Work out land use policy in India to "protect" farmers from corporate land transfer: Bhoomi Adhikar Andolan

By A Representative
A two-day national meeting on November 19-20 at the Indian Social Institute, Delhi, with the participation of delegates from 22 states representing over 100 mass organisations has come for forward with the demand for a land use policy from the Government of India in order to “protect” farm land from large scale diversion to non-agricultural purposes like industry and infrastructure.
A statement issued after the meeting, organized under the auspices of the umbrella of Bhoomi Adhikar Andolan (BAA), said such a policy should give “priority to the country’s food and livelihood security, focusing not only on irrigated multiple-crop land but also single-crop land in rainfed areas which form 60% of cultivated area.”
“Gram Sabha and panchayat should have control over the utilization of public lands and have an intrinsic role in development planning”, it said, adding, the government should respect provisions of the Forest Rights Act (FRA) and Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA), 1996.
Even as opposing the “dilution” of environmental laws based on the recent recommendations of the TSR Subramanian Committee, there is a need to work out a “a comprehensive strategy to address the shocking levels of agrarian distress in the country today.”
It said, “Over 3.2 lakh farmers have committed suicide since 1995 at the rate of one farmer committing suicide every half an hour. The human tragedy is of a magnitude unheard of in the entire history of humanity.”
Against this backdrop, BAA demanded “income security for every agricultural household through a permanent Farmers’ Income Commission”, adding the minimum support price “should be declared at 50% above cost of cultivation in all 25 crops through procurement, market intervention and price guarantee.”
“The farmers’ seed rights should fully protected instead of handing over seed control to MNCs through intellectual property rights (IPRs) and genetically modified (GM) expansion into crops like brinjal and mustard”, BAA said, adding, “Comprehensive support is essential for shift from high-input chemical agriculture to low-external-input ecologically sustainable and rainfed agriculture.”
BAA, which was formed with the active intervention of the National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM) during opposition to the now dropped controversial amendments sought by the NDA government to the Land Acquisition Act (LAA), 2013, decided to begin a protected struggle for its demands starting with a rally at Sansad Marg in Delhi on December 15, the forests rights day.
Among those who spoke at the meeting included NAPM’s Medha Patkar, Communist leaders Hannan Mollah and Satyavan, Ulka Mahajan of Sarvahara Jan Andolan, apart from well-known activists Ashok Choudhary, Prafulla Samantara, Dayamani Barla, Alok Shukla, Roma, Anil Chaudhary and others.
In separate resolutions, BAA extended support to the struggle of Karchana peasants against Jaypee Associates in Uttar Pradesh, and demanded release of 42 persons who have jailed; and condemned the Maharashtra government notification allowing easy conversion of agricultural land to industrial purposes, even as demanding special compensation package to drought affected farmers.

Comments

GreenTech Summit claims NCR as key green building hub, without pan-India comparison

By A Representative The Indian Green Building Council (IGBC), under the Confederation of Indian Industry, held its GreenTech Summit 2026 in New Delhi, where industry representatives, policymakers and sustainability professionals discussed the adoption of climate technologies in India’s built environment.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Rajiv Shah Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

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.

Beyond the election manifesto: Why climate is now a kitchen table issue

By Vikas Meshram* March has long been a month of gentle transition, the period when winter softly retreats and a mild warmth signals nature’s renewal. Yet, in recent years, this dependable rhythm has been disrupted. This year, since the beginning of March, temperatures across vast swathes of the country have shattered previous records, soaring to between 35 and 40 degrees Celsius in some regions. This is not a mere fluctuation in the weather; it is a serious and alarming indicator of climate change .

As India logs historic emissions drop, expert warns govt against 'policy blunders'

By A Representative In a significant development that underscores the rapid transformation of India's energy landscape, new data reveals the country recorded its largest drop in power sector emissions in 2025. However, a top power sector analyst has urged the Union Government to view this "silver lining" as a stark warning against continuing to invest in new coal, large hydro, and nuclear projects, which he argues could become "redundant" stranded assets.

Jerusalem's Al Aqsa mosque under siege: A test of Muslim solidarity and Palestine’s future

By Syed Ali Mujtaba* In the cacophony of Israel’s and the United States’ attack on Iran, one piece of news has been buried under the debris of war: Israel has closed the Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem to Palestinian worshippers during the holy month of Ramadan. The closure, announced as indefinite, affects the third most revered mosque in the Islamic world.

Fresh citizenship framework suggested amidst electoral roll concerns

By Kathyayini Chamaraj The ongoing exercise of Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has raised serious concerns about the potential disenfranchisement of large numbers of citizens. In many instances, people are being asked to produce retrospective documents to establish their citizenship—documents that many genuine citizens are unable to provide. The challenge before policymakers is to identify prospective amendments to the Citizenship Act that would ensure that no legitimate citizen is excluded either from citizenship or from the electoral roll.

NGO Arunoday’s journey of support and struggle: Standing firm with the distressed

By Bharat Dogra It was a situation of acute distress. Nearly ten thousand people returning to their villages during the COVID-19 pandemic had gathered at the border of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh near Kanha. Exhausted after walking long distances with little or no food, they were desperate for relief. Yet entry could not be granted without completing essential records and complying with pandemic rules.

How wars are undermining climate promises even as accelerating global warming

By N.S. Venkataraman* Since 1995, global climate conferences have convened annually, with the 29th Conference of Parties (COP29) held in November 2024. These gatherings attract world leaders and generate extensive media coverage, raising hopes of decisive strategies to address the climate emergency. Yet, despite lofty promises and ambitious targets, the crisis remains unabated.

Search This Blog