Seven a long time on, a glimmer of hope for land rights

Okayallukoppa (Shivamogga)

It’s 10.30 a.m. and 4 authorities officers have simply reached Kallukoppa, a village in Sirigere, a gram panchayat in Shivamogga taluk. One in every of them is armed with a rover to document GPS location, whereas others are carrying paperwork.

The group, comprising officers of each the Income and Forest Departments, with residents as witness, begins a survey of the land at Maleshankara State Forest – 1. The target is to determine the cultivators and measure the extent of land being cultivated by every. The cultivators in query are those that have been displaced from villages in Hosanagar and Sagar taluks of Shivamogga by the Sharavathi Hydel Energy Challenge in Sagar taluk.

A bunch of individuals, all aged above 55, had gathered to witness the survey. The work started with figuring out the boundaries of land being cultivated by brothers C. Chandrashekhar and C. Ganesh, sons of the late Channabasava Nayaka. The household shifted to Kallukoppa means again in 1963 from Karuru hobli in Sagar taluk, as their village was about to be submerged within the backwaters of Linganmakki dam, constructed to generate energy.

Because the rover is positioned on the boundary line, the gadget dealt with by the surveyor information the correct location. They document the identify and particulars of the cultivator, determine the boundary of the land, and likewise measure the extent of the land.

This train of joint survey is at the moment on in all seven taluks of Shivamogga district over 9,129 acres. The district administration has appealed to the general public to cooperate with the officers for the completion of the survey, as it’s being carried out in assist of the Karnataka authorities’s software earlier than the Supreme Courtroom, in search of permission to de-reserve parts of forest land to favour the folks affected by the ability venture.

As many as 42 groups have been fashioned to finish the fieldwork. The officers are anticipated to finish the duty by the top of April. Nonetheless, these on the sector say assembly the deadline could also be robust, given the extent of labor concerned.

After 70 years

The cultivators, in most locations, are cooperating with the workers. It’s because they consider that they may, lastly, get respectable rights over their land after this train. For them, it has been an extended battle unfold over a number of a long time. “Solely we elders within the household have come right here to witness the survey course of. Our youngsters have misplaced hope of any constructive consequence. Nonetheless, we can not let this go with out our presence,” stated Narayana Gowda, aged round 63.

The households shifted from their native locations in Sagar and Hosanagar taluks as their locations have been to be submerged within the backwater of the Linganmakki reservoir, constructed for the era of energy within the early Sixties. By 1963, the households have been shifted to completely different areas. The administration indicated the parts of land in numerous areas for them to domesticate, however they weren’t given the rights over the land.

Downside of information

The land they cultivated remained a “forest space” within the paperwork of the Forest Division. In different phrases, the due technique of transferring the land to the Income Division for additional grant to the displaced didn’t occur. As the method of providing reduction to the displaced households was delayed, the problem turned sophisticated. The cultivators misplaced information to assist their claims over time. Only some succeeded in getting related paperwork of land grants and maps. Since then, they’ve been preventing for his or her rights.

Most of the children have chosen different sources of revenue. They work as development staff, store attendants, and drivers, and plenty of are in low-income jobs within the personal sector. “Youth from the village are working in personal companies in Shivamogga and Bengaluru. It isn’t shocking since three generations have handed for the reason that watch for the decision of the issue started,” stated Ramachandrappa, 59, who was a toddler when his mother and father moved to this place.

Initially, the then authorities confirmed the displaced households different land in Bhadravathi and Tarikere taluks as nicely. The households moved with no matter may very well be packed up on the vehicles made obtainable by the federal government and moved. Nonetheless, solely after reaching the designated place did they realise how tough it was to rebuild their lives.

“My mother and father have been proven a bit of land in Bhadravathi taluk. It was a dry space, in comparison with the land we cultivated in Sagar taluk. Inside a number of days, our mother and father shifted to Kallukoppa,” recalled Chandrashekhar. Individuals who lived amidst lush inexperienced and had developed a life-style in tune with the encompassing forests felt like fish out of water within the plains.

Over the a long time, the households multiplied, and the land initially given to them to domesticate proved too small. In keeping with villagers, many households did encroach upon further land, as that they had no different choice. In consequence, the extent of land they cultivated elevated. A serious chunk of the land they cultivated was forest land.

As many as 42 groups have been fashioned to finish the fieldwork. The officers are anticipated to finish the duty by the top of April. 
| Picture Credit score:
Sathish G.T.

De-reserve forest land

On a number of events between 1994 and 2017, the State authorities issued orders to de-reserve the forest land for the good thing about displaced folks. The method was executed at a quick tempo between 2013-18. Kagodu Thimmappa, who hailed from Sagar taluk and represented Sagar constituency within the Meeting, was the Income Minister then.

Many locals say he knew the issues confronted by the displaced folks nicely, as he had witnessed the developments since his childhood. As a decision to the issue, he bought the federal government to challenge orders to de-reserve the forest land. Following the orders, many bought hakku patra — title deeds — as nicely. However the story didn’t finish there.

Following a public curiosity litigation filed by Girish Achar, a social activist from Hosanagara taluk, the Karnataka Excessive Courtroom, in March 2021, ordered the cancellation of de-notification. He had argued that the State authorities had no proper to de-reserve the forest land with out taking due permission from the Ministry of Setting and Forests as per the Forest Conservation Act, 1980. The courtroom upheld the argument. This prompted the State authorities to withdraw the denotification orders in September, 2021.

The BJP was in energy when the denotification orders have been withdrawn. This challenge turned a scorching subject for politicians of each events in Shivamogga. Whereas Congress leaders pointed fingers on the BJP for withdrawing the orders, BJP orders blamed the Congress for de-reserving the forest land with out taking permission from the MoEF.

Election challenge too

Forward of the Meeting elections in 2023 and the Parliament elections in 2024, the problem of rehabilitating the displaced turned one of many main points within the marketing campaign. BJP leaders, together with former Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa, his son and Lok Sabha member B.Y. Raghavendra, assured people who they might get needed permission from the Centre.

Then again, Congress leaders led by Madhu Bangarappa took out a padayatra on this challenge. They invited KPCC president D.Okay. Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah, who have been main the celebration marketing campaign within the State, to participate within the protest and promise the people who they might resolve the problem in the event that they got here to energy.

Even because the elections have been to be held, the BJP sought the Centre to grant permission to de-reserve the forest land. Nonetheless, the Centre refused, stating that the courtroom’s approval was required, citing that in earlier instances the courtroom had objected.

The Congress got here to energy after the 2023 Meeting elections. Since then, farmers’ organisations have held a number of protests, placing strain on the State authorities to resolve the long-pending challenge. The federal government filed an interlocutory software earlier than the Supreme Courtroom in search of permission to de-reserve the forest land. In December 2024, the Supreme Courtroom gave instructions to each the State and Centre governments to resolve the problem amicably by holding secretary-level talks.

Earlier in January this yr, senior officers of the State authorities and representatives of MoEF met in Delhi. After a sequence of conferences, it was resolved to carry a contemporary joint survey of land being cultivated by the displaced folks.

Extra correct this time?

Earlier surveys have been carried out to evaluate the extent of land being cultivated by farmers. Nonetheless, the info didn’t embrace the extent of land in possession of every cultivator. The officers concerned within the course of consider that this time the survey could be correct and may deliver down the whole extent, which was earlier estimated to be 9,129 acres.

“In some areas, there are hillocks that are additionally included within the complete extent of land. Such parts is not going to be included within the survey. Moreover that, there may very well be some patches that remained uncultivated for a number of years,” stated an official.

The officers have been requested to enter the info collected in a prescribed format. Chief Conservator of Forests Okay.T. Hanumanthappa, talking on the coaching programme, stated that 341 blocks of land had been recognized for the joint survey. The officers would fill out the prescribed format. That they had been informed the way to refill the format and accumulate DGPS studying and spot mahajar. “The train is to furnish correct information to the Central Authorities,” he stated.

The cultivators need each the Centre and the State to resolve the problem on the earliest in order that they take pleasure in possession of the land they’ve been cultivating. “We’re the individuals who sacrificed our lives for the venture. The Sharavathi Challenge was applied to generate energy. Now, your complete State is getting gentle due to our sacrifice. However we’re nonetheless in darkness. How lengthy ought to we watch for different land?” Narayana Gowda requested.

The cultivators argue that the federal government had been beneficiant in providing the massive planters encroached land on lease, however was not involved about poor individuals who sacrificed their lands for the ability venture. Ramachandrappa says that their ancestors misplaced land not as soon as however twice — initially, they have been affected by the development of the Rent Bhaskara dam (Madenur dam) within the late Thirties, and a few a long time later, within the Sixties, they have been hit by the Linganmakki dam venture.

“All these years, we’ve got not bought truthful compensation for the land we misplaced. Nonetheless, the federal government is able to give further land to the espresso planters, who encroached upon authorities land,” claimed Ramachandrappa.

A majority of those that are actually hopeful of getting title deeds are small farmers. Because the generations handed, the land was fragmented amongst relations. Shivappa, additionally a resident of Kallukoppa, has solely 20 guntas of land. Nonetheless, he too has no information of rights over the land he had cultivated all these years. With no rights, the farmers can not promote it or develop it.

“The federal government must be beneficiant to the poor farmers. Our mother and father handed away with out proudly owning the land they possessed. We don’t know if our dream of proudly owning land will likely be fulfilled in our lifetime,” stated Manjappa, as he watched the survey work being carried out.