20,000 farmers fight odds in march for justice
MUMBAI: Shankar Gavit, 74, has swollen feet and bruises on his legs. He has been popping painkillers for the past three nights but Gavit is not worried about his injuries.
“This pain is much better than the threat to my livelihood. If we don’t do this (participate in the farmers’ agitation), our next generation will suffer like us. Our income is barely ₹5,000 to ₹6,000 a month, which is not enough to make both ends meet.”
Gavit is among 15,000-20,000 odd farmers and farm labourers from north Maharashtra who have braved scorching heat and injuries to seek attention of the government towards their demands. They started from Nashik on March 6, have travelled more than 100km and will cover another 60-70km to reach Mumbai on Sunday.
Farmers joined the protest after the Akhil Bhartiya Kisan Sabha (ABKS), the Maharashtra unit of the farmers’ outfit, called for the 190km march from Nashik to Mumbai to block access to the state legislature building from Monday till their demands are met.
On Friday evening, the farmers reached Valkas village near Shahapur, some 50km from Mumbai. Before them, another group had already reached the village and prepared dinner for them.
The farmers have divided themselves in groups of 100 to 500 with vehicles carrying grains, rice and utensils. These groups are supposed to cook their food.
A significant number of participants are members of the Left-wing ABKS. Most of them don the red Nehru caps and carry red flags with the hammer-and-sickle printed on them.
Friday was the fourth day of the march. After reaching Valkas, the protesters bathed in the Bhatsa river and were told to gather for dinner. It was followed by traditional songs and some even gyrated to folk music, which, to some extent, helped them overcome their fatigue.
Jijabai Gaikwad, 75, from Dindori in Nashik, danced for a while despite being listless. “I don’t care about my health right now. If I do not participate in this march, the coming generation won’t get what they deserve,” she says.
One of farmers’ demands is transfer of forest land they have been tilling for long.
Another farmer, Roshan Shinde from Dindori, said: “My father used to grow rice and vegetables. We would earn around ₹1 lakh a year, if the crop was not damaged. But the forest authority took over our seven-acre land. If we don’t protest, where will we go?”
Jairam Chande, a 25-year-old farm labourer from Nashik, said: “I have studied up to Class 4 and then left school since my family needed money. I earn around ₹200 per day. Earlier, my father had a 10 acre farm land where the forest department started digging and planting trees. That was the only income source of my family after which everything became worse.”
Forest Act, 2006, has a provision to return land up to 10 acres to such farmers but even an acre of land was denied to them, the farmers complain.
This is what they are demanding from the state government now.
“My forefathers cultivated 10 acre land which belonged to us until the forest department suddenly intervened and started digging up our entire land. Now, we work as farm labourers in other farms and earn around ₹150-200 per day,” says Rajesh Jadhav, a 25 year old from Alangaon village of Nashik.
The tiring day ends for the participants around 11-11.30pm as they sleep in the open ground — no mattresses just a chaddar or bedsheet they have brought with them.
It is hot but breezy near the river but mosquitoes are troubling many of them.
The farmers wake up by 4-5am in the morning and are asked to freshen up to continue the march further.
By 7am, the participants are ready to walk another 23 kms towards Sonale near Bhiwandi, their next stop. They skip their breakfast in the morning as they feel that they wont be able to walk much. Jairam Pawar, one of the farmers from the troops said, “We take two halts in a day for lunch and dinner. Skipping breakfast will help us cover more distance. We dont drink tea because we consider it as a luxury.”
A young group of farmers in their twenties are walking along with the old shouting slogans and encouraging them to walk more.
“It is just a kilometer away,” screamed the young farmer to the senior citizens in their crowds. As they move towards the fifth day of protest, the pace of the farmers has decreased due to the scorching heat.
It takes them more than 4-5 hours to reach Sonale ground where they are supposed to take their first halt for the day and have their lunch.
The lunch is served and the organisers ask the farmers to leave for next halt at Anand Nagar in Thane before entering Mumbai on Sunday.