Farmers call off march on Maharashtra minister’s home turf, say govt has agreed to most demands
Following a marathon meeting chaired by Maharashtra Revenue Minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil in Sangamner taluka of Ahmednagar district, the All India Kisan Sabha decided to call off its 53 km march from Akole to the minister’s hometown of Loni on Thursday. The march started on Wednesday and was originally scheduled to end on Friday with a sit-in.
Dr Ajit Nawale, leader of the All India Kisan Sabha, told The Indian Express that they have decided to call off the march as the state government has agreed to fulfil most of their demands with respect to the implementation of the Forest Rights Act, better compensation for crops, better remuneration for anganwadi workers etc.
Other than Vikhe Patil, state labour minister Suresh Khade and tribal affairs minister Dr Vijaykumar Gavit were present at the meeting. Senior officials of these ministries were also present. It was decided that the ministers will meet the marchers and formally announce the decisions.
“A time-bound action has been scheduled to meet all the demands. This was the reason we called off the march,” Nawale said.
The march was organised by the All India Kisan Sabha and other Left-backed organisations to draw attention to the non-implementation of the Forest Rights Act, which recognises the rights of the forest-dwelling tribal communities and other traditional forest dwellers to forest resources in the state.
Five years ago, the All India Kisan Sabha had held its first ‘long march’, where thousands of farmers walked from Nashik to Mumbai to press for their demands. Tribal communities living in forest areas have long complained that they have been denied their rights guaranteed by the Forest Rights Act. Tribal belts, especially those in Nashik and north Maharashtra, have traditionally supported the All India Kisan Sabha, which manages to get a good response for its marches.
