BJP MP Mansukh Vasava accuses officials of favouring certain groups in land rights
The Bharuch MP warned that tribal communities in Narmada and Bharuch districts will not remain silent if denied land titles.
Bharuch Lok Sabha MP Mansukh Vasava accused the forest department and local administration on Wednesday of preferring new beneficiaries over tribal farmers who have been cultivating forest lands for many years. According to The Indian Express, Vasava raised these concerns as the government prepares to distribute 80,000 forest land ownership titles across India on November 15.
The MP stated that certain administrative sections are creating divisions within tribal communities by showing preference to specific groups. Vasava warned that the situation could deteriorate if the government does not address these allegations, adding that people in Bharuch and Narmada will not remain silent if they are denied sanads.
In Narmada district, more than 800 applications are currently pending, with approximately 630 of these coming from Sagbara taluka. This follows a protest that began on August 8 by farmers from 12 villages in Sagbara over the right to cultivate nearly 3,000 acres of forest land in Umarpada taluka of Surat district.
During that agitation, nearly 300 farmers participated in a fast. They claimed that families displaced by the Ukai Dam project had been allotted land in Umarpada and had farmed it for almost two decades, but lost access following objections from the forest department and local farmers regarding their eligibility.
The protest ended on September 1 after a meeting in Haripura attended by state ministers and Vasava. While the state government assured farmers that district-level committees would scrutinise pending claims and issue titles to those found eligible under the Forest Rights Act, the titles have not yet been cleared.