Mandi - The flood-hit farmers from Mandi Balh-Sundarnagar under the banner of Himachal Kisan Sabha, demand house for house, land for land for the people who had suffered losses in the July-Agust natural disaster that had battered Himachal Pradesh mainly the Kullu-Mandi region.
These demands were raised during the meeting of the Himachal Kisan Sabha presided over by Prem Chaudhary at Nerchowk today.
NGO'S and farmers leaders including Joginder Valiya, Ramji Das, Nand Lal Verma, Hem Raj, Rajesh Sharma, Jagdish Chand, and others.
District President Kushal Bharadwaj of the Kisan Sabha said the block committee passed a resolution, demanding that the damages suffered by affected families, including damage to courtyards, crops, homes, and cattle shelters due to natural disasters, be recorded in the daily revenue records (roznamchas).
A comprehensive report should be prepared, and the affected families should be compensated with land in exchange for land and houses in exchange for houses.
The state government was urged to initiate relief, rehabilitation, and reconstruction efforts promptly and provide adequate compensation for all types of losses.
Also, the Central government was called upon to declare the current situation a national disaster and allocate a financial aid package of 10,000 crore rupees to the state.
Regarding the 1980 Forest Conservation Act, they demanded that necessary amendments be made to this law, or it should be repealed.
This would enable the transfer of land to landless individuals and the affected, as all forest lands currently fall under the jurisdiction of the Central government, they pointed out.
Kushal Bharadwaj expressed concern about the anti-farmer policies of the Central and state governments and their lack of attention to farmers' issues.
He highlighted how the Modi government had introduced detrimental laws, and despite mass protests, these laws were only repealed after extensive farmer movements.
He also pointed out that subsidies for fertilizers, seeds, pesticides, and other agricultural essentials had been removed, and promises of implementing a minimum support price law remained unfulfilled.
Bharadwaj criticized the government's inaction during natural disasters, with both the state and Central governments failing to adequately assist the affected individuals.
The meeting further discussed the damages caused by the recent floods in the Balh and Sundarnagar sub-divisions, spreading of pollution from dumping sites in Kansa Chowk, troubles caused by stray animals, and the devastation of fields due to heavy silt deposits.
The reconstruction of cremation grounds and addressing the concerns of vegetable producers were also part of the extensive discussions.
The Kisan Sabha pledged to launch an intensive campaign on these issues and join the massive protest to be held on November 25 in Shimla, with 50 flood-affected and 50 other farmers participating from Balh and Sundarnagar.
Additionally, a three-day state-level seminar on farmer and agriculture-related topics is scheduled for November 3-5 in Mandi, where five office bearers from the Balh-Sundarnagar committee will be in attendance, he informed.
