Report of the two days consultation on Climate change, agriculture and land rights of Tamilnadu

Report of the two days consultation on Climate change, agriculture and land rights of Tamilnadu held at CESCI Madurai on 19th, 20th march 2011.

The day begins with a silent prayer to the departed soul of Mr. Marianathan, from Villupuram who worked as a dhastha nayak under Mr. Vinod dhal nayak and the thousands of souls who lost their life in the recent tsunami devastation in Japan. Mr. Biju coordinator CESCI welcomed all the participants and invited Mr. Vijayarangan to preside over the session of the day. Also invited Mr. Ramesh Bhai, Mr. Jagadisan, Mr. Dhanraj and Mr. Raja………….

Mr. Vijayaragan briefed that the issue of land is crucial in Tamilnadu and it need a lot to do with the Govt. to change the land related laws to the betterment of the landless, adivasi and dalit communities. People don’t have much awareness on their land rights. Many of them are thinking on their personal profits to take over land.

Raja and Jagadisan made a brief presentation about their experience with Ekta Parishad and requested to the participants to understand the issue of land and its connection with the adivasi, dalit and farmers.

Ramesh bhai began with his inaugural speech by thanking every one who took time to participate this important meeting and also thanked their interest to associate with Ekta Parishad to jointly work on various people’s issues especially on forest, land and water. He pointed out some example how Govt is working on various development sections in connection with peoples lives. In a study report by the World Bank we can see the status of land in India from 1864 to till 2008. During the year 1864 about 46% of land was covered with forest in India and in 1927 it become 27%, in 1980 - 29%, and in the year 2008 it become only 14%. In this status report we can understand that how much forest was cut off and how the forest development agency worked in the name of forest development. If they really work on the development of forest how it become 14% from a status of 46% of forest land. India like countries were majority is depending agriculture and forest should have access to forest and right on it. Similarly people depending on sea should have right on their coastal land and the sea. For the last ten years about 1.5 lakh farmers died in India due to debt on agriculture loan and other problems.

Mr.Dhanraj made a short introduction on FRA and its implementation in the state. Some of the stories of the adivasi people who led struggle many years before for preventing their forest from illegal cutting. Were adivasis are heroes and they began the struggle many years before itself to protect their forest land. Similarly Chipco Movement led by Sundarlal Bahuguna also protect the forest with the held of local village and adivais women. Adivais are very simple living people and they don’t need any materials like the city people. They don’t have the habit of accumulating property and making profit out of it. In tamilnadu there is about 6.5 lakh adivais are living in the forest and related areas. There are 8 types of adivasi groups are them. The FRA 2006 is one of the best laws to help the adivasi people and here in Tamilnadu there is a stay in the court against the implementation of this Act.

Ramesh Bhai made a second round discussion with the group on the status of land reform in tamilnadu…………………………………..


The second day began with a group discussion on Land rights of tamilnadu and followed by there was a discussion happened on the Jansandesh yatra. Mr. Thennavan facilitated the Jansandesh yatra discussion and finally came to an end with following decisions.

1. Mr. Dhanraj will be Jansandesh yatra organizing coordinator for tamilandu and he will travel and meet organizations and peoples who took responsibility in different districts and to make success the yatra in Tamilnadu.
2. The group discussion helped to chalk out a travel plan for Tamilandu with details and people responsible in respective districts.
3. Resources needed for this yatra will have to raise locally and for that the state level yatara coordination team have to workout a plan to raise local fund raising.
4. Due to dewali festival in October during the yatara in Tamilandu there will be some difficulty to organize programs in the last week of October. Even though the group finds some solutions and modified the plan of action.
5. The Proposed Travel plan is following;

Date District Time Place Program Person Responsible
17.10.2011 Coimbatore 10.30 am Pollachi Padaytra Jagadisan
04.30 pm Pollachi Hall meeting Jagadisan
Thirupur 06.00 pm Udumalipetai Public meetng Dandapani
18.10.2011 Dindigul 10.30 am Gandhigram Hall Meeting Rajendran
Karur 03.00 pm Kulithalai Press meeting Subrahmanian
04.00 pm Kulithali Public meeting Subrahmanian
19.10.2011 Theni 11.00 am Periyakulam Press meeting Raja
4.00 pm Periyakulam Hall Meeting Raja
20.10.2011 Madurai 11.00 am Usilampatti Public meeting Karpagam
Virudnagar 04.00 pm Virudhnagar Public meeting Dhanraj
21.10.2011 Virudhnagar 10.00 am Rajaplayam Public meeting Sivagami
Thirunelvali 06.00 pm Thalayanai Public meeting Dhanraj
22.10.2011 Virudhnagar 08.00 am Kovilpatti Village Visit Shyam
10.00 am Virud nagar Press meet Shyam
06.00 pm Virud nagar Public meeting Thennavan
23.10.2011 Madurai 11.00 am Gandhi museum Public meeting Kalavani
24.10.2011 Sivagangai 11.00 am Gandhi park Public meeting Kilandai Therasa
25.10.2011 Puthukottai 10.00 am Puthukotta Press meet Palanichamy
11.00 am Puthukottai Hall meeting Palanichamy
26.10.2011 Trichy 10.00 am Central Press meet Anpazhagan
03.00 pm Central Public meeting Anpazhagan
27.10.2011 Thanjavur 11.00 am Thanjavur Public meeting Arockia das
Nagapattinam 03.00 pm Nagai Public meeting Arockia das
28.10.2011 Cuddalore 11.00 am Cuddalore Press meet Jayakodi
12.00 pm Cuddalore Public meeting Rajamoorthy
Pondychery 04.00 pm Pondychery Press Meet Palanichamy
29.10.2011 Villupuram 11.00 am Villupuram Press Meet Sumathi
02.00 pm VPM Public meeting Sumathi
04.00 pm VPM Village visit Senthilkumar
30.10.2011 Kanchipuram 10.00 am Kanchipuram Padayatra Komala
Vellore 03.00 pm Vellore Public meeting Komala


Land Rights Recommendation from the group discussion;

Leaders from four groups Mr. Vijayarangan, Mr. Arulchamy, Ms. Sumathi, and Mr. Anpazhagan presented the notes came out of the discussion from their respective groups.

1. Every land less family should get a minimum of land for housing and agriculture.
2. A land belongs to adivasi and Dalits should not to sell to non adivasi/dalit groups. Law should make it strict.
3. False cases against adivais should be settled with immediate effect.
4. The places were adivais, dalits and land less poor are living should treated as natham porombaoke and will have to give the titles jointly in their family.
5. The villages should develop a village map were the available land (poramboke, temple land, panchami land, etc.) should be marked to the benefit of landless people in the respective villages.
6. Land ceiling act should be implemented properly were people should have control over the implementation process.
7. Land rights awareness education programs should be organized through out Tamilnadu to bring awareness among people on their land rights.
8. Coastal rights should be implemented for the fisherman community fir their livelihood activities.
9. The state has to confirm legally to get every landless family for 5 acres agri land and for housing 5 cents.
10. Grama sabha should be empowered to provide land to the SEZ, Industrial parks, etc with the full permission of the village community.
11. Govt. should stop the process of providing land to the multinationals for lease and the same time they should get back the land already given to various companies and to redistribute the landless people.
12. Right to Land for housing should be made as special law to provide land for every Indian citizen like right to food, right to education under the Indian constitution.
13. Land reform Council should act speedy to reduce the land related issues in the country.
14. Land ceiling should reduce up to 5 acre per agriculture family.
15. Panchami Land should be identified and have to distribute to the rightful beneficiaries.
16. Large amount of surplus Land belongs to various religious groups like; temple-muts, temples, churches, Bhoodhan land should be identified and redistributed to the landless people.
17. Forest Right Act 2006 should be implemented immediately to make benefit large number of adivais in the state.
18. There are many estates are the state and the Govt. should make an immediate survey to understand the lease period status of the land and should get back the lease period over land and distribute to the landless.
19. Agriculture land should be used only for agriculture cultivation and not for making roads, buildings etc.
20. Govt. should not use its power to aquire land not for any other non agriculture purpose.
21. People who depends sea, forest, land for their traditional livelihood rights should be ensured by the Govt.
22. Women should get equal right on family property and the titles of the property should be made on the name of the husband and wife together. Even after getting equal rights on land, in case they want to dispose their land due to some unavoidable reasons, it only to be sold to their family members only.
23. Land belongs to dalit and adivais can not be sold to other groups and it is not valid, the law should be strictly enforced.
24. The Acts related to land should be published in tamil language and to be distributed among the people for their awareness.
25. People who work as bonded labours under land lords is to be identified and released with the help of Govt. authorities.
26. Political parties and politicians are acquiring large acres of land during their ruling period. This practice should be stopped by introducing some special laws.

Mr. Nagalingam made a short presentation about the Global warming issue and the need of peoples and organizations coming together on this issue. This consultation is supposed to be organized along with the large conference they were planning in Madurai. Due to political reasons they were forced to postpone the mega conference to some other day after the assembly election. Due to various development reasons the world is getting enormous heat and it is coming to a dangerous position to all the living beings in the earth. It is our responsibility to understand or real needs and to get away from the market based living style. Consumerism is become the major disease in the world and it has become like a new religion that affects the life of modern civilization. There are many scientific studies available on Global warming issue to make us understand the level of disaster what is going to happen once the level is crossed beyond its limits. Before crossing the level we should have to change our living style to protect this beautiful planet for the next generation. With a beautiful poem triggering various political issues he ended up his speech.

Finally in a concluding session Ramesh Bhai thanked every participant who made active participation in this two days consultation and pointed out some of the follow up actions that needed to make Ekta Parishad active in Tamilnadu. There are many programs that are waiting and some of the programs need to be organized immediately in-order to prepare for Jansatyagraha 2012.
1. Jansandesh yatra in Tamilnadu from 17th to 30th October 2011 is the major work that needs to be coordinated and the yatra should be made successful with great participation.
2. In January 2012 Shri. Subba raoji is organizing a national level youth camp in Coimbatore there we can send about 400 participants for youth training.
3. A Theater workshop can be organized in-order to train people on theatre who are leading the culture group along with the jansnasandesh yatra in Tamilnadu.
4. People from Tamilnadu should ensure their participation throughout the one year jansandesh yatra.
5. FRA 2006 act should be published in Tamil language and circulated among the people who have the chance to benefit out of this particular law.
6. It is also possible to organize a two days consultation only on laws related land with a group of 50 activists. People from respective subjects will be invited are resource persons to enhance the knowledge of the participants.

Finally Mr. Jagdisan thanked each and every participants and resource person and ended the consultation with a better feeling of satisfaction and hope.