Gujarat's Dholera smart city area farmers protest "failure" to comply by land rights promise, submit memorandum

By Our Representative
The upcoming Gujarat farmers’ organization, Khedut Samaj - Gujarat (KSG), representing thousands of farmers of the prestigious Dholera special investment region (SIR) have, in a memorandum to Gujarat minister Anandiben Patel, said that despite promise made about two years ago, the Gujarat government has “failed” to settle the pending land rights issues of the farmers, who received agricultural plots during the land reforms days of the 1960s.
Dholera SIR has been planned as one of the major smart cities along the Gulf of Khambhat in Gujarat on a largely agricultural area, which produces one of the best varieties of organic wheat, called Bhalia. The Gujarat government has declared its intention to impose town planning Act on the region, which requires farmers to give away 50 per cent of their land in the name of developing urban infrastructure. This has happened alongside the Dholera SIR authorities declaring that the beneficiaries of land reforms who have not received land titles now belong to the government.
The memorandum was submitted to district collector, Ahmedabad, by KSG leaders Sagar Rabari, Pradyumnasinh Chudasma, Bhavubhai Mer, Ramdesinh Chudasma and Persis Ginwalla following a five-day-long foot-march, which was sought to be banned by the Gujarat government. The ban had to be lifted following a Gujarat High Court order in October-end.
The padayatra of Dholera SIR farmers was set off on November 1, 2015 from village Sandhida and it covered a distance of 132 km. Among other demands put up in the memorandum was to cancel the decision to go ahead with Dholera SIR and to respect the promise of bringing Narmada waters to the region.
The memorandum asked the Gujarat government to withdraw its decision to amend the Land Ceilings and Land Tenancy Acts, and hand over land to the marginalized communities, a right which was allegedly being “taken away by the present government.”
The memorandum said, the Gujarat government must hold land kacheris or official meetings in each village as part the Gujarat government promise during the Environmental Public Hearing of Dholera SIR in January 2014 for settling farmers’ land rights issues, and remove “government wasteland” in land revenue records for the plots which the farmers were cultivating.
Other demands included allocating pastureland to every village according to its cattle population as per the latest cattle census, taking all the village water bodies on to the village revenue record and notify them as per the High Court order, increase the village residential areas, and allocation of surplus land to the landless agricultural workers, as per the government policy.
The memorandum said, “The tillers are the actual owners of the land but are not considered so on account of the inefficiency of the government and administration. Such lands have now been sold to the special purpose vehicle (SPV) at the rate of Rs 600 per square meters by the government. The farmers of the area are extremely concerned and angry.”
It warned, “If the government does not take timely decisions on removal of SIR and reversing the Narmada de-command government resolution (GR), the people will express their sentiments in the forthcoming taluka and district panchayat elections.”

Comments

Manmade disaster? Infrastructure projects in, around Vadodara caused 'devastating' floods

Counterview Desk In a letter to local, Gujarat, and Indian authorities, several concerned citizens* have said that there has been devastating flood and waterlogging situation in Vadodara region since Monday 26th August 2024 which was "avoidable", stating, this has happened because of "multiple follies, flaws and fallacies across all levels of governance."

'300 Nazis fell by your gun': Most successful female sniper in history

By Harsh Thakor* "Miss Pavlichenko’s well known to fame, Russia’s your country, fighting is your game. The whole world will always love you for all time to come, Three hundred Nazis fell by your gun." — from Woody Guthrie's “Miss Pavlichenko"

Labeled as social lending, peer-to-peer system is fundamentally profit-driven

By Bhabani Shankar Nayak The Sumerian civilisation, one of the earliest known societies, had sophisticated systems of lending, borrowing, credit, and debt. These systems were based on mutual trust and social currency, allowing individuals to engage in economic transactions without the need for physical money or barter. Instead, social bonds and communal trust underpinned these interactions, facilitating trade and the distribution of resources.

Researchers note 'severe impact' of climate change on potability of groundwater

By Vikas Meshram* Climate change is having a profound impact on various natural resources, and groundwater is a significant one that is currently under threat. Rising temperatures, changes in precipitation patterns, and increasing pressure from human activities are deteriorating groundwater quality. This article delves into the effects of climate change on the potability of groundwater, the causes, and potential solutions.

TU activist Anirudh Rajan, lawyer Ajay Kumar in custody: Wounded reputation of world's largest democracy?

By Vedika S* Over the last few days, India's National Investigation Agency (NIA), known to be tasked with suppressing revolutionary, democratic, and progressive forces, conducted a series of raids across Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and Delhi. Targets included human rights attorney Pankaj Tripathi, student leader Devendra Azad, and peasant union leader Sukhwinder Kaur. Lawyer and anti-displacement activist Ajay Kumar was arrested and taken to his home in Mohali, which was subsequently raided. He is now imprisoned in Lucknow as a suspect in the NIA's "Northern Regional Bureau (NRB) Revival case."

RG Kar saga: Towards liberation from the constraints of rigid political parties?

By Atanu Roy* There's a saying: "There is no such thing as a half-pregnancy." This adage seems particularly relevant when discussing the current regime of the Trinamool Congress (TMC). The party appears to be entrenched in widespread corruption that affects nearly every aspect of our lives. One must wonder, why would they exclude the health sector—a lucrative area where illicit money can flow freely, thanks to a network of corrupt leaders colluding with ambitious bureaucrats?

'No to risky 11,000 MW hydroelectric project': Call to protect Siang river

Beverly Longid, Jiten Yumnam* The civil rights network, International Indigenous Peoples Movement for Self-Determination and Liberation (IPMSDL), has voicesd its support for the residents of Siang District, Northeast India, as they resist the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation's (NHPC) efforts to monopolize the Siang River for its Upper Siang Hydroelectric Project, a massive undertaking proposed at 11,000 MW.

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah* The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Search This Blog