The farming community of the Malnad region, particularly in Shivamogga, is looking for ‘Bhoo Bhagya’, while the Siddaramaiah-led State government is busy working out strategies to implement Anna Bhagya and other guarantees.
Much before the Congress came up with the five guarantees ahead of the elections, both Mr. Siddaramaiah and D.K. Shivakumar, now Deputy Chief Minister, had made a list of promises to the people of the Malnad region. Addressing a rally of farmers in Shivamogga on November 28, 2022, both of them assured the people that they would ensure all those families displaced by the Sharavati hydel project would get land, the forest dwellers would get land granted, and the mutation of revenue land as forest would be stopped, among others.
Besides this, the Congress had also formed a committee of its leaders to submit a report on issues bothering the farming community in the region. “Now, it is the duty of the Congress government to fulfil the promises made. In fact, the State government should take up our demands on priority as these promises were made well before the much-debated five guarantees,” maintained Ti.Na. Srinivas, president, Malenadu Raitara Horata Samiti. The samiti has resolved to launch a series of protests on August 15 if the government failed to act on its promises by then.
Promises and court battles
The families hit by the hydel project continue to face difficulty enjoying the land they cultivated. The Congress government, which was in power between 2013 and 2018, had denotified patches of forest land to allow such families to own the land they cultivated. However, following the Karnataka High Court’s objection, the orders of denotification were withdrawn by the previous BJP government, and the Union government was approached for clearance. The Ministry of Environment and Forests has returned the proposal.
Minister for Primary and Secondary Education Madhu Bangarappa, who is also in charge of Shivamogga, took the initiative to hold a meeting on the issues bothering the Malnad region with his Cabinet colleagues in Bengaluru on July 18. The meeting was attended by the Minister for Revenue and the Minister for Forest, among others.
Minister for Forest Eshwar Khandre directed the officers to file an interlocutory application in the Supreme Court with regard to the issue of the families seeking the grant of land after losing their land for the Sharavati project. Besides that, the Ministers felt the need for a joint survey of land by the Revenue and Forest departments.
Ramesh Hegde, Congress spokesperson and coordinator of the party’s committee on farmers’ issues, said the Congress would fulfil its promises. The discussions had begun to distribute title deeds to those displaced due to the Sharavati project, forest dwellers, and bagair hukum cultivators.
Hard to fulfil
However, senior officers and activists fighting for the conservation of forests argue that the promises made by the ruling party are difficult to fulfil given the court’s directions.
Girish Achar of Hosanagar, who has been fighting against forest encroachments, said the families who were displaced due to the project got their dues decades ago. “Many are making false claims to get more land,” he said. Following his public interest litigation petition, the Shivamogga district administration began the mutation of the 108 lakh hectares of forest land, that had remained pending for years. However, farmers are opposing this.
A senior officer, who wished not to be named, said the bureaucracy had been working as per the orders of the court. “The forest laws are strict, and based on that, the courts have issued orders that have to be followed. Politicians may make promises, but on ground they are difficult to implement,” he said.
