Kerala - Kannur   

AGM demands entire Aralam Farm land

Staff Reporter

For rehabilitation of landless Adivasis

KANNUR: The Adivasi Gothra Mahasabha (AGM) as well as its political wing Rashtriya Mahasabha (RS) will bring to national attention its demand that the entire 7,000-acre Aralam Farm transferred by the Central Government to the State Government in exchange of Rs.42 crore from the Tribal Sub Plan fund be allocated for rehabilitation of landless Adivasis.

AGM and RS leaders C.K. Janu and M. Geethanandan told a press conference here on Friday that Adivasis would stage a march to Parliament on March 20 to raise this demand.

The objective was to bring the demand to the notice of President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, the Planning Commission and the National Scheduled Tribe Commission as well as the national leadership of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and Communist Party of India.

Ms. Janu and Mr. Geethanandan said that the State Government failed to act lawfully in addressing the Adivasi land issue.

The ongoing efforts of the CPI(M) to enforce its domination in the Aralam Farm and the Alakkode Estate land with discreet support from the Government exposed the Government's failure in assigning land to the landless Adivasis.

The political parties were trying to control the land earmarked for disbursal among the Adivasis even as they turned a blind eye to the large extent of land in possession of estates of private monopoly companies, they said.

They alleged that the latest occupation of the two blocks of the Aralam Farm by Adivasis belonging to the pro-CPI(M) Adivasi Kshema Samithi (AKS) was to disrupt the ongoing process of finalising the list of Adivasis eligible to be assigned the land.

He said that the AKS activists entered the farm even as the process of finalising the list from 8,000-odd applicants through Adivasi `Oorukoottams' was already under way in the wake of the High Court order asking the Government to assign land on the basis of eligibility of the applicants, they said.

Mr. Geethanandan said that the entire 3,500-acre allocated for Adivasi rehabilitation had now been occupied by tribals without titles.

The latest occupation by the AKS workers was to secure half of the farm's land to the possession of the District Panchayat and thus to ensure `party control' in the entire area.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

AGM demands entire Aralam Farm land
`Congress committed to welfare of minorities'
PNB to launch new schemes
In Kannur Today

Copyright © 2007, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu