Palghar: Tribals oppose land acquisition for Mumbai-Vadodara Expressway

The tribal farmers of Talasari taluka in Palghar district on Monday December 2 launched a protest against the land acquisition for the MumbaiVadodara Expressway following which they were allegedly detained by the police The protesting farmers also accused the police of manhandling themShashi Sonawane a land rights activist told midday that at least three farmers identified as Rupji Keshya Kolha Sunil Diwal Radiya and Shawan Rawaji Kolha were detained at the Talasari police station and were let off after six hours However they were served with a notice by the revenue officialMeanwhile the district administration has implemented Section 144 of CrPC within the boundaries of Kolhe and Talasari villages in Palghar in the wake of the protest In an order undersigned by Satyam Gandhi assistant collector Dahanu division the protesting farmers have been warned against interfering with or obstructing the land acquisition or construction processldquoThere are significant irregularities and corruption in the land acquisition processes for various projects in the Palghar district For instance in the context of the MumbaiVadodara Expressway the administration is forcibly evicting tribal farmers from their lands in the Kochai Gram Panchayat area of Talasari Tehsil Tribal farmers who have cultivated these lands for generations are being deprived of their livelihoods We urge the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes to investigate these matters and protect the affected tribal familiesrdquo Sonawane explaining the matter saidldquoThe tribal population is being cornered in the name of developmental projects and policies that are pushing tribals towards destruction Despite Palghar being a tribaldominated district proper legal records of the lands occupied by tribal communities have not been maintained This has allowed many nontribals to encroach upon our water forests and landsrdquo the activist addedldquoBasic facilities such as district hospitals education water and irrigation systems are lacking in the district At the same time projects worth lakhs of crores of rupees such as the Bullet Train Vadhavan Port and the MumbaiVadodara Expressway are being imposed on our tribal landsrdquo Sonawane further saidRupji who led the protest said ldquoThe government officials are not giving us compensation yet they are trying to acquire our land to complete the project It was the reason we had been protesting but the cops shooed us away and also manhandled us The mobile phones of those recording the protest were snatched and damaged by the policerdquoSonawane said they have written to Antar Singh Arya the chairperson of the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes requesting him to provide compensation to tribal families for their lands acquired in such processes ldquoAlso the central government should restore the geographical area of scheduled regions and ensure the land water and forest rights of tribal communitiesrdquo underscored SonawaneWhen contacted assistant collector Gandhi said ldquoThere was a minor protest but the issue has been resolved We are giving adequate compensation to the tribal farmers after verifying the documentsrdquo Meanwhile a senior officer in Palghar police said ldquoWe did not manhandle anyone nor was anyone detained by our police force We were present at the site only to maintain law and orderrdquoDahanu MLA Vinod Nikole said that the land acquisition issue has been going on in tribaldominated Palghar district for decades ldquoI learnt about the tribal protest in Talasari against land acquisition and requested the Palghar police to protect the rights of tribal farmers I will meet the protestors hear them out and speak to the revenue officials to clear the impasserdquo Nikole said