It is 300 days since Devanahalli(a taluka in Bangalore rural district) farmers first organised a committee against forcible land acquisition and have been on an indefinite strike until their demands are being met.
The struggle of these farmers is against the government body KIADB (Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board) which is taking over their lands against their will for so called “Industrial Development”
KIADB has issued a notice recently to acquire 1,777 acres of fertile lands. It is not the first time such mass acquisition is happening in Devanahalli, but the third time. The first instance of such acquisition happened in Devanahalli was for the Bengaluru International Airport where the KIADB acquired 725 acres of fertile lands from the farmers. There used to be three villages in the area where the airport stands today and not a trace of it can be found. The people of those villages have shared the same fate as the villages themselves where they were forced to scatter as no proper restitution or rehabilitation was given to them by the government. The people who once owned the land have been pauperized to do menial jobs such as housekeeping staff and security guards in the same land.
Habitual Acquisitions :
The farmers have witnessed many such instances. KIADB acquires land across Karnataka from farmers by making promises of industrial development and providing employment in their villages and thereby improving “standards of living”. However the farmers have become aware of these false promises as they have witnessed the horrific plight of those who have become landless post such acquisitions. The farmers whose lands were acquired have become debt ridden as there is no sustained source of income.
KIADB habitually acquires land in the name of “Industrial Development” but goes on to keep it unused. The CAG (Comptroller and Auditor General of India) report of 2017 states that in the time period of 2011-17, around 37,100 acres of land acquired was kept unused as “Land Banks”. It also sells these “Land Banks” to giant realtors at subsidised prices and thus effectively creating a playground for corporate players at the cost of the farmers and their livelihoods.
The farmers after looking at these atrocities decided to organise themselves and formed a committee called ‘Bhoo Swadhina Virodhi Horata Samiti’ which roughly translates to Committee for struggle against Land Acquisition. The farmers are sitting in an indefinite strike in a small village called Channarayapattana in Devanahalli. 13 villages who will be affected by this 1,777 acres acquisition take turns in participating in the sit-in. The Memoranda served by them to the state officials were all in vain and thus they decided to take it to the streets. The farmers had called for Devanahalli Bandh on the 75th day of their protest when the whole town of Devanahalli showed the support to the cause by closing shops in solidarity.
The August 15th Protest :
On 15th of August the farmers planned a protest demonstration to express their anguish and their dissatisfaction with the state on Independence day. However the prominent organisers were picked up from the protest site by the police at 4AM in the morning. The farmers still determined, marched towards the ground where the flag hoisting was taking place with the slogans of Raita Virodhi Sarkaragalu uliyodilla ( Anti Farmer Governments will not survive), Ambani,Adani sarkarakke dhikkara ( Down with Ambani Adani Government) and Raktavannu koduvevu Bhoomiyannu biduvudilla ( We’ll give Blood but not out Land ). They were manhandled by the police and 72 farmers were detained. Even after such attempts by the state to crush the movement, the farmers are determined like never before and believe that they can defend their land from the corporate clutches by the way of struggle. They protested against the Global Investors Meet which was held in November by the government of Karnataka who had invited big corporates to invest and utilise indigenous land and resources. Similar movements against KIADB land acquisitions are erupting in different parts of Karnataka such as Dakshina Kannada, Dharwad, Davanagere, Kolar where farmers have taken it upon themselves to defend their land.
Jal, Jangal, Jameen :
The acquisition is part of the ongoing corporate loot of the Jal, Jungle, Zameen where indigenous resources are being plundered from the people by foreign capital. There lies a huge threat to the sovereignty of the country when governments are merely acting as an agent/ puppet to facilitate this process and the farmers are doing the most patriotic act by resisting such plunder. It is our duty as students and youths to join hands with the working masses of the country and resist corporate loot.
