Fresh eviction notices to Gujarat farmers of Dholera region, set aside for smart city, trigger angry protests

By A Representative
Thousands of farmers living in the Special Investment Region (SIR), Dholera, are again showing signs of unrest following fresh eviction notices served on them to vacate their agricultural plots. Sent under the SIR Act, the notices require the farmers to part with 50% of land.
Enraged farmers, accompanied by women and children, on Tuesday staged a protest at the Town Planning office of the Dholera region, where the Gujarat government is planning a smart city as part of the sprawling Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC).
The SIR Act, allows the state government to apply provisions of the Town Planning Act, which allows it to acquire 50% of agricultural land for setting up urban facilities in an area where a proposal for town planning scheme has been floated.
In all, the Gujarat government has approved six Town Planning schemes on a 902 sq km Dholera SIR, which includes a smart city. In the latest round, farmers of Town Planning scheme No 1 were sent notices, creating flutter across the region.
The notices were served following reports that Dholera SIR was given environmental clearance to go ahead with setting up smart city and industries in the region.
A farmers’ delegation, which met the Town Planning officer, wondered how he could issue notices to the farmers despite a stay order passed by the Gujarat High Court on December 10, 2015.
Said Khedut Samaj Gujarat (KSG) secretary Sagar Rabari, who has been fighting for Dholera farmers’ land rights, the Town Planning officer “flustered” and “had no proper answer to give to the farmers”, though “came down to meet them and assured them that their feelings would be communicated to the government.”
Calling the notices “contempt of court”, Rabari said in a statement, the Gujarat High Court order had asked the Gujarat government to maintain status quo in a case filed by several farmers (suit No 227/2014) seeking cancellation of SIR in the Dholera region.
The farmers had sought court intervention over earlier notices served to them in 2014 to part with 50% of land for urban infrastructure. Calling the notices “unconstitutional”, the farmers’ plea wondered how such notices could be served without gram sabha nod.
Rabari accused the Gujarat government of working as agent of big private companies seeking to evict “unarmed farmers”, adding, “Government officials, with the tacit approval of their political masters, are resorting to harassment of farmers despite the High Court stay order.”
“This shows how far the government is prepared to go in order to oppress the farmers, to push them to desperation so that cheap land, labour and water can be made available to the corporate”, he added.
Wondering whether the government is the middleman of the companies and corporate houses, Rabari wondered in his statement as why was the government, “sold to free-market logic, not facilitating a dialogue between the farmers and the corporate sector.”
“The situation is getting tenser with each passing day and very soon the time may come when it may become difficult for the administration to contain the farmers’ anger”, Rabari warned, adding, “People are only demanding that the government wind up its Dholera SIR Authority office and provide Narmada water for irrigation.

Comments

Designing the edge, erasing the river: Sabarmati Riverfront and the dissonance between ecology and planning

By Mansee Bal Bhargava, Parth Patel Across India, old black-and-white images of the Sabarmati River are often juxtaposed with vibrant photos of the modern Sabarmati Riverfront. This visual contrast is frequently showcased as a model of development, with the Sabarmati Riverfront serving as a blueprint for over a hundred proposed riverfront projects nationwide. These images are used to forge an implicit public consensus on a singular idea of development—shifting from a messy, evolving relationship between land and water to a rigid, one-time design intervention. The notion of regulating the unregulated has been deeply embedded into public consciousness—especially among city makers, planners, and designers. Urban rivers across India are undergoing a dramatic transformation, not only in terms of their land-water composition but in the very way we understand and define them. Here, we focus on one critical aspect of that transformation: the river’s edge.

Relevance of historical foot marches like Dandi and Salt march in achieving developmental goals in India

By Bharat Dogra India has a great tradition of organizing foot marches, including some which become historically very important, the most obvious example being the Dandi Salt March under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi which is a very important chapter in the freedom movement of India.

Ecological alarm over pumped storage projects in Western Ghats: Policy analyst writes to PM

By A Representative In a detailed letter addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, energy and climate policy analyst Shankar Sharma has raised grave concerns over the escalating approval and construction of Pumped Storage Projects (PSPs) across India’s ecologically fragile river valleys. He has warned that these projects, if pursued unchecked, could result in irreparable damage to the country’s riverine ecology, biodiversity hotspots, and forest wealth—particularly in the Western Ghats.

FSSAI defies Supreme Court order on food warning labels, citing 'trade secrets' for withholding vital information

By A Representative India’s food regulator, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), is facing strong criticism for deliberately delaying the implementation of crucial warning labels on High Fat, Sugar, and Salt (HFSS) food products. This comes despite a clear Supreme Court order on April 9, 2025, which mandated the completion of the "entire exercise" within three months. Adding to the controversy, the FSSAI is reportedly hiding expert reports and over 14,000 public comments under the pretext of "trade secrets."

Bridge collapse near Vadodara fuels demand for urgent repairs in Amreli

By A Representative The tragic collapse of a bridge near Vadodara, which claimed more than 10 lives, has intensified calls from social workers for immediate repairs to a dilapidated and dangerous bridge on the Amreli-Rajkot highway in Amreli district.

Massive national strike on July 9: Trade unions claim participation of over 250 million workers and farmers

By A Representative A nationwide general strike called by a joint platform of central trade unions and sectoral federations claimed participation by more than 25 crore (250 million) workers, farmers, and agri-labourers across India. The strike, protests, and related blockades—popularly known as Rasta Roko and Rail Roko—affected both formal and informal sectors and saw significant mobilization in rural and urban areas alike.

Civil rights coalition condemns alleged abduction of activist Samrat Singh by Delhi police

By A Representative The Campaign Against State Repression (CASR), a collective of civil and democratic rights organisations, has strongly condemned what it describes as the illegal abduction of psychologist and social activist Samrat Singh by a team of Delhi Police officials. The incident occurred on the evening of July 12, 2025, at Singh’s residence in Yamunanagar, Haryana.

Top civil rights leader announces plan to lead delegation to Pakistan amidst post-war tensions

By A Representative In a significant move, well-known academic and civil rights leader Sandeep Pandey has announced the plan to send a 22-member delegation to Pakistan to engage in dialogue with its government and civil society. The delegation proposed to go to Pakistan under the banner of Socialist Party (India) as a fact-finding mission to help seek solution to continuing tensions between the two countries over the fallout of the Pahalgam terror attack.

Remarks by visiting speaker in Dallas stir controversy; police complaint filed

By A Representative A speech delivered at a Hindu community event in Dallas has sparked criticism and led to a police complaint, after the speaker reportedly called for a boycott of Muslim businesses in the area.

Search This Blog