Ekta Parishad - few words

Ekta Parishad

Ekta Parishad provides a platform for the voices of the oppressed, the dispossessed and the marginalized communities of India. Part of its mission is to empower the tribal and dalit communities that suffer the most for India’s “growth.” By strengthening the leadership capacity of these communities, Ekta Parishad is also working to unite the fragmented struggle for equitable land distribution. For almost 20 years, Ekta Parishad has worked with these communities to help create the changes necessary to bring an end to land seizures, to ensure equitable land distribution, and to protect access to livelihood resources. Presently we are operated intensively with 11000 community based organizations in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, Maharastra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Utter Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

Intervention

Grassroots level

· Creation of village level organization as a key proponent of Gram Sabha (which can play a role of leader and/or opposition, depends on situation and issues)

· Develop leadership within the marginalized community for initiating grassroots movement

· Generating local resource base for sustenance of campaign (Grain Bank and Village Collectives etc)

· Capacitated local leaders/ community on their due constitutional rights.

· Intensive awareness campaign through foot march and demonstrations.

· Organizing public hearing, social auditing on local land & livelihood issues and submission of resolutions at appropriate level.

· Building level of community participation in local institutions (Gram sabha, Block panchtyat, Jila panchyat etc).

· Developing critical opposition within/beyond established institutions like Traditional Tribal Panchyats, Tribal Advisory Council etc.

· Increasing levels of people’s politics with participation in electoral processes (people’s manifesto, people’s candidate etc).

· Promote and sustained village collectives for agriculture/khadi based livelihood

State level

• Engaging State for dialogue & decisions on land & livelihood issues (Task Force, State Human Rights Commission, ST-SC Commission, Tribal Advisory Council etc).
• Policy advocacy for pro-poor land reforms and its ensured implementation through ‘State Land Reforms Commission’.
• Preparing ‘People’s Policy on Land Reforms’ for generating mass awareness and using as a advocacy tool.
• Organizing ‘Assembly of Deprived’ a parallel forum for putting people’s perspectives on political and/or priority issues.
• Raising questions in ‘State Assembly’ through sensible elected representatives.
• Legal interventions in courts (lower and high court) on problems of poor.
• Engaging media on pro-poor issues

National level

• Policy advocacy and lobbying at ministerial level for putting agenda of pro-poor land reforms.
• Discussion with planning commission and other institutions on ‘People’s Policy on Land’.
• Discussion forum with parliamentarians on land reforms.
• Preparation and presentation of draft ‘People’s Policy on Land Reforms’.
• National campaigning / demonstration with like minded organizations.
• Engaging media on pro-poor issues

Future focus

• Engaging Central and State government on issues of land reforms through ‘National Land Reforms Policy’ presented by National Land Reforms Committee to the Prime Minister
• Engaging State for implementation of PESA (1996), Rehabilitation & Resettlement Act (2007) and Forest Rights Act (2006).
• Organizing grassroots leadership training and extending area of operations.
• Building capacities of local elected representatives .
• Advocacy for pro-poor land reforms actions (homestead land for each homeless family, minimum land holding act for each landless family, joint land rights and ownership for women, dalit land alienation act, legalizing leasing of land for women collectives, ban on diversion of common property land and ban on diversion of agricultural land for non-agricultural purposes etc).
• Set up of ‘Peoples Commission on Land Rights’ as a critical advocacy forum on land rights at different levels.
• Building action alliance with land rights movements.
• Organizing national level demonstration on agenda issues