Somwarpet, Aug. 8: A Somwarpet Taluk Bandh will be observed on Ta.12, condemning the government's move to conduct a Section-4 survey to include farmers' agricultural land in the name of C&D in the Forest Department, said Taluk President of the Raitha Horata Samiti K.B. Suresh.
The taluk bandh that was to be held on Ta.11 has been postponed to Ta.12, and traders and the public were requested to cooperate in a press conference held on Friday.
Farmers cannot make a living by losing agricultural land. A situation has arisen in Kodagu district where farmers have to lose 25,000 acres of land in the name of C&D.
Farmers have been farming on government land for many decades. They have been struggling for the title deed by filing applications in Form 50,53,57 with the Revenue Department for many years. He said that it is condemnable that agricultural land is suddenly being surveyed as C&D land.
Most of the farmers in Shantalli hobli area of Somwarpet taluk have cultivated on C&D land. They have built houses. They are growing paddy, coffee, cardamom, banana and vegetables. If this land is declared as deemed forest, the farmers will have to commit suicide. In the previous Belagavi session, the C&D issue was discussed and the Minister of Forest and Revenue had promised to form a high-level committee and solve the problem. But the problem has not been solved so far. He said that a struggle will be started due to all these reasons. He warned that after the Taluk Bandh of Ta.12, farmers will hold a day-and-night protest in front of the District Collector's office.
Committee convener B.J. Deepak spoke. In 1974, C&D land was marked as per the government circular. But the revenue officials, without conducting a survey of the land, sat in the office and marked thousands of acres of land in Kodagu district as C&D land and gave a written report to the government. He said that the farmers are in danger of losing their land because the government has submitted this unscientific report to the High Court and the Supreme Court.
The government should immediately form a high-level committee to resolve the issue of C&D land. He said that a joint survey should be conducted by the Survey Department, Revenue and Forest Departments and the C&D should be marked. All governments have ruled till 1974. But the C&D land issue has not been resolved, he said.
Taluk President of the Farmers' Association K.M. Dinesh said that the rights can be obtained only if the farmers unite. He appealed to the organizations of the taluk to cooperate with the bandh. Indira Gandhi Fans' Association President H.A. Nagaraj and Koothi Rural Development Board President Jayaram were present at the meeting.
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