50,000 Farmers March to from Singur to Kolkata

On the morning of Wednesday, November 28, 10,000 farmers and agricultural workers started marching from Singur under the banners of All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) and All India Agricultural Workers’ Union (AIAWU). AIKS General Secretary Hannan Mollah inaugurated the march from Ratanpur in Singur, where thousands of people from various districts of South Bengal had gathered.

While addressing the crowd, Hannan Mollah said, “Relentless pursuit of neo-liberal policies, ever since the introduction of economic reforms, had already brought disaster to farmers, but the havoc wrought by Narendra Modi-led NDA is unprecedented in the entire history of independent India. The need of the hour is to make farmers and their problems an election issue, instead of getting diverted by religious controversies.”

As the march took off, young people from Kolkata also joined the farmers to express their support. The farmers marched holding red flags, among vibrant music and slogans. The local people came out of their homes and cheered, expressing their solidarity with the farmers.

Also Read: West Bengal Farmers Prepare for Long March on November 28-29

The long march, being called ‘Singur-Raj Bhavan Abhijan’, had been jointly organised by the West Bengal units of AIKS and AIAWU, and was an important part of the all-India ‘Kisan Mukti March’, that is being organised under the banner of All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee (AIKSCC), an umbrella organisation of nearly 180 unions, and will culminate in Delhi on November 30.

In second half of the rally on November 29, CPI(M) West Bengal State Secretary Surjya Kanta Mishra walked with the farmers till Dankuni, Hooghly, where the march finally halted for the day at around 5:30 pm. At least 2,500 people then moved to Bally, where accommodation had been arranged for them in the homes of the local residents.

The march resumed on November 29 at 11 am from Bally Ghat, where more farmers joined in, and almost 40,000 farmers and agricultural workers, accompanied by young people who came in their support, started walking towards Kolkata Raj Bhavan. The farmers entered Kolkata at around 2 pm in the afternoon.

Also Read: Farmers From Across the Country Gather in Delhi for Mega Agitation

A public meeting was organised at Rani Rasmani Road, where a crowd of 50,000 people had gathered. The crowd was addressed by Dr. Surjya Kanta Mishra, AIKS State Secretary Amal Halder, AIAWU State Secretary Amiya Patra, AIAWU State President Tushar Ghosh. The meeting was presided over by AIKS State President Nripen Chowdhury. While addressing the crowd, Dr. Surjya Kanta Mishra said, “The central government is trying to divide the people in the name of religion and caste. We will keep fighting to maintain this unity that the working-class people of Waste Bengal have, irrespective of their caste and religion.”

The Farmers’ Demands

The farmers marched with eight main demands, which are as follows:

1) Take initiative to set up industries on lands which were acquired by the state government for industrialisation including Singur

2) Work for all

3) Stop discrimination among Singur's farmers, peasants and bargadars while providing government’s welfare schemes

4) Implementation of the recommendation of the Swaminathan Commission. The State and Central government will have to buy crop at a rate of one and a half times the cost of production

5) All agricultural debt must be waived

6) Ensure 200 days of work and Rs 350/day wage in MGNREGA welfare scheme

7) All poor people of age above 60 years must be given a minimum of Rs 6000/ month pension

8) Strict action must be taken against all corrupt public functionaries in the state and Centre

The farmers are also protesting against the state government’s decision to give 100 acres of fertile land in Haringhata to the e-commerce giant Flipkart, while non-fertile land in Raghunathpur, Purulia, was available for the purpose. They are saying that the agricultural sector in West Bengal is being crushed by the harsh policies of both the Centre and the state, and they are determined to make the government hear their demands this time.