On 10 August 2015, the day following World Adivasi Day, a strong protest was organized under the leadership of CPI-ML at Umargam taluka in Valsad district of Gujarat, in which hundreds of adivasi women and men participated. At the end of the protest a 7-member delegation met the tehsil officer and submitted a charter of demands.
Their chief demands are: 1. The anti-people land acquisition law (especially in adivasi areas) should be immediately repealed; 2. Adivasis should be given ownership rights as per the forest rights act (which many whose forefathers had ploughed the land have not yet got; some adivasis in this plight were presented before the tehsil officer); 3. Adivasi families should be given BPL cards, and adivasis engaged in agriculture should get insurance without premium; 4. Corruption in distribution of MNREGA job cards and work to adivasis should be investigated immediately and this process should be properly and quickly completed; 5. Each family should be provided food grains at Rs 2 per kilo under the food security act; 6. Contract labour supply system in factories under the Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation should be stopped immediately and contractual workers (most of whom are local adivasis) should be made permanent employees; 7. There are several small chemical factories here whose effluents are polluting both land and drinking water in this area; these factories should be banned immediately and their owners punished.
Hundreds of adivasi women and men from Malkhet, Nagam, Jharoli, Khatalvad, Bharoli, Dhodhipara, Manda, Mohangaon, Angaam, Kaprada, and other villages participated in the demonstration. The rally attracted large numbers in spite of heavy rain and the fact that the majority of fishermen were out at sea on work. The rally was led by Politburo member Prabhat Kumar, Gujarat Party in-charge Ranjan Ganguly, RYA National Secretary Amit Patnawadia, District secretary Laxmanbhai Patnawadia, women leaders Jayantiben, Sushilaben, and others. Disabled persons also participated in the rally led by disabled persons’ union leader Com. Haresh Bhai. Speakers addressing the rally called for widening the agitation for land, employment, and food. It was resolved at the rally to make full preparations for the success of the forthcoming All India strike on 2nd September.
