உழவர் உரிமையை வென்றெடு! காவி பாசிசத்தை வீழ்த்திடு! என்ற தலைப்பின் கீழ் தஞ்சையில் நடைபெற்ற விவசாயிகள் விடுதலை முன்னணியின் அரசியல் கோரிக்கை மாநாட்டில் அகில இந்திய விவசாயிகள் மகாசபையில் தேசிய செயலாளரும் ஐக்கிய விவசாயிகள் முன்னணியில் தேசிய செயற்குழு உறுப்பினருமான தோழர் புருஷோத்தம் சர்மா ஆங்கிலத்தில் ஆற்றிய உரை.
மாநாட்டில் இந்த உரையை அகில இந்திய விவசாயிகள் மகாசபையில் தமிழ்நாடு மாநில பொதுச் செயலாளர் தோழர் சந்திரமோகன் தமிழில் மொழி பெயர்த்தார்.
நாடு முழுவதும் கார்ப்பரேட் – காவி பாசிசத்திற்கு எதிராக போராடுகின்ற விவசாய சங்கங்கள் அனைத்தையும் ஒன்றிணைக்கின்ற திசையில் புதிய நம்பிக்கையை உருவாக்கியது இந்த உரை.
Dear comrades and fellow farmers present here!
On behalf of All India Kisan Mahasabha and Samyukt Kisan Morcha, I present Vanakkam and Lal Salam to you all.
I cannot speak Tamil and my English is also not good, so I request you all to excuse me for any mistake in language. But we all are united by our common view and goal, so we will understand each other.
While I was in Indian Peoples Front (IPF) in 1982, I had learned few Tamil words like – Tanneer, Vanakkam, Makkal, Munnani. During IPF and its struggles, I also read about great Periyar and the Dravidian movement here against Brahmanism.
These movements in Tamil Nadu against Brahminism and caste system is a source of great inspiration for the whole of India. This movement has a deep impact on the lives of the people in South India. This is the reason why the RSS BJP, the representative of Brahminism in India, could not take root in the South, even after exerting all its might.
Comrades!
Today we all have united across the country under the banner of Samyukt Kisan Morcha, the united platforms of farmers. The farmers of Tamil Nadu had inspired the farmer organizations of the country to come on a single platform.In 2017, farmers from Tamil Nadu had launched a movement in Delhi under the leadership of P. Ayyakannu on the issue farmers’ losses and farmer suicides. At the same time, farmers’ organizations from across the country discussed coming on a single platform.
Comrades!
Today India’s agriculture is undergoing a great crisis. Indian agriculture is being pushed into the American pattern of corporatisation. This pattern is nothing but handing over our land, farming, food storage and distribution system to big corporate companies.
It’s the move to push farmers into corporate slavery!
The three farm laws were brought Modi government for this purpose. But the united movement of farmers, workers and toiling masses of the country forced the government to repeal the anti-farmer laws.
You know that it was during the Green revolution that our agriculture was opened for corporate companies. Today, 75 percent of our seed market has been captured by two large American corporate companies like Monsanto.
These corporates control the seed market and thus our food supply too. Now, these companies are selling tomato and cabbage seeds to us for 25 to 80 thousand rupees per kg. Selling capsicum seeds for Rs 1.5 lakh per kg.
With the corporatisation of seeds, our own traditional seeds have been destroyed.
Similar corporate monopoly is also seen in the case of insecticides and agricultural machinery. The reason for the increase in the cost of our farming is this corporate monopoly and loot.
In 2000, the BJP-led Vajpayee government removed quantitative restrictions on the import of agricultural products. This led to imports of subsidised agricultural produce being introduced and our farmers were forced to sell crops at prices well below their cost.
All of us had fought a long and historical movement in Delhi’s borders against the three agricultural laws from November 2020. This movement took place at a time when globally, there is an increasing attempt by governments to encroach on people’s rights and give away land, agriculture and food grain market to the big companies. Public sector and people’s resources are being handed over to corporates.
Large scale retrenchment of workers, abolition of labour and social security rights under the grab of development is leading to rising unemployment and inequality.
In many countries including India, laws are being introduced to take away the rights of the citizens and increase communal, caste and racial discrimination.
Open loot of government-public institutions/properties, attacks on democracy and Constitution, suppressing the voice of protest seems to be only job governments are interested in.
In this movement of despair all over the world, the farmer’s movement in India have provided an inspiration to the people’s movements and struggles across the world. The farmer’s movement also paved way a joint platform for struggles of Central Trade Unions in India and SKM.
On August 24, a joint conference of workers and farmers is going to be held at Talkatora Stadium in Delhi. In this conference, plans for future united struggles will be announced on some common issues.
You know that the Central Government has not fulfilled the promises made to the farmers during the historic farmers movement.
Issues like enactment of MSP guarantee law, dismissal of Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Mishra Teni, the main conspirator of Lakhimpur killing of farmers, withdrawal of lawsuits filed during Kisan Andolan (Movement), loan waiver of farmers-rural laborers, withdrawal of new electricity bill are still not resolved.
We are also demanding giving the status of farmers to the sharecroppers, providing 200 days work and Rs. 600 per day wages in MNREGA, providing housing and agricultural land to the landless-agricultural laborers, providing all the needy people of the country according to their needs under the PDS.
Our struggle on these issues will intensify.
Comrades!
We are seeing how governments are grabbing our agricultural land, forests and rivers for the profit of corporate companies. Whether it is land, water, forest or land of tribals and forest dwellers, people are being evicted from their ancestral lands and homes through forcible land acquisition.
The Chennai-Salem Expressway in Tamil Nadu against which our farmers are protesting, the government decided to build it in the interest of a multinational company without consulting the farmers. In this scheme, not only the highly fertile agricultural land of the farmers will be lost, but our sensitive water catchment areas would also suffer huge losses.
In Tamil Nadu itself, unscientific and anti-environmental methods are being adopted to implement projects like coal, methane, hydro, rail, road. Due to this, the livelihood of farmers, poor laborers and fishermen in agriculture and coastal areas is under attack. The environment is also facing disaster.
This corporate loot not only destroys the environment and livelihood, but also pushes the humanity and the earth into destruction.
Samyukta Kisan Morcha has given a call to organize farmers’ conferences, padh yartas and struggles in all the states for the next three months on such issues.
On August 29, there will be a state convention of SKM in Tamil Nadu as well. On November 26, 27, 28, a three-day strike of farmers will be held in every state capital. It is expected that our struggling farmers of Tamil Nadu will actively participate in these struggles in the days to come.
Comrades!
Under the Modi rule, democracy and the Constitution are under fascist attack.
All the opposition forces have united under a common platform against this fascist attack. In such a situation, the workers and peasants of India will have to play a central role in this movement to defeat fascism. The ideological-social basis of Indian fascism is the caste system based of Brahminism and Manu Smriti.
Today, if fascist forces like BJP-RSS do not get a chance to flourish in South India, it is because of the decisive battle fought by people’s movement in Tamil Nadu against Brahminical forces.
We are sure that the farmers-workers of Tamil Nadu will play a leading role in uprooting the present fascist system in India.
Thank you all!
Long live farmer-workers unity!
Long live SKM!
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