Farmers protest land acquisition for Eastern Ring Road & Indore-Manmad rail line projects

Indore: A large number of local farmers under the banner of Bharatiya Kisan Kalyan Sangh launched a protest outside Indore collectorate on Monday to oppose land acquisition for the National Highways Authority of India’s (NHAI) proposed Eastern Ring Road project and the Indore-Manmad rail line.The protest was called off in the evening following a meeting with collector Shivam Verma, who committed to reviewing the entire acquisition process and delivering a decision within 20 days.The demonstration caused significant public disruption as administrative gates were locked for security, leaving visitors unable to enter the premises. During the protest, two farmers were taken ill. They were taken to a local hospital.The two infrastructure projects would affect over 2000 farmers across Indore and Dewas districts.Eastern Ring Road (Eastern Bypass) project impacts 44 villages across six tehsils in Indore and Dewas districts. The project requires acquisition of 820 hectares of land belonging to 1,200 farmers. Indore-Manmad Rail Project involves the acquisition of 500 hectares of land across 18 villages in the Indore district, affecting 923 farmers.The protesters demanded exclusion of fertile agricultural land from the projects and the outright cancellation of the proposed routes to protect local livelihood.Consumer Commission Orders Compensation for Kanadia Soybean FarmersFollowing a prolonged legal battle that escalated to National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC), five farmers of Kanadia village have secured compensation for their 2017 Kharif soyabean crop losses.Despite a 57% crop loss that year, a total of 135 local farmers were denied claims under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana due to a clerical error on the govt portal, which mistakenly recorded their land.“The final order directs the cooperative bank and society to disburse the insurance claims with 6% annual interest, along with Rs 5000 for mental agony and Rs 5000 for litigation expenses per complainant,” said farmers Radheshyam Mandloi, Omprakash and Babulal Mandloi, adding that the compensation would also be paid to the legal heirs of the deceased farmers Chatarsingh and Hindusingh Mandloi.