The All India Agricultural Labourers’ Association (AIALA) held a protest in Devaria, UP, on 10 December 2014. After a 500-strong protest march which began from the CPI(ML) office in Devaria town and culminated at the district headquarters, a memorandum of demands against the policies of the Modi government in the Centre and the Akhilesh Yadav government in the state was submitted to the district administration. Moreover, for the time in the Bhagalpur block of the same district, a protest under the AIALA banner was held. Around 400 people participated in this protest which was led by AIALA district coordinator Sriram Kushwaha. A 5-point charter was submitted to the President, via the district administration and a 9-point charter of demands was submitted to the block development officer of Bhagalpur block.
The charter included the following demands: immediate rollback of all efforts to dilute MNREGA and reduce its funding, linking of MNREGA with agriculture, guarantee of year-old employment and payment of a minimum of Rs 300 per day, inclusion of families with monthly income of Rs 10,000 in the BPL list, implementation of Food Security Act in UP and provision of at least 15 kgs of food grains every month, inclusion of right to employment as a fundamental right, payment of pending dues to workers under the MNREGA schemes and end of corruption in the distribution of ration cards.
