ON December 13, the Adivasi Adhikar Rashtriya Manch (AARM), along with Kisan Sabha, organised a 26 kilometre walk to march on the Maharashtra assembly session in Nagpur. The march commenced from Butibori at 8:30 am and reached Nagpur at 4:00 pm.

The key demands of the march included ownership rights for dwellers, construction of a road and railway underbridge in Butibori, strict implementation of the Forest Rights Act (FRA), filling the 12,500 vacant tribal posts promised in the last winter session, compensation of Rs 50,000 per hectare to farmers affected by untimely rains, cancellation of the new smart electric meter plan, a guaranteed price of Rs 12,500 per quintal for cotton and Rs 450 per quintal for soybean, and inclusion of adivasi names on the 7/12 agriculture certificate.

Upon reaching the stopping point, MLA Vinod Nikole, AARM state president and former MLA, JP Gavit, state convener Kirangahla, Nagpur district convener Amol Dhurve, and AIKS district vice president Arun Latkar addressed the gathering among others. The delegation later submitted a memorandum to tribal minister Vijay Kumar Gavit.

The fortnight campaign covered approximately 20 villages and included two public meetings in Butibori. Following the successful organisation of the CEC meeting and convention in Nagpur in July of this year, this programme marked another achievement for AARM in Nagpur.