PUNJAB JAT MAHASABHA TO HOLD PROTEST ON MARCH 18 AGAINST PROPOSED AMENDMENT IN..

Chandigarh :

Punjab Jat Mahasabha announced to hold district-level protests at all the district headquarters in the state on March 18 against the proposed amendment in the land acquisition bill, disbanding of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) and to demand compensation for the damage to the crop due to weather conditions.

This was announced by the outfit’s president Kushaldeep Singh Dhillon, after chairing a state-level meeting of its executive body. He said that if the government fails to pay heed to the genuine demands of the farmer community, they will have to stage state-level protest by blocking the state highways.

Opposing the proposed amendment in the land bill, Dhillon was critical of the Modi government at the Centre for making certain changes in the Land Acquisition Act through an Ordinance. He said that on December 29 last, the government had recommended promulgation of an Ordinance, making significant changes in the Land Acquisition Act, including removal of consent clause for acquiring land for five areas of industrial corridors, PPP projects, rural infrastructure, affordable housing and defence.

“They actually want to give away hundreds of acres of land to the big corporate and that too without the consent of the landowners and farmers. This anti-farmer bill will not be allowed to be implemented in the interest of farmers of the country,” he asserted. Dhillon further alleged that “Modi government plans to gradually finish off the public procurement mechanism in a move to disband the FCI, which will adversely affect livelihoods of millions of farmers, seriously compromise the food security of the nation as well as further increase in food inflation rate for the masses”.

He demanded that special ‘girdawari’ (revenue assessment) should be done to take stock of the damage to the standing crops due to recent rains and adequate compensation should be announced immediately to the affected farmers.