ADIVASI farmers of Palghar district are planning to agitate against grab of their lands for a Highway project and the Bullet Train Project. They have been offered a meagre compensation amount of Rs. 1818 per sq metre which is far below the market value of land in that area. They have been sent acquisition and eviction notices for Bullet train and highway, but barring a miniscule few almost adivasis in that area have constantly been denied of their legal rights over lands and forests as per the Forest Rights Act.
A joint Adivasi struggle committee has been formed in this region by left organisations and NGOs to intensify the struggle.
CPIML held a meeting of Adivasi representatives in Boisar and it was decided to launch a campaign in affected villages which will conclude in a Convention. The party is also campaigning in adjoining Valsad district where farmers are agitating under similar circumstances. A rally against land grab has been called for 22 July in Kaprada block of Valsad.
While land, environment and livelihoods are under threat by pro-corporate government policies, this has also given rise to a free hand to local industrialists who leave no chance in exploiting workers who are mostly local villagers forced to join the urban working class contingent under duress caused by agrarian crisis. In Palghar at the Lavino Kapoor Garment factory workers are fighting against their illegal retrenchment for the last six months. The 250 workers are demanding reinstatement holding regular dharnas and protests in spite of the fact that none of elected representatives have come to resolve their crisis and even their former union leaders affiliated to NCP and later BMS, betrayed them.
