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A 777-day-old farmers’ protest against power plant -Omar Rashid
-The Hindu

Farmers’ protest against the proposed 1,980-MW power plant in the trans-Yamuna Karchhna tehsil of Allahabad district entered its 777th day on Tuesday.

While the district administration recently served a month’s ultimatum on the farmers to return the compensation they had received for land acquisition, the farmers told The Hindu that they would not be able to repay the amount, regardless of the ultimatum.

Meanwhile, they say they will continue agitating at the proposed site, where they assemble daily under the banner of Punrvas Kisan Kalyan Sahayata Samiti. “On Tuesday, it is 777 days,” said Kisan Andolan president Raj Bahadur Patel.

The project was conceived in 2007 under the Bahujan Samaj Party government and about 2,500 bighas of land was acquired from 2,286 farmers in eight villages -- Devari, Kachari, Katka-Medhra, Dehli, Dohlipur, Bagesar, Kachara and Bhitar.

However, the project, handed over to an undertaking of Jaypee Group in 2009, could never take off due to consistent and often violent protests by farmers over compensation, leaving one dead. The farmers cited that Rs.3 lakh per bigha offered to them was much lower than the circle rate.

On April 12, the Allahabad High Court allowed the writ petitions of the farmers and stalled the project. The Court order stipulated that farmers who had already taken the compensation for their land should either return the money and take back the land or willingly hand over the land for the project.

The farmers, however, say that the land has not yet been transferred to them. And the compensation received by them, they say, was spent in clearing debts, conducting marriages, and procuring farming equipment and medicines.

Surya Bali (52) says: “I gave them one bigha. The money was spent on my daughter’s marriage and younger son’s treatment. How will I pay them Rs. 3 lakh? We are left without land or money.” Yet the farmers say that they are willing to repay the compensation but on certain conditions. They want their land to be restored to its ‘original condition’ and suitable for cultivation.

Then, they say, they will look to repay the money in instalments from the crop produce. Sesh Mani (20) has done no farming for the last four years and now works as a labourer. “Around 1.5 bighas were ours.... they are barren now. See all this wild grass!” he says, standing on a helipad where he says he once grew arhar and chana.

The farmers allege that their land was wrongfully shown as barren. “How can it be barren when we have government-installed tube-wells here? They destroyed our land,” says a woman. The farmers also seek justice for the alleged psychological torture and boycott faced by them at the hands of officials and police in the tehsil.

“Once they know we are from Kachari, our work is not done, or we are asked to pay a huge bribe even for ordinary work. We are yet to receive compensation for the damage done by rain. The BPL cards issued in our names have been given to the rich ‘thekedaars’. We demand a compensation for this too,” says Mr. Patel.

Mr. Patel also alleged that the police refuse to hand over FIR copies of the cases he was booked under when the protests had turned violent, asking him to file an RTI.

Station House Officer of Karchhana Police did not respond to phone calls.

However, a police officer from Beerpur speaking on condition of anonymity denied demanding an RTI. “They will get the FIR copies if they approach us through the right channel. They must first surrender to the Court.”

The local officials involved in the issue were not available for comment since they have been transferred.

District Magistrate Raj Shekhar said if the farmers had any grievances they could approach the Court, adding that further steps would be taken after instructions from the High Court.

Asked what would be the administration’s move once the ultimatum was over, Mr. Shekhar said the farmers would be given another notice on grounds of justice and the status report would be submitted to the Court.

The farmers also say that certain “motivated goons” had been threatening them to give up their land or face consequences and these threats had increased after the ultimatum.

However, the opinion seems divided, with some farmers expressing no qualms about giving up land. Mohan Lal Mishra (24) says his family gave land for the area’s development. “Only those who are not happy with the compensation are protesting. The big landlords are not protesting, it’s only the petty farmers who are politicizing the issue.”

Another farmer, belonging to the Thakur community, said: “This land is barren and not even worth Rs. 25,000. Those protesting are just greedy.”

“Why will anyone trouble them? On what basis should they get higher compensation? If they get Rs 13 lakh per bigha then farmers in Bara will also demand same. Just for personal gains some of them are involved in ‘netagiri’,” he says.

The protesting farmers, however, denied that they were agitating merely for higher compensation. “We don’t have any other means of livelihood. What will we do with the money? We need employment. We are ready to work anywhere. We can’t buy our own land for six lakh even,” says Mr. Mani.

Meanwhile, the family of Gulab Chand Bishwakarma, who was killed during the protests last year, is reeling under poverty and forgotten promises. While they received initial compensation, his widow Sona Devi says she is yet to receive his pension.” I have four children. Who will feed us? We were told we would get work,” she says.