being restored on other highways in the violence-hit districts of Rohtak, Sonipat, Panipat, Jhajjar, Bhiwani, Jind, Kaithal and Hisar. Police sources said that Jat protestors continued to block roads and railway tracks at some places on Monday. Efforts were being made to remove them and restore traffic.
Curfew in Rohtak town was relaxed for one hour on Monday. Curfew was lifted in Hisar and Hansi towns on Monday, officials said.
Army personnel and para-military forces, along with the state police and district authorities, continued to patrol and provide security along the NH-1 and other roads to ensure that the Jat protestors did not return.
Thousands of people and vehicles were stranded on NH-1 as the protesters laid siege to the highway in Sonipat and Panipat districts in the past three days, cutting off road connectivity to Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Chandigarh through the highway.
Railway officials said that restoration of train traffic on the Delhi-Ambala and Delhi-Bathinda sections could take some more time as the tracks will have to be repaired and inspected thoroughly before plying of trains is allowed.
The protesters had uprooted the railway tracks at various places. 900 trains were cancelled by railway authorities in the region due to the Jat agitation. Protesters demanding better conditions for their caste said on Monday they had accepted a state government offer aimed at ending days of riots that have killed at least 19 people, as troops won back control of a canal.
Schools in the Indian capital had been ordered to close on Monday after the demonstrators seized control of a canal that supplies a reported 60 per cent of the city's tap water, before the military regained control. On Monday a Jat representative said the community had accepted the government's offer.
"We have accepted the government offer and are in the process of consulting other Jat leaders to arrive at a consensus before deciding about calling off the agitation today," said Y. Malik, head of a group of Jat organisations.