Uttar Pradesh farmers refuse to relent, crisis continues (Roundup)

LUCKNOW/ALIGARH/AGRA - The epicentre of the farmers’ agitation in Tappal town of Aligarh district continued to remain tense Wednesday as the protesters unanimously rejected the enhanced compensation offered by the state government in lieu of their land acquired for building the Noida-Agra Yamuna Expressway.

Contrary to government claims of having struck a deal with the agitating farmers, the protesters returned full strength with their leader Ram Babu Kathelia accusing the administration of subjecting him to physical torture while he was under arrest until Tuesday.

Farmers, who initially seemed divided on the compensation, chose to sink their differences after Kathelia conveyed the circumstances under which he was made to sign the truce.

“We will not end our protests till the state government agrees to give us compensation on the same rate that was given to the farmers of Noida and Greater Noida in lieu of their land acquired for the project,” Katheria told a gathering of farmers in Tappal.

Not only in Tappal, but affected farmers in Agra and Mathura too said that nothing short of parity in the compensation rate paid to farmers in Greater Noida would pacify them.

Mayawati’s announcement that farmers were free to even cancel their earlier agreements and withdraw their consent to give away their land worsened the problem. The number of withdrawals appeared to be rising.

The expressway, which is expected to reduce the driving time between New Delhi and Agra to just about 90 minutes, will pass through Gautam Buddha Nagar (Noida), Aligarh, Mahamaya Nagar (Hathras) and Mathura, and involves acquisition of land in 115 villages.

A total of 2,500 hectares is to be acquired for the development of the expressway - 500 hectares each in Noida, Aligarh and Agra and 1,000 hectares in Gautam Buddha Nagar.

The compensation amount was increased from Rs.449 per square metre to Rs.570 per square metre. But farmers refused to budge from the demand for compensation at the rate of Rs.880 per square metre that was paid in Greater Noida, which stood at a stone’s throw from areas bordering Mathura and Agra.

The agitating farmers were irked by the common impression that the government was acquiring land far beyond the expressway’s requirement.

“We have no problem in giving away land for building an expressway, but the government was busy acquiring hectares of extra land to be doled out to the builder for developing hi-tech towns and townships along the expressway,” Kathelia said.

RLD legislator Anil Chaudhary, representing Sadabad constituency in Mathura district near Agra, threatened that if the farmers’ demand for enhanced compensation was not accepted, they would disrupt rail traffic on the Tundla-Ghaziabad-Delhi route Thursday.

On Tuesday, two government officials and half-a-dozen policemen were injured in clashes with agitating farmers in Agra’s Etmadpur sub-division, some 20 km from the Taj city. A dozen vehicles were also smashed by farmers.

A day after the clashes, officials Wednesday held talks with farmer leaders representing a struggle committee at Chalesar, close to Kuberpur in Etmadpur, to end the violence over their demand for higher compensation for their acquired lands.

Etmadpur resembled a cantonment with security forces from nearby towns deployed in large numbers to prevent violence.

The 165-km Expressway has also evoked criticism from environmental groups. “They should stick to the expressway. Why are they acquiring agricultural lands for new urban clusters,” asked green activist Ravi Singh.

“This would be disastrous for the ecology along the Yamuna river,” he warned.

Sources said in a bid to restore peace, the government rushed three ministers - Chaudhary Laxmi Narayan, Thakur Jaivir Singh and Narayan Singh Suman - to Agra. Closed door discussions were also held at the chief minister’s level to finalise a strategy to defuse the crisis. However, top officials were absolutely tight-lipped about it.