This chapter seeks to review and analyse the problem of displacement of peasants from their lands for developmental projects and the way the peasants are trying to protest against the involuntary displacement in the state of Maharashtra. Maharashtra has 50 per cent of the total big dams (dams having a height greater than 15 meters) in the country. The rate of industrialisation and urbanisation of the state is the highest in India. It was in Maharashtra that the first ever protest movement against the dam was organised (in the 1920s). Again Maharashtra is the first state in the country to have the Rehabilitation Act (1976). In Maharashtra, one witnesses two parallel movements of the displaced population—one opposes the big dams or huge industries and believes in alternative development models while another demands only proper and timely rehabi!itation and does not go into the discussion about the developmental models. Considering these distinguishing features a case siudy of the state of Maharashtra would be worthwhile to make in the context of dispossession of land and the struggles of the dispossessed. In the first section, a review of the dam-affected population and its struggle is done while the second section deals with the displacement due to industries and similar projects. At the end, larger issues of principles, values and political theory involved in this phenomenon are discussed and some generalisations are attempted.
STRUGGLE OF DAM-AFFECTED PEOPLE
The Khadakwasala dam, was built in 1869 near Pune and from that time the state of Maharashtra has always maintained the lead in constructing dams. A policy of agricultural development was adopted with added emphasis after the formation of Maharashtra. The Irrigation Commission was appointed in the very first year of the formation of the state (1960) to find out the availability of water and recommend the ways of best uulisation of that water. The recommendations of the Commission were accepted by the government and accordingly new irrigation projects were launched in. various parts of the state. With the result the state has completed 2,167 irrigation projects of different categories and 774 are under construction. Table 11.1 gives the details of these projects.
The recommendations of the Irrigation Commission were accepted and action also was thus taken on the basis of those recommendations. However, the suggestions made by the Commission regarding the resettlement of the dam-affected population were not acted upon. The Commission had suggested that the plan of resettlement of the peasants whose lands would be acquired for the project should be drawn up alongwith the ~ plan of the project. Sanctioning of the irrigation project and sanctioning of the resettlement scheme should be done simultaneously. The concerned depariments of the government should take necessary steps for resettlement before submergence or in fact before the acquisition of land. These guidelines were neglected while all other parts of the Report of the Commission found due place in the policy of the Government. It 1s very difficult to know the exact number of dam-affected people in the state. A recent news item in the leading newspaper of the state points out that there are about 140,631 families whose land has been acquired for various projects (Sakal, Marathi Daily, Pune, 13 November 1997). The Narmada Valley Development Scheme involving construction of the Sardar Sarovar Project is going to affect 5,000 tribal families from 33 villages of the Dhulia district in north Maharashtra. In February 1996, the Government of Maharashtra had established the Krishna Valley Development Corporation in order to develop irrigation projects in four districts of western Maharashtra and parts of two districts of Marathawada region of the state. The Corporation was to construct 33.big, 71 medium and 767 minor projects within 4 years from its formation. These projects are going to displace 50,000 families from 353 villages. The total land to be © acquired by the Corporation is 87,350 hectares (Saptahik Sakal, Marathi Weekly, Pune, 22 March 1997).
The irrigation minister of the government of Maharashtra has promised that the government would make it’s best to rehabilitate the displaced. However, peasants who are going to be dispossessed of their lands are not ready to believe in these words of the minister. The history of rehabilitation in the state does not support the minister’s view. In fact, the sovernment has refused to give report on the rehabilitation that has taken place since the Rehabilitation Act (1976) came into operation. The Act gave a legal right of rehabilitation to the displaced people but the voluntary agencies claim that so far only 40 per cent of displaced people are resettled in accordance with this Act. The condition of displaced families used to be worse when the Rehabilitation Act had not come into being. The Mulshi Dam, constructed by the Tata Hydroelectric Company in the 1920s, had displaced around 10,000 people by submerging in its reservoir about 50 villages.
These displaced people were given compensation in the form of cash according to the Land Acquisition Act of 1894. The amount of money (around Rs. 500 per acre for good quality land) was not sufficient to resettle the families. Some of them went to the cities like Pune and Mumbai in search of jobs and others preferred to live in the hills around the reservoir of the dam. The villages which got submerged in the reservoir were resettled on the slopes of the hills surrounding the reservolr. The Tata Company promised that it would make provision for roads, schools, medical aid and drinking water for the affected population. None of these promises were fulfilled. Until the 1990s, that is almost 45 years after Independence, the condition of these villages has not changed much. They lack basic amenities and facilities and live a life of deprivation and dispossession (Vora 1994).
The Tata Company was to undertake another hydroelectric project at Koyna, around 180 km, south of Pune, but it was given up because the Company had faced the protest from the peasants of Mulshi. The Koyna Project was revived after Independence and by 1962 the construction of the dam was completed. The Project adversely affected 98 villages and displaced 9,069 families. The government acquired 62,000 hectares of land from these villages in the valley. In case of Mulshi oustees the compensation was given in cash terms. The Koyna Project, on the other hand, gave land to the displaced peasants, but that did not solve their problem in any way. The inhabitants of 98 villages are settled in 205 colonies spread in five districts and are leading a tough life without basic amenities since then. Those who have not yet got the land are being asked to settle themselves at various places in two other districts. Thus the question of rehabilitation of displaced peasants of the Koyna project has not been satisfactorily solved by the government even after 34 years (Saptahik Sakal, Marathi Weekly, Pune, 6 September 1997).
The story of displaced population of post-Koyna projects is not very different though conditions have somewhat changed after the Rehabilitation Act of 1976 which was made due to continuous pressure from the dam-affected peasants and their organisations. We have the data of nine projects in this regard. The government of Maharashtra entered into a contract with the World Bank on 8 June 1993 for the rehabilitation of the 36,000 people displaced due to the irrigation projects, from Pune, Ahmednagar, Satara, Solapur, Beed, Parbhani and Yawatmal districts. The work on these projects had begun around 1970 and all the projects were completed long back. But the rehabilitation of displaced families was not done in a proper way. Therefore, the government invited three nongovernmental agencies to make a socio-economic survey of these families and to suggest the ways to improve their conditions.
These agencies could find out only 22,000 families in the vicinity of the dams because 25 years had passed and some families had found their own ways to settle.. The government prepared an action plan of rehabilttation with the help of the World Bank and non-government agencies. It was decided to help the dam-affected families and their settlements mainly according to the Rehabilitation Act. The World Bank had given Rs. 9.7 billion for this rehabilitation plan. This plan which included provision for drinking water, water for irrigation, good housing and civic amenities to the resettled population was accepted by the cabinet and came into operation on 4 January 1996, but nothing has been done ull now. The displaced families are left to their fate and the aid given by the ‘World Bank is being spent only on salaries of the staff recruited for the purpose.
We get a fairly realistic picture of the rehabilitation of the dam-affected people from a series of 17 articles appeared in September 1993 in the Maharashtra Times a renowned Marathi daily. These articles tell us that the majority of the displaced peasants are reduced to utter poverty and have been rendered landless. They are as good as not being resettled. Red tape, callousness and tendency of buying time on the part of the bureaucracy have completely defeated the very purpose of the resettlement programmes of the government. Those who were resettled tn new colonies are still not provided with minimum amenities and conveniences. Resettlement is still pending in some fehsils because the work of the _ project is lagging behind, while in some cases, people are resettled only on paper. In many places the resettled are not accommodated by the — villagers. The oustees have received less land than what they have lost. The land they get according to the act is in the catchment area where the prices of the land are higher. While allotting land the family is considered as a unit of holding. A village is resettled only if 75 per cent of the total area of that village is affected.
The Rehabilitation Act is not applicable to the minor projects. The better off peasants of the catchment area file suits in the court against the acquisition of their excess land for the displaced peasants. These court cases prolong the agony of the dam-affected people for years. A number of suits are pending tn the courts, due to incorrect valuation of the acquired lands in the catchment area. The process of acquisiuon of land for the displaced peasants always faces problems. In Pune revenue division 12,000 hectares land was acquired for the displaced peasants but instead of allotting that tand to them it was given back to the original owners (Sakal, Marathi Datly, Pune, 15 November 1997). Sometimes rich peasants try to get their village omitted from the catchment area in order to avoid acquisition of their lands and that brings to the surface the contradiction between the rich landlords and the poor peasants (Sakal, Marathi Daily, Pune, 13 November 1997). In some other cases peasants of the villages where land 1s going to be acquired for resettlement organise themselves against the government and demand that they do not want resettlement in their area. In Shirur tehsil of the Pune district for instance, number of dam-affected peasants of the Chasakman Project are resettled and number of hectares of land is already acquired for industries. Therefore, Shirur peasants are opposing any further acquisition of their lands (Sakal, Marathi Daily, Pune, ] October 1997).
PROTEST MOVEMENT
Involuntary displacement of peasants from their lands and awful condition of rehabilitation was bound to create consciousness about their basic rights and liberties among the displaced peasants. As said earlier, it was at Mulshi Project that the first ever movement of the peasants was organised to protest ugainst the dam being built by the Tata Company. The agitation started in April 192] and continued intermittently till December 1924. It was a non-violent agitation in which around 450 persons went to jail by breaking prohibitory orders. The peasants were led by Senapati Bapat and V.D. Bhuskute, urban Brahmin belonging to the Congress Party. Among those who suffered imprisonment were the men and women from the dam-affected villages as well as the Congress volunteers from different parts of the then Bombay Province. The satyagraha movement failed to achieve the objective, i.e., stopping the construction of the dam. The leaders of the movement had tried to persuade the peasants not to give their lands in any case and to be ready to sacrifice their lives in case the land was forcibly acquired. But the morale of the peasants did not last long and gradually they accepted the cash compensation for the land acquired by the Tata Company. The Mulshi Satyagraha even though it was unsuccessful become a symbol of sacrifice and a symbol of displaced population and their continuing struggle. Even today in the rallies, gatherings or public meetings of the dam-affected people, Mulshi Satyagraha and its leader Senapau' Bapat are remembered with high respect.
After Independence the condition of displaced and dispossessed people has continued to remain the same. In fact, their number increased with construction of large irrigation projects. The peasants dispossessed by the new dam projects were forced to launch agitation on the lines of the Mulshi Satyagraha. The first such protest movement began in 1965 against the Godavari Project. The protest at the state level was Jaunched in a conference held at Pune in June, 1965. The leaders of the communist and socialist parties and the Peasants and Workers Party attended the conference alongwith the representatives of the dam affected population from various parts of the state. The conference led to the formation of Maharashtra State Dam and Rehabilitation Organisation which later on became known as Maharashtra State Dam and Project Affected Peasant Federation.
The Federation led by Baba Adhav, D.B. Patil, Nagnath Naikwadi and Bharat Patankar has made it amply clear that it is not against the construction of medium or big size dams for irrigation or similar purpose. What the Federation demands ts basically a proper and timely rehabilitation, before acquiring the land or before starting work on the project. The Federation does not discuss the developmental models or alternative strategies, instead it concentrates on the demand of the displaced peasants probably believing that the displacement is inevitable if you want to goin for irrigation projects and also combat drought conditions. Since its beginning, the leadership of the Federation has come mainly from the rural areas and the peasantry castes. The leaders and the displaced peasants belonging to the Federation are inspired by the Mulshi Satyagraha and its hero Senapati Bapat even though they do not believe in the Mulstn view point that the project must be opposed at any cost.
Without taking an uncompromising position, the Federation, since its formation, has led the movement of the displaced peasants of the state. The pressure built up by the movement made the government accept the view that the problem of the displaced would not be really solved unul a comprehensive act for rehabilitation of the dam-affected population was enacted. Accordingly debate on the Rehabilitation Bill was initiated in 1973 and the act was passed in 1976. This act gave for the first time the dam-affected people a right to rehabilitation. As noted earlier, Maharashtra was the first state to make such act.
The shortcomings of the act became apparent quite soon. Beneficiary peasants put spokes in its implementation. Stay orders were passed by the courts on technical grounds. Dam-affected peasants were not allowed lo cultivate the newly received lands. There was a total lack of coordination among the various departments connected with the issue. The Federation demanded redressal of these shortcomings in the act. New agitations were launched for the redressal. Pune district became the centre of agitation probably because it had maximum number of dams. The government was obliged to appoint a Committee in December 1982 under the chairmanship of the minister of state for rehabilitation to make suggestions to the government on rehabilitating the project-affected population in a proper way. The committee submitted its report in January 1985 and the act based on its recommendations was passed in 1986. But the Federation found the new act extremely disappointing. The expectations of the damaffected peasants were not reflected in the act. Had this act with all its lacunas was applied faithfully the problem of rehabilitauion would have become somewhat bearable. Therefore, the Federation and its affiliated organisations had to continue their struggle of pressuring the government to accept their genuine and Jong-standing demands. Ultimately the government has decided to make a new act which would take into account the demands of the displaced peasants.
The Federation has made following demands on behalf of these peasants to the government in view of the new act (Z) The displaced peasant should not be made to pay any amount for the land which he receives in the command area. The notices which are being served today must be withdrawn. (ii) So long as the displaced peasants do not get the canal water for the land they have got in the command area they must be given compensation. (iii) The displaced people must be given whatever amount they require for building houses in the resettlement colony in addition to the compensation they receive for their earlier house. (iv) One person from each dam-affected family should be given employment and for that there must be provisions of reserved positions. (v) The land required for rehabilitation must be acquired alongwith the acquisition of the land for the dam. The work on the dam-affected family. (vi) The new act should make a provision whereby the government will have to accept a project submerging less hectares of land and affecting less number of people suggested by the dam-affected peasants. (vit) The dam-affected peasants who are not rehabilitated for last so many years should be resettled immediately with the help of a special task force. (viii) If the original landowner is not alive when the land is being acquired, his heirs above 18 years age should be considered eligible for receiving land. (ix) The daughters of the landowner should be eligible for receiving land as a right. (x) In order to maintain ecological balance the displaced peasants should be given a small piece of land for tree plantation. The displaced peasants must maintain that pieced under tree plantation. (xz) The damaffected people should get jobs in the industries developed in the command area and they should also be given facilities to start agro-industries on a cooperative basis. (xii) Land acquisition, construction of dam and rehabilitation process should be coordinated by a corporation established for each project. The representatives of the dam-affected people must find place on these corporations so that the process of the rehabilitation would be completed smoothly and without delay. (xiii) The representatives of the Federation should be included on the committee giving final form to the new Rehabilitation Act.
The rallies, public meetings, protest march, and other forms of nonviolent political actions are used by the Federation and its allied local organisations in order to move the authorities and power holders. Due to consistent pressure built up by organisations of the displaced peasants, the work on at least six to seven irrigation projects has either not begun or has been stopped. The Federation wants rehabilitation to precede the construction of the dam and wants the new Act of Rehabilitation to take note of their de mands. In view of these demands a committee under the chairmanship of the divisional commissioner of Pune Division was appointed to study the problem of displacement and recommend to the government the ways to. remove shortcomings in the existing acts. The committee submitted its _ report to the government ‘n 1997 and now it is the government which is supposed to take further action in this regard. It is hoped that soon new rehabilitation bill would be drafted by the concerned department of the Government of Maharashtra.
The struggle of the displaced peasants led by the Federation of the damand project-affected peasants has reached this stage after almost 37 years. After 10 years of the struggle, the first Rehabilitation Act came into existence (1976). Exactly after another LO years, the dam-affected peasants got passed an improved version of the act (1986) and now again after 10 years they are hoping for another instalment of relief package in the form of Rehabilitation Act. The leaders and members of the Federation very well know that the law by itself does not solve their problems but there is no other way than the legal one which makes it binding on the government tc rehabilitate the displaced peasants. Since the first act was made, the Federation has seen that the provisions of the act are actually implemented by the bureaucracy. After the proposed new act comes into being the Federation will have to do the same. The struggle will continue.
It seems that itis a very difficult battle to fight. The irrigation projects are spread in different districts and tehsils of the state. More than a 100 big and medium dams are being constructed at various sites. Therefore, the displaced population is also dispersed at these sites in various districts of the state. To organise and mobilise this population, spread all over the state is a difficult task to achieve. The displaced peasants are always in the minority in their respective tehsils or district. The majority of the peasants are direct or indirect beneficiaries of the project and therefore do not support the movement of the displaced. The peasants in the command area in fact. oppose the moves to rehabilitate the displaced peasants, because their excess land 1s acquired, as seen earlier, by the government for rehabilitation. They do not want the displaced peasants to encroach upon their lands and ask share in the resources. Thus the displacement gives rise to a conflict of interests.
The Federation concentrates only on dam-affected peasants though the name of the ‘Federation’ carries two words, dam and project, and that is why those who are affected by the industries or such other projects do not go with the Federation. The movement led by the Federation has not attempted to gather support of the urban middle class. It has not gone beyond mobilising the displaced peasants. The leadership, as noted earlier, comes from the peasantry castes and thus there is a good support between the leaders and the followers. But if we see the political affiliation of the leaders we come to know.that most of them are from opposition parties or non-Congress parties, 1.e., Peasants and Workers Party, Socialist Party, the Janata Dal or some small local political groups. The Congress Party which dominated the political scene in the state tll 1995 never took a serious note of the demands of the displaced peasants though these peasants came mainly from the Congress constituencies. The Coneress could do so because the displaced were in a minority and that the Congress represented the interest of the rich Maratha peasantry which benefited from the irrigation projects. At the same time it must be mentioned that the agitation of the displaced peasants are used by the Congress factions to oppose a particular project in a particular area. If one analyse/the politics of selection of dam sites the contradictions in the struggle of the displaced peasants would be revealed.
The decisions about the project which otherwise shouid be based on technical factors are sometimes taken with a view of favouring a particular faction Icader of the party or a particular region (Bhongle 1997 240-92), The Congress Party does not oppose a project or insist upon rehabilitation whenever the project is expected to irrigate vast land facilitating sugarcane Cultivation needed for a sugar cooperative factory controlled by the Congress leader. Shetkari Sanghatna (peasant organisation) led by Sharad Joshi never took the cause of the displaced peasants because the Sanghatna represented the interest of the rich peasantry. The Peasants and Workers Party, a party of the peasantry of the state, has not supported the movement of the displaced peasants genuinely though one of its leaders, D.B. Patil has associated himself with the movement for last more than 30 years. It must be noted here that he does not come from the sugar belt and therefore affords to take up the cause of the displaced peasants while the PWP leaders coming from the irrigated tract have either kept themselves aloof from the movement or have given only lukewarm support. The Communist leadership which was at the forefront when the movement began in 1965 has not maintained the rapport with the organsation of the displaced peasants afterwards.
NARMADA BACHAO ANDOLAN
Since the mid-1980s the displaced population of the state is also being organised by the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) (Save Narmada Agitation). The Narmada Valley Development Scheme is constructing two huge dams one in’ Gujarat (Sardar Sarovar) and another in Madhya Pradesh and 28 major, 135 medium and more than 3,000 minor dams. As seen earlier, land which is going to be submerged due to the Narmada Project from Maharashtra is from Dhulia district and all the people who are going to be displaced are tribals. Medha Patkar and her colleagues formed Narmada Dharan Grasta Samiti (Narmada Dam-Affected Committee) on 17 February 1986 in that area. The NBA was basically oriented towards resettlement till August 1988. But when the leaders of the movement came to know the falsehood and futility of the project as well as government’s apathy towards rehabilitation, they decided to oppose the project as such and to reject all proposals of compromise. In a way there is a common thread between the Mulshi Satyagraha of 1920s discussed above and the NBA. Senapati Bapat, leader of the Mulshi peasants had taken an uncompromising stand of opposing the construction of the dam and not accepting the compensation in any case. Similarly, Medha Patkar, the leader of the NBA is against the construction of the huge dam being built in Gujarat (the Sardar Sarovar Project). Senapati Bapat had given a call ‘Jan or Jamin’ (life or land) to the peasants of Mulshi while Medha Patkar has given the call “Dubenge Par Hatenge Nahi’ (we wouid prefer to get drowned than to move away). This viewpoint is totally different from that of the Federation. The NBA believes in alternative development model which goes nearer to Gandhian view of the development. It is critical of high technology and big dams which disturb the ecological balance and the life pattern of tribals and masses. The Narmada Project as seen earlier, is going to affect the 33 tribal villages from Dhulia district in the north Maharashtra. The leaders of the movement have made it a point to create consciousness among the educated classes of the urban areas about the Narmada Project and at a general level about the sustainable development and environmental issues. They have formed groups supporting their agitation in number of cities in Maharashtra, thereby taking the message to the larger audience which is not directly related to either the project or the agitation. The NBA argues that there is no point in fighting the battle on the issue of rehabilitation. The rehabilitation centred struggle have not been able to achieve the objective after all these years. Now it is the time, when the movement must question the very logic of having big dams any where in the country. The movement should challenge the developmental model itself. While the Federation which fights for proper rehabilitation, argues that the NBA is fighting a loosing battle and neglecting the crucial question of rehabilitation. In Dhulia district where the NBA is active the rehabilitation is not being done in a proper fashion but the leaders of the agitauon are not taking interest in that issue. In this context it is essential to note that the ‘Arch Vahini’ 1s mobilising Dhulla tribals for securing rehabilitation (Statement of the Arch Vahini, 29 April 1992).
The lands in question in the Dhulia district are tribal lands The government while acquiring these lands in 1993-94 declared that these lands are government lands and therefore could be acquired by giving only ex gratia payment to the tribals. The NBA has challenged this attempt of the government as a grave violation of tribal rights to the land and forest. The tribals are cultivating the lands and residing in the villages for years together. It is the government which has failed to prepare land settlement records since Independence. The government is trying to argue that the tribals are the encroachers on government land and if this government land is to be acquired then it is not necessary to follow the process of acquisition prescribed by the Land Acquisition Act of 1894 (Sangvi 1993: 2705). The tribals face this problem in other parts of the state also and when it comes to rehabilitation they are the worst sufferers. The proportion of their rehabilitation is almost half of that of other people.
STRUGGLE OF THE OUSTEES AFFECTED BY INDUSTRIES AND OTHER PROJECTS
Irrigation projects are more in number and dams are basically built for the irrigation but some dams are meant for non-irrigation purposes. The Mulshi and Koyna dams discussed in earlier section for instance, are constructed to generate hydroelectric power. Besides, the water stored in the reservoir of the dam is sometimes put to use for the thermal power station like the one in the Vidarbha region or for the needs of cities like Mumbai and Pune. The Jayakwadi water which ts basically meant for irrigation in the Marathawada region is used for Aurangabad city and that of Gangapur for Nasik city. Moreover, the water stored in the reservoirs of many irrigation projects is being increasingly diverted to industrial estates. It is said that at least 15 per cent of water thus stored is utilised for non-irrigation purposes (Purandare 1997: interview). Thus the peasants are dispossessed of their agricultural lands for storing water that is used in many cases for non-agricultural purposes. However, this 1s only one reason why peasants have to surrender their lands for non-irrigation projects. There are many more factors which have led to greater and greater acquisition of agricultural land for non-agriculturai purposes in Maharashtra. Development of industries is one of the most important factors that have caused dispossession of lands.
Maharashtra ranks-first in the country so far as industrialisation 1s concerned. It was one of the first states which welcomed the new economic policy of the early 1990s. The contribution of industrial sector to the state income has increased by more than 15 per cent while that of the agricultural sector has remained the same in the last decade. The contribution of the service sector has also increased vis-a-vis the agricultural sector. In fact compared to the states like Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, the agriculture in Maharashtra is backward and in agriculture production with an exception of sugarcane the state would rank ninth. The government of Maharashtra has been allotting more funds for the development of other sectors compared to the agriculture. By 2001, 50 per cent of the state’s population would be in the urban areas.
In recent years the government is offering incentives and concessions to attract capital to the state. The industrial development is now undertaken in accordance with the New Industry, Trade and Commerce Policy for Maharashtra 1995 which intends to establish nine five-star industrial estates in different parts of the state. In the first instance, three such estates are going to be set up—one near Nagpur city, another near Aurangabad city and a third near Nasik. These estates are going to acquire 2,000 to 7,000 hectares of land. The new industry policy wants these estates to be developed by private corporations. Another feature of the new policy is the emphasis on infrastructure development. Mega-projects of investment worth 10 billion are going to be given preference by the new policy. Restrictions on mining are being removed and private sector is going to be given almost free land in the tribal district of Gadcharoli of the Vidarbha region.
The Maharashtra Economic Development Council Report of June 1997 has identified Pune and Aurangabad for automobile industry, Ratnagiri and Pune for petrochemicals, plastic and rubber industries, Raigad and Ratnagiri (Konkan region) for metals industry, Raigad (Konkan region) for chemicals, Nagpur and Raigad for textiles, Chandrapur for coal and minerals, has identified five growth centres in 1988 for the state—Akola, Chandrapur, Dhule, Nanded and Ratnagiri. At every centre, 700 hectares of land is being acquired (Frontline, Chennai, 14 November 1997). The Maharashtra government is setting up 65 growth centres of which 63 are already notified.
The Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) has acquired land in 24 centres. In addition to this land the MIDC has in its possession around 30,000 hectares and hopes to acquire 77,000 hectares more. The MIDC was set up long back in 1962 and since then is promoting growth and development of industries, establishing and managing industrial estates and areas by acquiring land under the Maharashtra Industrial Development Act of 1961.
The MIDC acquires land by giving a show-cause notice to the owner that why his land should not.be acquired to which he is asked to respond within a specific time limit and then the notice is published in the official gazette. After this notice is published the land rest absolutely in the state government. Then the notice is given to the owner to surrender the land within 30 days. If any one refuses or fails to comply with the order the government takes possession of the land by using force if necessary. Thus it is a system which works on the lines of talaq wherein three ‘notices’ are sufficient for divorce. A compensation is given for the land thus acquired on the basis of agreement between the owner and the government. Usually lands are acquired by the MIDC when the land prices are not very high. In Pune district alone eight industrial estates are established by the MIDC by acquiring 4,662 hectares of land and five such estales are proposed for which 6,750 hectares are going to be acquired by the procedure given above. Whenever and wherever the landowners make a protest collectively the matter is settled by either giving higher price or by giving promise that their boys would get an employment in the up-coming industries. Many times the development of the industrial estate begins and continues in spite of the opposition. Those who oppose are usually the cultivating landowners and those who readily part with the land are those who have either poor quality of land or are very poor themselves. The promise of giving jobs is seldom-fulfilled and where a job is given they are of contractual nature and are mostly temporary.
Konkan
Let us take the example cf the Konkan region where during last few years land is being acquired on a huge scale under the MID Act both for industries and infrastructure development and where protest movement is also strong to a Certain extent. . Konkan is situated on the west coast between the city of Mumbai in the north and Goa in the south. It has three districts, Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg, having an urban population of 18.02 per cent, 8.93 per cent 7.57 per cent respectively. It means it 1s essentially arural and agriculturedominated region. But soon the economy and society of this region. is going to radically change. Raigad district, adjoining the city of Mumbai has some of the most dangerous and hazardous chemical industries in the state. In the new policy also this district is chosen for the chemical and metal industries. Ratnagiri is selected for petro-chemicals, metals, oil and gas. One of the five growth centres identified by the central government is Ratnagiri as noted above. The government of Maharashtra claims that it is thinking of investing Rs. 680 billion in this region in industries and infrastructure including development of ports. Konkan is chosen for such huge investment because it has in vicinity the industrial capital of the country—Mumbai, railway route is now opened in the region, it has a long coastal area and ports as well as sea-water for chemical factories to do away with pollutants and polluted water. It 1s an ideal place also for power projects which require water in the near vicinity. On the top of it Konkan has a potential of becoming a tourist centre due to its rich and varied environment (Brahme 1997b: 5-6). All these factors have led to the development of industrial and other projects on the one hand and ereater and greater acquisition of land on the other by using the MID Act of 1961. The land-use pattern of Konkan is changing fast. North to south, a strip has come under the railways. Land on both the sides of the railway is being purchased by the private sector for commercial or industrial purposes or on a larger scale by the MIDC to develop the industrial estates. A number of urban housing colonies and government offices are coming up. The agricultural land will now be available for non-agricultural use.
Raigad district was known for its huge production of rice and lands were protected there from sea-water. But chemical industries have already changed this pattern in Raigad. The industries and projects are changing the land-use pattern of two other districts also. And these changes are thereby transforming the land-ownership patterns in the region. Most of the peasants in the narrow coastal strip are small holders and within these small holdings we find number of partners and claimants from the family. It is therefore very difficult to transfer the land in Konkan. But with the introduction of railways the number of sales deals are increasing. Due to ‘big’ offers for marginal lands the hurdles in the transfer of lands is being removed. And now because of new policy number of jndustrial and other projects are reaching the region to require the lands on a huge scale. The small and marginal peasants in the Konkan are exchanging the lands for money but they do not know what to do with that amount of money. In the long run it is always profitable to have your own land which would give return for years rather than getting money at ones (Dukhande and Mhatre 1994: 3-9). However, not all are selling their lands like that. In fact most of the lands which are brought under non-agricultural use are acquired by the MIDC for industries and infrastructure projects of the private sector by utilising the instrument of MID Act in which case the peasants are left with no choice but to surrender the lands. The Konkan peasants have courageously come out against this compulsory acquisi‘on of their lands since 1994.
Enron Project
One of the most talked about projects of Konkan is the Enron project. It is in the news not because it is a huge project but because it is being opposed since.its inception by those whose lands are forcibly taken away by the company with the help of a democratically elected government claiming to represent the masses. In 1991 the central government declared its new power policy and invited multi-nationals to set up power projects in the country. The Enron Company took the advantage of this policy and proposed a project at Dabhole in Guhagar tehsils which was immediately accepted by then Maharashtra government led by Sharad Pawar. The contract was entered into in December 1993 for a project that would have capacity of 2,450 mega watts power and investment around Rs. [00 billion. The Shiv Sena—BJP alliance opposed the project on account of the corruption involved, the dubious character of the contract and encroachment of the multi-nationals implied on the eve of 1995 Legislative Assembly election. But when the alliance came to power the new.government entered into the contract with the Enron Company in a more suspicious way than the earlier times. The peasants, however, were aware of the Impending danger and were getting ready for the struggle because it. was decided to acquire under the MID Act, 650 hectares land of peth Anjanvel, Katalwadi, Bhorbhatlemal, Ranavi and Veldur villages. The owners of the land under rice cultivation is to get Rs. 60,000 for a hectare and other lands Rs. 50,000 a hectare. The peasants made an appeal in the High Court but the Court declared the acquisition as legal thereby leaving no way for the people but to go in for a public protest (Brahme 1997a: 25-26). a In this manner the region of Konkan with its growing industrialisation and infrastructure projects is becoming a region of unrest. Let us first take an account of what is happening on the Enron front and then turn to the protest against other projects in the region because by how the struggle against the Enron is seen as a symbol of protest in Konkan as well as in other parts of the state against the displacement of people and destruction of their environment. |
‘The anti-Enron struggle-began with a conference in June 1994 in which Maharashtra State Electricity Board workers, other state government workers, peasants, fishermen and traders participated. The struggle is led by the Konkan Sangharsha Samiti (committee for struggle of Konkan) and Anti-Enron Struggle Cornmittee—Anti-Enron Committees are formed in various Cities of the state. These committees organise demonstrations, satyagraha, exhibitions and such other actions to create awareness among the people in cities. At the site of the project the peasants and others took objection to land surveys and process of land requisition in which women participated in great number. Throughout October-November of 1994 this protest on site went on and hundreds of satyagrahis were arrested. All methods of repression were used by the police and automobiles in order to grab the land, from their owncrs. From January 1995 the struggle was intensified. Démonstrations were held at the Legislative Assembly in Mumbai and huge public meetings were held in places like Guhagar near the project. In the meanwhile the coalition government of BJP and Shiv Sena came to power. But it changed completely its stand and soon entered into a new contract (January 1996) with the Enron Company. Disillusioned by this, the affected masses now began their fight with the new government. On 30 January 1997 the antiEnron Struggle Committee and related organisations along with the National Alliance of Peoples Movement which had entered the struggle with a big way organised the mass-scale satyagraha in the Guhagar tehsil. Prohibitory orders were issued by the government and all others means of repression were used by the police. But in spite of all this satyagrahis reached the place in a big number. They were lathi-charged and tear gas was also used. In all 1,200 of them were arrested. The satyagraha was resumed in April— -May 1997 in which the villagers and volunteers participated on a huge scale. Since the beginning of 1997 and especially after April-May 1997 the Enron Struggle has acquired not only state but also national dimension. The constituent organisations of the National Alliance of Peoples Movement, Narmada Bachao Andolan (Save Narmada Agitation), Sarva Seva Sangh (Sarvodayi Organisation) Samajwadi Jan Parishad and host of other organisations have joined the struggle of the displaced peasants of Guhagar area of Konkan (Andolan, Marathi Monthly, Pune, June 1997).
Anti-Enron Struggle
The anti-Enron struggle is a part of a larger movement going on all over the region of Konkan against involuntary displacement caused by various industrics and projects of big and medium magnitude. The demonstrations and protest marches have been organised by the Konkan Sangharsha Samiti (Konkan Struggle Committee) since 1994 to oppose the land acquisition and erection of the projects. The villagers compelled the Hindustan Oman Petroleum Refinery to stop acquisition of 800 hectares of land in September 1995. The peasants and inhabitants of Rewas, Mandawa, Bodani, Dighodi and Ghokwade opposed the Jand acquisition for Rewas—Mandawa airport in September 1996. In villages like Nivali, Masebav, Karbude, Bhoge néar Ratnagiri town have been protesting against land acquisition by the MIDC. Maharashtra Fisherman Organisation, Mumbai, Velagar Struggle Committee, Usha—Ispat Struggle-Committee, Satarde, Anti-HOPCL Struggle Committee, Patalganga Anti-Pollution Struggle Committee, Dharmatar Save Bay Action Committee, Eradicate Unemployment and Pollution Committee along with the Anti-Enron Struggle Committee and Konkan Struggle Committee are some of the important organisations working at sites of various projects had organised from March 1997 to almost the end of May 1997 the Konkan Development Procession which went to various places, towns and projects to create awareness about the alternative development model for Konkan and about the destructive aspect and in human character of the present policy of the industrialisation of the region. This procession was led by Medha Patkar the leader of the Narmada Agitation which we have discussed in earlier section. The repressive apparatus of the state government tried to crush down the procession by employing all sorts of . tactics and techniques and invited the criticism from the civil liberties associations like Amnesty International (Maharashtra Times, Marathi Daily, Mumbai, 30 October 1997). The Narmada Bachao Andolan (Save Narmada Agitation) along with the National Alliance of Peoples Movement (NAPM) have not only joined the Konkan or anti-Enron struggle but have come to lead these struggles. The concept of alternative development raised during the Narmada Agitation establishes a correcting link between that agitation and the Konkan Struggle. Medha Patkar and economist Sulabha Brahme are proposing environment and people friendly decentralised model of the development of Konkan as against the present one which believes in large-scale industrialisation and elite-oriented development. They are critical of the encroachment by the multi-national companies and the philosophy behind the privatisation, liberalisation and globalisation which is responsible according to them for the large-scale displacement of the people (Brahme 1997a: 10-15).
The peasants are resisting the attempts to acquire their lands in other parts of the state as well but their struggles are of a localised nature and lack support from outside or middle-class sophistication which one finds in case of Konkan or Enron. In some areas, local political leaders belonging to different political parties lead the struggle. If the Shiv Sena—BJP alliance is in power it is the Congress which has to come out against the government and its policies. While in some parts the established political parties and groups keep away from these struggles and new formations take the initiative at local level.
The Government of Maharashtra as a part of its new policy of developing infrastructure has proposed an expressway between Mumbai and Pune which will cut down the time required for the travel by two hours. Seven hundred hectares of land is going to be acquired for the expressway. This project requires Rs. 20 billion of which the government can raise up to 40 per cent, the remaining 60 per cent of capital is to be taken from the private sector. In order to do so the governmen Is planning to have two mega cities—one in Pune district and another in Raigad district. To set up these cities, 1,550 hectares land is proposed to be acquired of which 550 hectares will be near Pune city and 1,000 hectares will be near Chowk in Raigad district (Saptahik Sakal, Marathi Weekly, Pune, 5 July 1997). The lands for these mega cities are to be acquired at low prices by using the instrument of law and then are to be sold to businessmen for development at high prices. The amount of money which would be collected through this transaction is going to be used for building the expressway of an international standard first of its kind in the country. The tehsil level political leaders and MLAs of Pune district are asking for a price of Rs. 500,000 per acre when government is offering only Rs. 40,000. The leaders are not against the project what they want is high price. The Congress leaders are organising the peasants in the Mulshi tehsil (Pune district) where 422 hectares land ts going to be acquired for the expressway (Sakal, Marathi Daily, Pune, 8 November 1997). The Raigad district peasants are, however, resisting the proposed acquisition of their lands for megacity-and have not yet accepted the project or are not yet ready for a compromise even if high prices are offered to them. They argue that why should they sacrifice their lands for a mega-city which is going to make mega profit (The Times of India, Mumbai, 2 June 1997).
Wildlife and bird sanctuaries as well as national parks are some other schemes for forest and non-forest lands. The restriction imposed due to the sanctuary on the tribals who depend upon the forest lands for their living make their life difficult. While forest contractors get a free hand the tribals are harassed by the authorities and are branded as encroachers on the forest lands which are in fact their lands (Maharashtra Times, Marathi Daily, Mumbai, 28 October 1997). A new bird sanctuary is proposed near the reservoir of Jayakwadi dam in Marathawada region. The Government is acquiring 12,000 acres of land from 26 villages from this region. The peasants under the leadership of political leaders are resisting this move and have decided to ‘come on streets’, or go to the Supreme Court if this sanctuary project is pushed by the government. They do not want to part with their lands for the pleasure of tourists from Mumbai and Pune city (Sakal, Marathi Daily, Pune, 3 September 1997).
Urban development schemes intend to expand the boundaries of the cities, establish twin city or vast housing projects. The Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act was introduced in 1996 for drafting of development plans in regions around selected industrial centres. In addition to this, the Act makes provision for the compulsory acquisition of land required in respect of these plans of development. City and industrial Development Corporation is established in order to carry out such development plans. The tribal lands near Borivali, Virar and Vasai were acquired for the development of the Mumbai city. Since the tribals did not have the records they were driven out of their ancestral lands. When the Pimpri~Chinchwad township was developed near Pune, the land of the peasants from rent by villages were acquired in large measure. The Shrur town and nearby area is being developed as an industrial centre where thousands of hectares of land was acquired and now the villages are facing with another move of acquisition—this time for the city development scheme. The authorities are planning to acquire 4,000 acres for this scheme. The Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (Indian Peasant Organisation), is mobilising peasants against this acquisition.
RIGHTS OF POOR PEASANTS: SOME ISSUES
This review of involuntary displacement suggests that thousands of peasants and tribals are made to dispossess their lands for the development of the state of Maharashtra and that the process of displacement is being intensified due to adoption of the new economic policy by the government. Number of larger issues of principle and socio-economic and political theory emerge out of this review.
The first issue which prominently comes out is that of rights. Our Parliament by amending the Constitution has taken out the Right to Property from the Fundamental Rights of citizens. It was welcome move because that gave the government necessary power to impose lirnits on private property of certain sections of our society. But while doing this the Parliament equated the property of the capitalists, landlords and rich with the means of livelihood of the small and marginal peasants or tribals. When you take away land of a small peasant you are not taking away his property but his means of livelihood without which he and his family can not make living: The land reforms were done as seen at the beginning of this paper in order to impose limits on the ownership of land by the big landowners and they were not méant for dispossessing the peasants from their land. In fact the land reforms were made in order to ascertain that as far as possible all peasant have some land for cultivation. It is one thing to take away excess land from a big landowner and totally different thing to acquire all the land a peasant possesses. The right in question here is not a right to property but a ‘right to survival’. And that means not merely a right to bare survival but a right to live with dignity and to have dignified human life as specified in Article 21 of the Constitution. When the state acquires land for developmental project from a peasant it encroaches upon this right to live with dignity of that peasant. Another right which is violated in the process of displacement is the freedom and right to reside and settle in any part of the territory of India (Act 19 [i] [e]). -
Whenever a question of rights is discussed it is usually about the individual rights. But when land is acquired for irrigation or any other big project it is acquired on a very big scale thereby displacing not one or two individuals but the whole community thereby the community looses its control over the natural resources like land, water and bio-diversity of that area. It is argued that the displacement causes shrinking of the rights of communities to control their local natural resources (Shiva 1991:. 67-68). It is possible to rehabilitate an individual or two but how one does rehabilitate a community with not only its natural resources but with all its social relationships and cultural ethos. For a community, displacement is not only a loss of material means of livelihood but also of cultural autonomy (Baviskar 1995: 37). Therefore now it is necessary to talk about the cultural rights of the displaced communities.
The second issue which should be contested in this context is that of the public interest. It is claimed that the project being constructed is in public interest and therefore we should grant some displacement for that. What do we mean by public interest or for that matter national interest. The social activists are challenging the very notion of public interest. The project may not serve the public interest in the real sense of the term because while conceiving the project, alternatives are usually not taken ‘ato consideration. There are received and accepted notion of development which make you accept the project. These nonons are now challenged by some scholars and activists. Is it the interest of the rich peasants who grow cash crops that we have in mind when we refer to public interest or ‘s it the interest of the industrialist who make huge profits from the project. How can we claim that the displacing has to be accepted in the larger national interest when the government is allowing the multinational com pany to set up that project. Number of economist have pointed out that — the MNCs are detrimental to the national interest and that the perceptible erosion of the nation-state is taking place due to the entry of the MNCs. And-again if we see the composition of those who are displaced we come to know that they mainly belong to the weaker section of the society. By displacement they become weaker and get marginalised. Does such process serve a public interest or national interest is a quesuon which needs examination. Why small and marginal farmers on tribals are asked to make sacrifice for the nation every time and everywhere?
The third issue involved in this question of displacement as said in preceding para is about the very concept of development. The Narmada Agitation has consistently raised the point about the validity of the established and accepted model of development. In Maharashtra the alternative development plans are suggested in case of Konkan region where as seen ‘a the earlier section the established pattern of development is playing have with the life of the people. The alternative plan, if implemented, would not require investment on a huge scale and also would not displace people from their natural surroundings. They themselves will participate not only in planning the development but also in the process development. Itis an environment friendly and people centred plan of development which believes in self-supporting systems and decentralised mechanisms of decision making as well as appropriate technology which would provide employment to maximum number of people (Brahme 1997a: 1018). This model of development is radically different from the one which is being implemented in Konkan or for that matter in Maharashtra as a whole. Industrialisation with an emphasis, on big industries and high technology is the focus of the model accepted by the government. The land required for the industries or the projects like the Enron is acquired by the government with the help of the MID Act and in that case the government is acting on behalf of the businessmen against the interest of the people. It is said that the projects that cause displacement play a ‘useful social role’ by releasing labour for industry and other useful jobs. In fact what the displacement does is nothing but an addition to the already existing army of unemployed people. The capital intensive and high-tech factories of the present day need less number of workers and even if they require some they do not take unskilled villagers. In cases where the displaced people have got the jobs, they are of as noted in earlier section of a temporary and contractual nature.
These industries and multinational companies are buying or acquiring thousands of hectares of land from the agricultural zone. The land ceiling laws are applicable to the peasants but not for the companies which want agricultural land for non-agricultural project or corporate farming. The corporate farming is coming in Maharashtra on a large scale threatening the establishment of the peasantry.
The fourth issue which comes out of the discussion on compulsory land acquisition and consequent displacement is regarding the concept of consent and representation. The projects of development either for constructing a dam or establishing an industry are thrust on the people of a particular locality. Their consent is taken for granted. According to the established practice the government which is democratically chosen > by the people takes all sorts of decisions on the behalf of the people and therefore it is not considered necessary to take prior consent of the people whose locality is going to have the project. There are some activisis who take the view of Hammare Gaon Mein Hamara Raj (our rule in our village). This view might be seen as the one which challenges the legitimacy of the modern state. But we might not find it as radical as it: sounds if we take into account the new ainendment done in the constitutional provisions about the Panchayati Raj whereby the rural local govern ment would have more power and autonomy. In that case the local government would come into picture while deciding the validity of the project.
Last, it is the concept of the state that calls.for discussion. All the four issues which we have analysed in this section are connected in a way with the idea of state. It is observed that in the era of new economic policy and globalisation the state is withdrawing gradually from economy and that the market forces are ruling over the economy. But this observation does not seem to be true at least in India. The private sector and MNCs are no doubt given a free hand in India and it is also true that the state is no more interested in the growth of public sector and in this sense the state may not be very active in the economy. But it must be pointed out that the state is extending its helping hand to the private sector and MNCs and giving concessions and facilities to such an extent that the presence of the state becomes quite visible everywhere. The various laws and agencies of the government are supporting the private sector and MNCs so much so that the talk about withdrawal sounds like hypocrisy. And if one wants to ‘see’ the state and ‘feel’ the presence of the state one has to join the nonviolent struggle of the displaced masses. The repressive apparatus of the state is active—in reality very active—in the era of privatisation and globalisation. In this era state openly comes out in support of the private company or MNC and protects and furthers its interest believing that the state should hinder the hindrances in the way /privatisation. The greatest hindrance obviously is that of the movements‘of the displaced peasants or tribals. Since the state is committed to the globalisation finds it its duty to work as an agent of the global company. The state grabs the lands of the peasants and tribals and gives them to the industries and project. In most of the cases the state does not give only land but also offer them other natural resources like water and the infrastructure needed to run the industries and projects. The state thus disregards the rights of its dispossessed population and claims that the acquisition of land ts being carried out in the public interest and that the state has all the authority to decide the fate of the dispossessed because it has a popularly elected government.
REFERENCES
Baviskar. 1995. In the Belly of the River: Tribal Conflicts over Development in the Narmada
Valley. New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
Bhongle, Sudhir. 1997. Politics of Water in Maharashtra: 1960-1995. A Ph.D. Thesis Submitted to the University of Poona, Pune.
Brahme, Sulabha. 1997a. Enroncha Dobhal Veejprakalpa. Pune: Shankar Brahme Samaj Vidnyan Granthalya.
Brahme, Sulabha. 1997b. Kokan Vikasachi Disha, Pune: Shankar Brahme Samaj Vidnyan Granthalaya. -
Dukhande, Gopal, and Mhatre, Sandhya. 1994. Kokan Railway Aani Vikasachi Sundhi. Mumbai: Gramin Vikas Ek Disha.
Government of Maharashtra. 1995. White Paper on Drinking Water Schemes.
Purandare, Pradeep. Interview on 20 March 1997. Aurangabad: Water and Land Management Institute.
Sangvi, Sanjay. 1993. Politics of Submergence. Economic and Political Weekly, 28(50).
Shiva, Vandana, and others. 1991. Ecology and the Politics of Survival: Conflicts over Natural Resources in India. New Delhi Sage.
Vora, Rajendra. 1994. Mulshi Satyagraha, Pune Pratima Prakashan.
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