Fighting Injustice in Polepally SEZ

Cartoon Courtesy AndhraJyothy

This evening (11th June 2009) around 9 0′clock, Polepally sarpanch, Balaswamy Goud was attacked near Aurabindo factory when he was going to village in his car. Group of people came in two vechicles and hit him brutally, his condition is serious, right now he’s in hospital, his car was smashed (a maruti which he recently bought). Balaswamy is around 30, unmarried , he lost both his parents when he was young, he is also a victim of Polepally SEZ too. He was committed young sarpanch and always with people in the struggle (you all know that there was mysterious death of Mr. Upender Reddy few years back, who is also very supportive and who brought this issue out).

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Bhunirvasitula Ikya Sanghatana 1

The two day “Bhunirvasitula Ikya Sanghatana” is held successfully on 27 & 28th December, 2008 at Nallakunta Hyderabad. Meeting had representatives from several movements fighting forced displacement under varied projects in the state. Men and women and several adivasi and dalit activists made the movement inspiring and strengthening the resolve to fight against unjust development that’s making poor people homeless and hopeless. It was a meeting of people from the field sharing the experiences of struggles and clarifying the ideas on how to take forward the movement to safeguard their right to life and dignity and lands. The activists discussed how the mainstream political parties are looting and cheating the poorer sections or turning a blind eye with crocodile tears about exploitation by the ruling party.

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Our team visited different places in last three days. Our aim is to invite activists to come to a common agenda and platform to pressurize state. We thought of organising a big programme in Hyderabad in December with all the movements who are raising voice against this so called development and displacing their lives and villages. We visited Vizag Coastal corridor struggle groups, Gangavaram port Matsyakarula Ikya vedika, Girijana Sangam Araku, fighting against Jindal Bauxite mining, Rayavani Palem, Bauxite Vyatireka Porata Committee, Vizianagarm district.

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One more farmer lost his life on the altar of SEZ development in Polepally !

Ramulu Goud (48) of Rapally village passed away today. He lost his piece of land in Polepally village. He could not take further pain and loss of hope reducing him from a farmer to a helpless beneficiary of the mercy of SEZ lords and APIIC officials. Depression claimed his life. Read the rest of this entry »

Its been a great day. Mega destruction is partially been stopped by Congress Govt by withdrawing coastal corridor. The coastal corridor is at last cancelled, Minister, Mopi Devi declared it today. Withdrawal of two Government Orders No. 34 , helped the bureaucrat-politician- industry nexus to grab 51,000 acres from Srikakulam to Tada is most news! We are not sure whether its another political drama to suspend the movement till the elections. (Read More…)

Finally Polepally brought all the political parties of the state to the village challenging SEZ atrocities. Recently a Round Table conference of all opposition parties was held at Hyderabad on 19th under the leadership of Dr. Narayana, General Secretary, Communist Party of India (CPI). They identified few issues to fight together and they started from Polepally. Major parties like CPI, CPI (M), CPI ML, CPI (New Democracy) Janata Dal (S), Loksatta, MBT, Praja Rajyam, TDP, and TRS came to Polepally.

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- Sujatha Surepally

Polepally team traveled across the state to interact with people fighting against Special Economic Zones, displacements. We interacted with groups in Kakinada SEZ, Krishnapatnam SEZ, Eruru, few others SEZs in Nellore and Polavaram dam displaced adivasis in Bhadrachalam. We are asking seeking the support of all anti-SEZ groups to the Polepally struggle. We need to mobilize all anti-SEZ forces against the state government that is possessed by SEZ madness.

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- Sujatha Surepally

Not a day passes by without Polepally issue being featured in the media. Some of these news are about the Polepally SEZ fighters and few are also about how govt. and petty leaders are trying to weaken the agitation.

The Mahabubnagar district Collector is hell bent upon distributing Rs. 70,000 – a part of the hurriedly stitched ‘rehabilitation Package’ after Polepally farmers organized a public hearing (Jan Sunwai) in August. She is using all her tactics to lure the farmers and dilute their fighting spirit. It should be remembered here that Polepally farmers have rejected this so called ‘Rehabilitation Package’ simply because the only thing that the govt is giving them under this ‘package’ is a lease-hold on 200 SQ. Yds of land and Rs. 70,000 to construct a house. The ‘Package’ is a classic case of how far govt’s rehabilitation packages are from reality. None of the Polepally farmers lost their houses for this SEZ. Almost all of them have houses. No one understands why these farmers are given money to construct houses within the SEZ site. It should also be noted that the Pharma companies coming up in the SEZ cause a lot of pollution. And asking these farmers to stay beside such polluting factories is nothing but sadism.

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South India Level Strategy Meeting Against SEZs gave us insights and encouragement to carry forward our struggle. Madhu, Gopal, Yadaiah, Chukkamma, Gopal (Praja kala mandali) and myself attended the meeting.  Many activists across the country working on SEZs, a few research scholars from abroad, struggle groups from Chennai, AP (Coastal Corridor, Nellore and Polepally), Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu were present

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Visited Polepally today with Vanaja and Vipul. Both are making documentary film of the struggle process. Their interest is inspiring. They plan to make a film of the struggle challenging the SEZ lords by people who are not sure of next meal. It will be a story of resistance movements in India. An account of heroic people’s challenge to globalization that’s making our society numb like killer tsunami.
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రాష్ట్ర ప్రభుత్వం ఇటీవల అడ్డగోలుగా జరుపుతున్న భూసేకరణ వల్ల అనేక కుటుంబాలు రోడ్డున పడుతున్నాయి. ఈ నేపధ్యంలో అసలు భూసేకరణ చట్టం ఏమిటి, ప్రజలు ప్రభుత్వ అక్రమాలను ఎలా అడ్డుకోవచ్చు వంటి ఉపయుక్తమయిన విషయాలతో మానవ హక్కుల వేదిక (HRF) ఇటీవల ఒక చిన్న పుస్తకాన్ని ప్రచురించింది. రాష్ట్ర ప్రజలందరికీ ఈ పుస్తకం అందాలనే ఉద్దేశ్యంతో ఈ పుస్తకం కాపీని ఇక్కడ ఇస్తున్నాం. (కె బాల గోపాల్, ఎస్ జీవన్ కుమార్ గార్లకు కృతజ్ఞతలతో …)

పుస్తకం పీడిఎఫ్ ఫైలు ఇక్కడ దిగుమతి చేసుకోండి

ప్రభుత్వం మీ భూమి కోసం వస్తే…

వేరే ఏ రకంగానూ దాన్ని ఆపలేకపోతే కనీసం చట్టాలలో ఏముందో తెలుసుకొని, తగిన జాగ్రత్తలు పాటిస్తే కొంతవరకైనా మీకు న్యాయం జరిగే అవకాశం ఉంటుంది.

భూసేకరణ జరుగుతున్నది 1894 నాటి భూసేకరణ చట్టం కింద. ఆ చట్టం ‘ప్రజా ప్రయోజనం’ పేరుతో ప్రజల భూములనూ, ఇతర స్థిరాస్తులనూ సేకరించే అధికారం ప్రభుత్వానికిస్తుంది. అయితే ఏ అవసరం కోసమైతే భూమి సేకరిస్తున్నారో అది ‘ప్రజా ప్రయోజనం’ కిందకి వస్తుందా, ఒకవేళ వచ్చినా మీ భూమికాక వేరే ప్రత్యామ్నాయాలు ఉన్నాయా అనే విషయంలో అభ్యంతరం చెప్పే, ప్రత్యామ్నాయాలనూ సూచించే అవకాశం మీకు ఉంది. వాటి గురించి ఆలోచించమనీ, అభ్యంతరాలకు జవాబు చెప్పమనీ ప్రభుత్వం పైన ఒత్తిడి పెట్టగల అవకాశమూ మీకు ఉంది. Read the rest of this entry »

For the past one week Polepally is witnessing all sorts of high level dramas. The sole purpose of all these dramas is to weaken and split the unity of agitating farmers by offering them petty gifts. Mr. Mallu Ravi the local MLA  and his karyakarthas are visiting Polepally everyday and are luring people with attractive offers.

Yesterday Polepally struggle committee had a meeting. Me, Madhu, Mr. Charles Wesley Meesa and Mr. Surender (Sharmika Shakti Sanghatan, Mahaboobnagar) attended the meeting.

Members of all caste groups in the affected villages joined the meeting. Interestingly, some young boys from youth organisations were also present.

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Mallu Ravi Luring Farmers with Land Deeds

• The documents were distributed on 9th August 2008, after the public hearing by the activists on 7th August 2008.
• The blacked out letters in the patta are ‘APIIC’ (not blacked out by us, but by the tahsil office before they were distributed on 08th August 2008). According to this, the land was given by APIIC, how did the Revenue Department get rights to issue the PATTAS / land deeds?

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The Comptroller and Auditor General’s report for year 2007 has severely criticised the Andhra Pradesh state government for misleading the central government with respect to the Polepally (Jadcherla) Pharma SEZ. The report validates the claim of protesting Polepally farmers that the state government has not acted in a transparent manner in land acquisition for this SEZ.

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Hyderbad, May 28, 2008: Giving a clarion call to the Jadcherla voters to defeat the forces inimical to the welfare of farmers, the Polepally SEZ victims said they were forced to knock the people’s door since their pleas against the SEZ have fallen on the deaf ears of the government and leader of all the political parties. Read the rest of this entry »