The district administrations of Patiala and Ambala on Sunday had a meeting here with the farmers unions that are on protest at the Shambhu and Khanauri borders of Punjab and Haryana.

The meeting aimed at opening the National Highway blocked by the Haryana govt partially ahead of the farmers’ Delhi Chalo 2.0 march. The meeting remained unsuccessful, but the farmers said they were willing to engage in talks with the central govt regarding their demands, including a legal guarantee of the minimum support price (MSP) for all crops.

As the agitation at Shambu and Khanauri points approaches its 200th day on Aug 31, farmers have called for a large gathering at those borders. An official said on the condition of anonymity that the meeting had been set up to persuade the farmers to allow free passage to the ambulances and school buses but they maintained that they had not blocked any road and will proceed towards Delhi once the highway was reopened.

“Since Feb 13, we have been asking the Haryana govt to reopen the highway. Already four rounds of talks with the central govt have been inconclusive, but we are ready for another round of talks whenever the govt finds it convenient,” BKU Ekta Sidhupur general secretary Kaka Singh Kotda said.

He also said: “Even the farmers’ panel can reach Delhi for talks if the govt is unable to send a panel.” Farmer unionist Sarwan Singh Pandher said bringing tractor-trailers to Delhi for protest was not a matter of dignity but a necessity.