Korba: September 19, 2020. Hundreds of villagers in Ganganagar village of Korba Corporation area, hurt by the notice of illegal possession removal, today burnt the effigy of SECL under the leadership of Marxist Communist Party, Chhattisgarh Kisan Sabha and Janwadi Mahila Samiti and on foot on September 22 visited SECL’s office in Gevra Has announced a collective reply to the notice. To give their support to the struggle of these villagers, representatives of nearby villages also made their presence present in the effigy combustion program.
It is noteworthy that Ganganagar is a rehabilitation village, which was established by SECL in the year 1980 itself. Then thousands of acres of land in Ghatmuda were acquired for the coal mine and an area of 25 acres was given to the 75 displaced families settled here. At that time the villagers had divided the land with mutual consent and SECL did not even interfere in it. After partition, all are building their raw and pucca houses and growing vegetables on the remaining land by making fences for their maintenance. After rehabilitation under its social responsibility, the SECL has not fulfilled the basic humanitarian facilities such as hospitals, electricity, water, schools, recreation houses, crematoriums, Gowthans etc. for the development of this village. .
Forty years later, the number of families has increased to more than 200. But now SECL is saying illegal possession of vegetable enclosures and boundary walls of the families settled on this 25-acre plot and has given notice to remove it. Villagers allege that SECL is forcibly trying to resettle the migrants from other villages here, while it is their responsibility to make arrangements for such displaced people to settle with humanitarian facilities elsewhere.
The villagers, agitated by the illegal possession notice, burnt the effigy of SECL under the leadership of CPI-M councilor Rajkumar Kanwar and Surti Kuldeep today. They allege that earlier SECL has run bulldozers on the land owned by the villagers. The consensus on compensation after the movement has not been implemented yet. Now the answer to this notice of eviction is no solicitation, there will be struggle. Councilor princess set the effigy on fire. The general assembly after the effigy burning program was addressed by women leader Dhanbai Kuldeep, both the CPI-M councilors and Kisan Sabha leaders Nandlal Kanwar, Jawahar Singh Kanwar, Shyam Yadav and Teres Bai.
CPI (M) District Secretary Prashant Jha termed the occupation removal notice as illegal and said that this notice is a cruel joke and deception with the displaced villagers in the name of rehabilitation. He said that after collectively giving 25 acres of land to the people of the displaced Ghatmuda village, SECL has no right on this land to give notice to the farmers for illegal possession. He has demanded that the rural family whose land is occupied, should be given the right to the same land.
The villagers have decided that despite the Corona crisis, people from all over the village will march to SECL’s Gavra office against this crisis and they will collectively respond to the individual notices received by them. If the SECL does not get a positive response, then the next phase of agitation will be prepared to protect its land.
