On the issue of land transfer and deforestation, the Kisan Morcha organized a rally on foot and surrounded the Secretariat, demanding an additional five bighas of land in Shimla. In the capital on Tuesday, the Himachal Kisan Sabha and the student wing of the SFI (Students’ Federation of India) jointly took out a rally against the Forest Conservation Act (FCA) land acquisition, high bills on the smart metres, as well as the dispersing policy of the farmers.
The rally included people from different parts of Himachal, and students of the SFI student wing participated in the protest.
The rally, which started from Khalini at 11 am, reached Toyland, where the SFI’s student wing criticised the government’s deforestation policies through poetry and slogans on the beats of the dafli. The protesters raised slogans such as “Nahi chalegi, nahi chalegi, Talabandi nahi chalegi” and “Paanch bigha zameen ki maang.” Thereafter, the rally proceeded on foot to the Secretariat at Chhota Shimla with pamphlets in hand.
Kisan Morcha chief Rakesh Singha reached the secretariat and called for solidarity against the administration. He highlighted the plight of farmers, citing eviction notices received by them. Condemning the FCA, Singha reiterated the demand for five bighas of additional land for farmers.
Key demands and concerns of farmers and students:
Opposition to land auction: Kritika, RKMV SFI – President, and Baldev Singh, Kisan Sabha President, Sirmaur, demanded that the trees under the acquired land of the needy should not be cut.
Baldev Singh said that the ancestral lands of many poor families are being snatched, and they are being given eviction notices within 7 days during the rainy season, due to which they are on the verge of becoming homeless.
Sukhdev Chauhan also expressed apprehension of land acquisition in the name of FCA by corporate houses.
Himesh Sharma gave a brilliant point government shouldn’t punish the trees for the land acquisition that people did. The government should rather turn this problem into an opportunity, via giving this to oppurtunity to HPMC, their state owned brand. This could’ve let the government utilize the collected money in building new forest area.
Acquisition of land of rich farmers: The protesters demanded that the government should re-acquire and auction the land of those who own more than 100 bighas of land, and not the poor and middle-class farmers.
Bill of smart meters: People also complained of higher than expected bills in smart meters.
Protest against felling of trees
Recently, anger was also expressed over the indiscriminate felling of fruit-bearing trees in almost all the districts of Himachal. Kritika said that felling of trees is wrong and the lands should be distributed equally among the poor.
The Supreme Court’s Intervention: After former deputy mayor Tikendra Singh Panwar highlighted the risk of land erosion by felling of trees, the Supreme Court has given a stay order on the matter. The Supreme Court has decided to auction the acquired land by taking it under its control.
The protesters demanded that the High Court should also give a decision on the same lines as the Supreme Court.
At 3 pm, DC Anupam Kashyap reached the Secretariat. Rakesh Singha ended his speech at 4:17 pm and went inside the secretariat for the cabinet meeting. The protesters urged the government to distribute land equally to the poor, stop the felling of trees and consider all decisions.
The rally was a testimony to the mobilisation of the Kisan Morcha and the SFI student wing against the Forest Conservation Act and in the interest of the Forest Rights Act.
Kartik Sharma is a postgraduate from HPU who calls himself a slow learner but a curious researcher. He loves diving deep into topics like nature, music, bizarre stories, and counter-culture movements. If it’s unusual or thought-provoking, Kartik is sure to have an opinion on it. He works as a journalist for Diary Times, balancing his passion for unbiased reporting with his knack for getting ldigging out something with a different news angle. Kartik is also an environmentalist, running initiatives to tackle waste and feed those in need, proving that actions speak louder than headlines. Inspired by his dream to make his dad proud, Kartik writes with heart, humor, and a love for all things unique—though sometimes his stories take longer because he’s busy chasing the next big idea!
