Kantibhai Mistry: Gujarat's 'determined' grassroots-level environmental, social activist

Kantibhai Mistry (middle) with Geetaben and Rohit Prajapati

By Rohit Prajapati*
Kantibhai Mistry left this world on Friday, February 28, 2020. He hailed from an ordinary working class family and was principally and passionately associated with numerous fields such as workers movement, Jyoti Karmchari Mandal, Vadodara Kamdar Union.
Not being restricted to these, he was also associated with the Narmada Bachao Andolan, Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti, People’s Union for Civil Liberties, Radical Socialist, movement against the pollution of Sabarmati River, movement against Vishwamitri Riverfront Development Project, communal harmony and so on.
He not only played a crucial supporting role in all these struggles, but also stood strong as a committed and unpretentious activist against all adversaries and adversities. Amongst all of us, he was a 70-year-old young activist. He has also made significant contribution in terms of supporting the works of Sahiyar (Stree Sangathan), a feminist group.
Kantibhai and Geetaben (life partner), together, were also part of many movements like Apna Dhaba, an admirable experiment for the promotion of food made from organic products, where this couple jointly played the crucial role as the main advocates and gained much popularity. It is important to acknowledge their revolutionary efforts for Apna Dhaba enterprise, which gained much acclaim in newspapers.
A trade union activist, Kantibhai was actively involved with the issue of workers' health while constantly being there at the Employees State Insurance (ESI) hospital of Vadodara for help, assistance and support to the ordinary workers. He was popular among the staff, doctors, and workers of the ESI main hospital, Gotri, Vadodara.
He was not only actively involved with labour courts, but also with environmental issues in the Supreme Court, the Gujarat High Court, and the National Green Tribunal. He especially remained present, silently and rock solid, on almost all the important court dates of cases against pollution, Mithivirdi Nuclear Power Plant, Statue of Unity, Garudeshwar Weir and Vishwamitri Riverfront Development Project.
His selfless commitment for critical causes was so extensive that the couple, Kantibhai- Geetaben, alone went to Pune and stayed there for two days in order to file the case against Mithivirdi Nuclear Power Plant in National Green Tribunal after clearing the queries raised at the National Green Tribunal office.
The staff of that office knew him more than they knew us. He remained actively involved in works ranging from public contact in Mithivirdi movement to conferences, meetings, and rallies while taking care of the important responsibilities like filing a petition in National Green Tribunal and maintaining records with the highest possible precision. His alertness and untiring efforts towards work gave inspiration to new activists in movements.

Kantibhai has set a tall example of values, foresight, and sincerity, has proven that educational qualifications, class are irrelevant when the heart is at the right place

We at the Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti used to consult him about the administrative process of filing a case in the National Green Tribunal. In not only Vadodara, but journalists also from other cities knew him through his work. We, in routine ongoing activities, acutely felt his absence ever since he became a victim of cancer. He always used to tell us that “just wait for some days and I will once again become active”.
He was such an ardent activist who played the role of strong-willed person in various important movements as a trade union activist. He had such deep bonds with the village people of Mithivirdi-Jasapara villages that it seemed as if a hotline was established between them over the phone.
All the people who know us from within and outside the country know Kantibhai closely as a grassroots activist, and more importantly as person with great inner strength and will to contribute in various ways for different critical causes.
Kantibhai has set a tall example of values, sensitivity, foresight, and sincerity; he has proven that educational qualifications and class are all irrelevant when the heart is in the right place, working towards significant causes.
Not only the workers or the affected people of the so called Development Projects but Narmada, Mahisagar, Vishwamitri, Sabarmati, Damanganga, etc. rivers are also remembering him with a Revolutionary Salute.
___
*Senior activist, Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti, Vadodara

Comments

Gram sabha as reformer: Mandla’s quiet challenge to the liquor economy

By Raj Kumar Sinha* This year, the Union Ministry of Panchayati Raj is organising a two-day PESA Mahotsav in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, on 23–24 December 2025. The event marks the passage of the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA), enacted by Parliament on 24 December 1996 to establish self-governance in Fifth Schedule areas. Scheduled Areas are those notified by the President of India under Article 244(1) read with the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, which provides for a distinct framework of governance recognising the autonomy of tribal regions. At present, Fifth Schedule areas exist in ten states: Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan and Telangana. The PESA Act, 1996 empowers Gram Sabhas—the village assemblies—as the foundation of self-rule in these areas. Among the many powers devolved to them is the authority to take decisions on local matters, including the regulation...

MG-NREGA: A global model still waiting to be fully implemented

By Bharat Dogra When the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MG-NREGA) was introduced in India nearly two decades ago, it drew worldwide attention. The reason was evident. At a time when states across much of the world were retreating from responsibility for livelihoods and welfare, the world’s second most populous country—with nearly two-thirds of its people living in rural or semi-rural areas—committed itself to guaranteeing 100 days of employment a year to its rural population.

Policy changes in rural employment scheme and the politics of nomenclature

By N.S. Venkataraman* The Government of India has introduced a revised rural employment programme by fine-tuning the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), which has been in operation for nearly two decades. The MGNREGA scheme guarantees 100 days of employment annually to rural households and has primarily benefited populations in rural areas. The revised programme has been named VB-G RAM–G (Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission – Gramin). The government has stated that the revised scheme incorporates several structural changes, including an increase in guaranteed employment from 100 to 125 days, modifications in the financing pattern, provisions to strengthen unemployment allowances, and penalties for delays in wage payments. Given the extent of these changes, the government has argued that a new name is required to distinguish the revised programme from the existing MGNREGA framework. As has been witnessed in recent years, the introdu...

Rollback of right to work? VB–GRAM G Bill 'dilutes' statutory employment guarantee

By A Representative The Right to Food Campaign has strongly condemned the passage of the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB–GRAM G) Bill, 2025, describing it as a major rollback of workers’ rights and a fundamental dilution of the statutory Right to Work guaranteed under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). In a statement, the Campaign termed the repeal of MGNREGA a “dark day for workers’ rights” and accused the government of converting a legally enforceable, demand-based employment guarantee into a centralised, discretionary welfare scheme.

'Structural sabotage': Concern over sector-limited job guarantee in new employment law

By A Representative The advocacy group Centre for Financial Accountability (CFA) has raised concerns over the passage of the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (VB–G RAM G), which was approved during the recently concluded session of Parliament amid protests by opposition members. The legislation is intended to replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

Making rigid distinctions between Indian and foreign 'historically untenable'

By A Representative Oral historian, filmmaker and cultural conservationist Sohail Hashmi has said that everyday practices related to attire, food and architecture in India reflect long histories of interaction and adaptation rather than rigid or exclusionary ideas of identity. He was speaking at a webinar organised by the Indian History Forum (IHF).

India’s Halal economy 'faces an uncertain future' under the new food Bill

By Syed Ali Mujtaba* The proposed Food Safety and Standards (Amendment) Bill, 2025 marks a decisive shift in India’s food regulation landscape by seeking to place Halal certification exclusively under government control while criminalising all private Halal certification bodies. Although the Bill claims to promote “transparency” and “standardisation,” its structure and implications raise serious concerns about religious freedom, economic marginalisation, and the systematic dismantling of a long-established, Muslim-led Halal ecosystem in India.

From jobless to ‘job-loss’ growth: Experts critique gig economy and fintech risks

By A Representative Leading economists and social activists gathered in the capital on Friday to launch the third edition of the State of Finance in India Report 2024-25 , issuing a stark warning that the rapid digitalization of the Indian economy is eroding welfare systems and entrenching "digital dystopia."

Search This Blog