The Narendra Modi government has promised the very ambitious Bullet train project in India that will connect Ahmedabad with Mumbai. Not only will this reduce the travel time between the two cities drastically, but it will also leave thousands of helpless farmers landless. The project was launched in 2017 and the deadline was advanced to August 2022 from August 2023.
The Logical Indian spoke in depth about the issue with lawyer Anand Yagnik, who is representing the farmers and is the advocate-on-record for about 60,000 Gujrati farmers.
Did JICA stop funding because of farmers’ protest?
On September 22, The New Indian Express reported that the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has now refused to release funds citing farmers’ issues. The report further claimed that as of now, the Japanese agency has only released Rs 125 crore out of the agreed amount of Rs 80,000 crore for this Rs 1-lakh crore project.
However, on September 25, the National High Speed Rail Corporation Ltd (NHSRCL), the nodal agency for this project, said in a statement “In fact, the GoI and JICA have already signed a loan agreement of about 10 billion yen and no payment is pending from JICA as on date,” as reported by The Business Today.
Also, The Scroll reported that JICA has also denied stopping any funds for the bullet train project.
Farmers’ concerns
On September 18, 1000 farmers filed an affidavit in the Gujarat High Court raising objections to the Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train project and denying Gujarat government’s claim that the farmers were willingly giving up their land. They also approached JICA as its guidelines specifically mention that Social Impact Assessment is mandatory.
Mr Yagnik told The Logical Indian that the state government is tweaking the land acquisition law to make projects exempt from impact assessment and consent and its a bigger issue than just the bullet train project. He added that the way farmers in Gujarat are being deprived of their land is forcing them to think of drastic and unviable solutions. “We Gujaratis are now genuinely thinking of buying land in Jammu and Kashmir,” he remarks.
He further clarifies, “Nobody is fighting against the idea of the bullet train, we are fighting against the illegal land acquisition. I don’t care if people ride the train or not. But in the name of development, lives and livelihoods of thousands of farmers are being destroyed.”
Also, the centre’s silence over this issue even after repeated pleas is concerning. Reportedly, on 18th September, the Gujarat HC has asked the centre to reply to the farmers’ petitions by September 26 and if the centre fails to reply, the court may give some interim relief to the farmers. The Centre in their reply after almost three months, said that “since there is no prayer against the Centre, they would prefer not to comment on the matter. “Is this the reply that High Court was waiting for three months?” asks Mr Yagnik.
On October 2, farmers across Gujarat will protest against the land acquisition. They will hold a demonstration against the Mudra-SEZ, Adani-SEZ, Gir forest illegal mining, acquisition of land from Bhavnagar to Somnath, Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor, express highway, national highway expansion, expansion between Ahmedabad-Mumbai and the Bullet train project. This protest would be to showcase the plight of the farmers.
Gujarat govt claims farmers “offered their land”
The Gujarat government has stated in its counter to the farmers’ affidavit that “much larger proportion of landowners whose lands are proposed to be acquired (for the Bullet Train project), have offered their lands by consent,” reported The Indian Express.
A farmer in his affidavit (a copy of which was provided to The Logical Indian by Mr Yagnik) said that without his oral or written consent and without consulting with him or offering him any sufficient and adequate rehabilitation and resettlement package, his land was being acquired. “I further declare that I do not want my land to be acquired and I do not want the Bullet train project,” he mentioned in his affidavit.
Affidavit by an affected farmer farmer affidavit
The farmers further said that the acquisition was happening by amending the state’s land acquisition law and negating the provisions of conducting a social impact assessment and consent of the affected families.
When we asked Mr Yagnik that the 2014 land acquisition act says that rehabilitation and resettlement packages would be given to farmers then what is the issue? He replied “If that was the case, then nobody would go to the court, isn’t it? That is why I said that even when the judgement is there, the government refuses to comply with it.”
Anand Yagnik: Lawyer for the farmers Mr Yagnik revealed that his father used to work as the personal secretary to Ram Manohar Lohia and this upbringing has led him in some way to where he is today. “I have been fighting for the rights of 60,000 farmers and I …
