Farmers, tribals march to Mumbai for land rights; Maharashtra govt invites talks

Thousands of farmers and tribal residents were marching towards Mumbai from Nashik on Tuesday to press for land rights and other demands even as the Maharashtra government invited their delegation for talks later in the day a representative of the protesters saidThe protesters carrying red flags and led by the CPIMaffiliated All India Kisan Sabha AIKS began the long march on Sunday after an agitation outside Dindori tehsil office in Nashik district failed to elicit any concrete assurance former MLA J P Gavit told reportersProtesters decide to take demands directly to state governmentThey then decided to take their demands directly to the state government by marching on foot to Mumbai and have also made arrangements for food grain firewood and other essential supplies needed for the duration of their protestThe marchers comprising a large number of farmers covered nearly 60 km over the past two days and began their descent through the Kasara Ghat on Tuesday morning They have now left Nashik and entered the neighbouring Thane district Gavit saidState government invites delegation for talks in MumbaiHe claimed that sustained mobilisation and publicity of the march in the media prompted the state government to invite a delegation of the protesters for talks at the Mantralaya secretariat in Mumbai on TuesdayGavit said the delegation comprising himself CPIM Polit Bureau member and AIKS national president Ashok Dhawale Kisan Sabha national joint secretary Ajit Navale and MLA Vinod Nikole will hold discussions with the chief minister and other ministers concernedTribal farmers highlight land irrigation and forest rights issuesTribal farmers from Peth Surgana Kalwan and Trimbakeshwar talukas are participating in the agitation to draw attention to unresolved issues related to land rights irrigation and forest claims he saidThese areas are droughtprone and farmers have been demanding the construction of large check dams on westflowing rivers and their tributaries to ensure irrigation water for local agricultureTraffic disruption reported during agitation in DindoriThe protesters are also seeking regularisation of cultivation on encroached land up to four hectares issuance of land records reexamination of rejected forest rights claims and procurement of agricultural produce from forest landholders at minimum support prices Gavit saidTraffic was disrupted for the last two days in parts of Dindori where protesters staged a sitin leading to congestion and diversion of vehicles through alternative routesGavit said a meeting has already been held with Nashik Collector Ayush Prasad during which it was agreed that local issues would be addressed at the district level while statelevel demands would be taken up in Mumbai