Agrarian Issues

Kisan Sangharsh Jatha Concludes in a Huge Rally

THE three week long Kisan Sangharsh Jatha, organised by the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS), concluded in a huge public rally in New Delhi on November 24, 2016. The jatha originated from four different destinations in India – Jammu, Kolkata, Virudhunagar and Kanyakumari. Each jatha led by their leaders – Amra Ram, Hannan Mollah, Vijoo Krishnan and P Krishnaprasad respectively – travelled a cumulative distance of 25,000 km covering almost all regions of the country.

AIAWU Denounces Demonetisation

THE All India Agricultural Workers Union (AIAWU), in a statement issued on November 19 has demanded the central government to make immediate arrangements to dispense the wages of MNREGA workers on priority basis.  Crores of MNREGA workers have not been paid due to lack of lower denomination notes over the last two weeks.  Crores of workers’ wage dues are pending for more than three months and the central government has admitted the same in Supreme Court and assured that it will be paid as soon as possible.

Towards a Pro-Peasant Alternative

THE agrarian crisis in India is a reflection of the economic policies pursued by the Indian State and can be resolved only by reversing them altogether. The crisis has manifested in the forms of increasing landlessness, widespread indebtedness, massive peasant suicides and alarming distress migration from rural to urban regions. Between 1991 and 2011, around 1.5 crore farmers -- 2,035 per day -- have been forced to give up cultivation and look for other occupations in order to overcome their crisis of subsistence.

Subverting MNREGA, the BJP Way

THE BJP government at the Centre is a master of doublespeak. It is now invoking the same skill while formulating its government policies. The BJP’s ability to deploy the social media to achieve desired goals is very visible in mushrooming of unidentified and unauthenticated platforms which are working as mouthpieces for the BJP as well as policy think tanks. Not just to meet its political goals but also to achieve administrative goals, it is using social media platforms to disseminate messages it desires to convey in an impromptu manner.

Kisan Sangharsh Jatha: Sets Course for Delhi from Kolkata

 Mollah said that the Modi-government has backtracked on his promises made earlier to the peasantry. Peasantry, being that section of the population whose production feeds the entire nation, is being compelled to resort to suicides and starvation deaths due to complete lack of apathy on the part of the government. This lackadaisical stand of the government can only be responded by a firm whip of mass movements.

Kisan Sangharsh Jatha Sets off from Virudhunagar

THE Kisan Sangharsh Jatha has begun from the historic Deshabandhu Grounds in Virudhunagar district of Tamil Nadu on November 2, 2016.  The venue is named after Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das who had visited the place in the height of the freedom struggle and has witnessed the beginning of many historic struggles. It was from Virudhunagar that Tyagi Shankarlinganar hailed. He carried on a historic fast unto death for 76 days demanding the naming of the state as “Tamizhagam” or the land of Tamils.

Sugarcane Growers will Hold Protest Dharna before Parliament on Nov 25

THE All India Co-ordination Committee of Sugarcane growers met at Sundarayya Vigyan Kendram, Hyderabad in September last week. Representatives from ten states (Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Bihar, Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand) participated in this meeting. The meeting began with opening remarks by AIKS general secretary Hannan Mollah,  S Malla Reddy presided over the meeting. The report was presented by N K Shukla, convenor and supplemented by Vijoo Krishnan, co-convenor.

Agrarian Struggle in New Situation

THE All India Kisan Sabha has taken up an important programme at the all India level. Four Kisan Sangharsh Jathas will be held from Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Jammu & Kashmir and West Bengal from November 2-23. They will cover thousands of kilometres moving through villages and cities addressing meetings, interacting with the peasantry and rural poor, highlighting the problems and demands of the kisans.

No Approval of GM Mustard Without Wide Consultation & Addressing All Concerns

 THE All India Kisan Sabha, in a statement issued on October 5, has noted that the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) and the BJP-led NDA government seem to be in an undue haste to commercially release GM Mustard. This is despite the absence of any credible regulatory mechanism that can conduct long-term tests and ensure bio-safety concerns can be addressed. The data has also not been made public despite repeated efforts and even order from Central Information Commissioner.

AIAWU to Observe National Dalit Rights Protection Day on October 24

THE All India Agricultural Workers Union General Council which met at Nalgonda from September 20-22, 2016, called on its units to observe October 24 as a nationwide protest day against the mounting attacks and atrocities on dalits. The council deliberations observed that since the BJP government came into power the emboldened Hindutva Parivar mounted an unbridled attack on dalits and Muslim minorities. Over the last few years, there is an exponential rise in atrocities on dalits.

Pages

Subscribe to RSS - Agrarian Issues