Peasantry in crisis in Himachal Pradesh

Peasantry in crisis in Himachal Pradesh

Himachal Pradesh is a hilly state where agriculture land is about11.17 percent of the total geographical area and with satellite images it is about 17 percent of the total area. The total land holding in the state are 9, 60,765 out which majority of the farmers are small and marginal farmers. The land holding are very small which is around one acre; this small holding for the survival of a family is not sufficient. So, the poor farmers have encroached upon the surrounding land which is adjacent to their land for cultivation. Many has built houses, cowshed and few have also developed apple orchards on this encroached land.

The apple growing districts of the state namely Shimla, Kullu, Kinnaur and Chamba farmers have planted apple trees on the encroached land. There are few rich and middle peasants who have encroachment on gigantic parts of the forest land and cut the forests too. The consecutive state Governments of both BJP and Congress parties has not intervened during the encroachment of the land because of the fear of losing of voters’ base in different elections. Meanwhile some individual environmentalist went to Court and files a PIL against the farmer who have encroached the forest, common and Government land. Due to the disintegration of the land holding among the families it is increasingly becoming smaller day by day. The survival of a family on such a small holding has becoming very difficult. The Nautor Act 1968 was introduced to give land to these poor farmers who mostly belonged to the schedule caste and OBC category. But after the Forest Conservation Act 1980, the 66 percent land comes under the forest department whether there are tree or not. In Kullu district 90 percent land belongs to forest department.  The Nautor policy of the Government was abandoned due to FCA-1980.

Now no other option was left for the peasants except to encroachment of the forest land for their survival. The BJP Government was in power in 2002 when it amended the Himachal Pradesh Land Revenue Act 1954 and Section 163-A was incorporated to this Act. BJP Government made a policy with above mentioned amendment and promised to regularize the land which is in the possession of farmers up to 4 acres consisting of its own plus encroached land. The Government printed a declaration form having cost Rs. 50/- which was filled and deposited by 1,67,000 approximately along with the affidavit that they are in possession of forest as well as Government land. Huge corruption was noticed during this process at all leval. But in the Assembly elections BJP lost the election and congress party came to power and Virbhadra Singh became the Chief Minister. He used these affidavits filed by the farmers as evidence against them and eviction of farmers started in 2005-06. The fruit bearing apple tree of farmers were cut by the forest department. Meanwhile, in many places the Himachal Kisan Sabha resisted this move of the Government. A PIL was filed against the regularization by Ms. Poonam Gupta in the High Court which is still pending and subsequently many other individuals also filed cases in the High Court of Himachal Pradesh against the encroachment. In one of these cases on April 6^th, 2015 High Court furnished an order that the government and forest department should remove the encroachments from the forest land and cut down the Apple trees.

The Government took this order an opportunity to evict the farmers. Later on 20^th July the previous order of 6^th April was amended and new order of pruning of apple tree was given by the high court. But the forest department and government is not implementing the said order. The cutting of apple tree and removing houses and cowsheds is still on. The families whose apples trees have been cut down through this anti peasant governments’ eviction derive are poor and marginal farmers mostly schedule castes, widows and OBCs.  The water and electricity connections of the houses are being disconnected by the respective departments. Even in the tribal district Lahaul & Spiti the electricity and water connection of 192 houses has been disconnected in the chilled winter of 2015.  It is important to note here that families had shifted their house to escape from the hazardous glacier fed area.  Since independence many acts came in to force for the protection tribal people are seems to be meaningless for them as they are not being implemented after passing many years e.g. be it PESA-1996 or Forest Rights Act 2006. It is pathetic that on the issue of so called encroachment in the tribal area of Lahaul & Spiti, the tribal advisory council (TAC) a constitutional body is silent or inactive which raises a big question on the function of the government.

The Himachal Kisan Sabha is fighting against this eviction drive since May 2015. Two state level Rallies on 27 August and 16 December 2015 were organized in Shimla. At lower level, where the Kisan Sabha is strong it is resisting the drive by not allowing the forest officials to cut the apple trees. The Himachal State Assembly passed a resolution “Sankalp Resolution” unanimously on 28^th August 2015. But the Government is not implementing the resolution it has passed.

A state level convention on the issue of eviction was organized by the state committee of Kisan Sabha on 20^th February 2016 at Shimla. In this convention 72 days long struggle was planned to stop the eviction drive of state government. On 3-4 May 24 hour’s dharna was organized in front of the State Government Secretariat at Shimla in which around 1500 peasants participated from different parts of the state. A delegation of Kisan Sabha met the Chief Minister who assured that it will not evict poor farmers who have land holding less than ten bighas.

Menace of wild animals

In Himachal Pradesh, the Kisan Sabha and Kheti Bachao Sangharsh Samiti are fighting against this menace since eleven years. On 24^th May, 2016 the Central Government through its advisory issued that the MC Shimla and 35 tehsil and sub tehsil, the monkeys were declared vermin for six months. But the Government is not killing them and many NGO have filed petition in High Court and Supreme Court against scientific killing of monkeys. The Kisan Sabha is demanding that the monkeys should be declared vermin throughout the state except the two tehsils of Lahoul Sapiti. The Kisan front is campaigning for this issue and 25^th to 30^th June demonstration will be held throughout the state.

In nutshell the governments in the state are playing a wicked politics by way of just blaming each other but both are proved insensitive to settle down the current issue of anti peasant issue. It is high time to settle down the issue of eviction by sparing proper time for discussion in monsoon session of state assembly.