Rural Workers’ Protest in Dibrugarh

A large number of rural poor marched through the streets of Dibrugarh town to the District commissioner's office under the banner of Panitola Block Committee of Sadou Asom Grameen Shramik Santha to press for demands like enhancement in wages and work-days in MGNREGA, right to housing as constitutional right, pension of ₹.3000 per month to all aged people and widows, protection of Adivasis and dalit rights, no bulldozing the houses of poor and in minimum wage rates.

The protesters held a meeting presided by Debnath Majhi, and addressed by Shubhrajyoti Bardhan, the president of Sadou Asom Grameen Shramik Santha, Sunil Sawra and Rajen Kalandi. Speakers condemned prime minister Narendra Modi and Home minister Amit Shah for insulting the poor by calling them freebee-seekers and said that the ruling party is actually giving freebies to its cronies by selling out the wealth of the nation to the corporates like Ambani and Adani. This government has written-off bank loans of corporates to the tune of ₹15 lakh crores. The speakers also alleged that sky high prices of essential commodities is making the poor vulnerable and insecure when the government is attacking the right to food and livelihood with its anti-poor policies. Fund allocations are decreased in MGNREGA and workers are being paid wages which are far less than the minimum wage. Modi raj is bulldozing the rights of the poor. In Assam, ceiling surplus lands acquired from tea garden owners are not being redistributed to the tea workers and ex-tea workers as per land policy 2019. The government has taken away livelihood and jobs from the youth and the ruling party is using them as foot soldiers for its communal campaigns. We have witnessed the dangerous face of BJP rule in Manipur and Haryana and it is time to rise to the occasion to save the democracy and constitution from the clutches of fascist regime.