March
For Land, Dignity
And Freedom In Poorvanchal
By Vidya Bhushan
Rawat
24 May, 2007
Countercurrents.org
Hunger
and starvation deaths in the eastern Uttar-Pradesh continue to haunt
communities during the last one decade. Every year people are dying
of different diseases particularly Malaria, and Japanese Encephalitis
(brain fever). While the names have changed the target of these viral
diseases remain the same communities.
Government, aid agencies
and campaigns were launched to tackle the starvation and hunger prevalent
in the region. Many of these districts are under the National Employment
Guarantee Scheme (NREGA) yet reports suggests that the scheme is another
way of 'helping' those who are power groups in the rural set up. They
have rarely reached the masses. Many of the NGOs formed community groups
to help them yet the food never reached. While it was good that government
provide food aid to the dying people yet very few raised the issue that
the hunger has raised its ugly head in the country because of the continuous
antipathy of the government to the land redistribution programme. Contrary
to this, more land was acquired in the name of development without providing
enough and satisfactory rehabilitation. The victim of this unsustainable
development have been the communities like Dalits, tribals and MBCs.
The numbers of landless communities
in poorvanchal is substantial and are severely facing challenge to their
livelihood. With more mechanized agri-farming, these agrarian workers
are now jobless. Forests are already out of bound for them as forest
department consider the poor forest dwellers as encroachers and exploit
them. The Kumhars (clay potters) have lost their work to plastics and
the fishermen are clueless at the moment as how to increase their income
when most of their lakes are under the threat of sale. The migration
to cities has increased in the past few years but now even those seems
to be blocking the way of the rural poor with not only theocratic fundamentalist
parties raising their ugly head against them but also the self styled
protectionists of the secular ideas too feel that immigration to the
cities is a threat.
Even when people were dying
of hunger and starvation, the 'nationalistic' forces were doing their
work in the villages, but not to help the rural poor get out of the
poverty trap but to push them back into the Dark Age. To increase their
woes, these forces have pushed people to superstition so that they do
not question the injustice done to them and blame it to their misfortune
and Gods wish.
That manual scavenging is
still prevalent in the region reflect the condition of the Swachchakar
community in Eastern Uttar-Pradesh. Communities like Mushahars, Bansfors,
Swachchkars, Rajbhars, Chamars, Pasis; Chauhans, Nishads, Kumhars are
facing severe threat to their livelihood and dignity.
Keeping in view of this,
Uttar-Pradesh Land Alliance and Social Development Foundation, Delhi
are organizing a Padyatra ( Footmarch) beginning from June 1 st, 2007
till June 22nd , 2007. The Padyatra will cover four districts of Poorvanchal.
They are Maharajganj, Gorakhpur, Deoria and Kushinagar. The Padyatra
will start from the Tehsil headquarter of Ghughali, Maharajganj on June
1 st. The Padyatra culminate at the Shaheed Smarak in Chauri Chaura
on June 22nd, 2007. The Padyatra would cover more than 75 small and
big villages and towns including Kushinagar, Ramkola, Padrauna, Kasaya,
Fazilnagar, Pathardeva, Nautan, Deoria, Bhatani, Salempur, Laar, Bhagalpur,
Barhaj, Rudrapur, Brahmnpur, Tarkulhadevi and Chaurichaura. In these
22 days we would cover nearly 375-400 kilometer of these four districts.
Padyatra will have public
meetings, social audits and even training programmes related to land
and livelihood. Not only this, the Padyatra aims to speak unambiguously
against the caste oppression, rituals as well as exploitation in the
name of religion, rituals and superstitions.
The Padyatra is named as
Land, Dignity and Freedom which clearly indicate that we feel access
and control to land and other natural resources is key to dignity and
freedom of an individual and community. Today, this freedom is under
the threat. The governments have failed in fulfilling their promises
to implement the land and agrarian reform resulting in greater social
chaos. In India, this situation is more complicated as the exploitation
has not just economic dimensions but socio-cultural dimensions. And
despite changing power equations at the political levels, the situation
in the ground level has not changed much. That most of these communities
who suffer indignities are the Dalits and most backward communities.
Tragically, in the broader schemes of things also, a majority of these
communities are on the margins because of their minority status with
in their villages and hence even in the broader Dalit-Bahujan framework
they remain isolated and excluded.
The Padyatra aim to strengthen the community organizations in the region
so that the development agenda is focused on community based. We sincerely
feel that the developmental paradigms need to take a new turn and communities
need to be targeted in the rural planning otherwise term like 'rural
poor' in India would always help maintaining the status quo and would
be ambiguous. The Padyatra would also focus the issue of women's right
over land and forest resources. In simple term the padyatra is an attempt
to inculcate humanist ideas on the issue of livelihood, hunger and starvation.
While many of our friends
suggested against organizing the Padyatra in this scorching heat yet
it was felt that it is the best time to understand how the communities
that we work with face such oppressive heat. Also due to summer vacations,
many of you might find some time to join it. We are therefore extending
you our invitation to join this Padyatra to understand the reason of
hunger, starvation and social oppression in Poorvanchal. Those of you
who wish to join it of any dates which are comfortable to you or for
the full march may please get in touch with us through email or telephone
contacts for the purpose of more information, logistics and other details.
We will keep you updated with the movement of Padyatra through our regular
mails.
Yours Sincerely,
Vidya Bhushan Rawat, Social
Development Foundation, Delhi . Tel No 011-65902846
Ram Chandra Prasad, Dr B.R.Ambedkar Gramodyog Sansthan, Deoria Mobile
No 09450482908
Ram Bhuvan, Jan Kalyan SanshtanChauri Chaura. Mobile No 09838107588
Rajkapoor Rawat, Convener, UP Land Alliance, Mohammdabad, Ghazipur.
Mobile No 09451689246
D.P.Baudh, Lord Buddha Trust, Kushinagar. Mobile No :
Ramasrey Nishad, Rudrapur, Deoria
Rajendra Sahni, Tal Ratoy Machchua Jan Kalyan Sansthan, Maryadpur, Mau
Sumitra Rajbhar, Dalit Mahila Mukti Manch Maryadpur, Mau
Rajan, from Swachchakar community in Laar
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