Hundreds of stone quarry workers of Shankergarh area assembled in Ganne hill on November 18, 2006 to protest against the threats by landlords issued in mass meetings being held in the area under the banner of Jai Bhawani Sena. Big contractors and landlords had been conducting mass meetings in the area under this banner with naked display of illegal firearms. Some common workers were forced to attend these meetings and under the watchful eyes of the police general threats were issued against workers struggles and display of red flags.

This area has seen a number of movements against the landlords/contractors who force these workers to work virtually as bonded labour in their quarries and in the fields. In one movement led by AIKMS one of the contractors was forced to withdraw his claim of loan and interest and was forced to pay the worker unpaid dues of labour. In another movement workers of an adjacent village occupied a grazing land which was under occupation of a landlord, claim of which he had lost in a court. In another case peasants had physically fought to prevent a landlord from occupying the patta land of a peasant.

AIKMS moved to rally the people on Nov. 18 against the landlords’ meetings and threats which had open support of the police. Farmers from the entire area attended in large number and took a pledge to continue their struggle. In the meeting a call was issued to support all the struggles being waged by the peasants of the area against the landlords on all issues. Landlord forces of the area have also made attempts to hold meetings of workers with local NGOs and revisionist parties to mislead the workers, but the workers have seen through this move.

In Sadwan village a long battle has been continuing for last 8 months against a cement packing and another cement sheet plant established by the JP group. Local agricultural workers have been raising the issues of employment from the villages where land has been purchased, for payment of minimum wages, registration of the contractors many of who are local landlords, preventing these industrial plants from polluting the canal, compensation for crops damaged due to pollution and animals killed due to consuming the polluted water etc. Most of the employees have been brought from outside the area and are forced to live inside the plants.

The struggle was waged through mass meetings at the gate, obstruction of the work, rallies in the area and demonstrations at the tehsil. The management responded with immediate retrenchment of all local workers. The landlords tried to threaten the workers and in one case one of them even beat up an old poor peasant lady cutting grass. The landlord was immediately beaten back and mass protest was held at the thana. The sum total of pressure brought by the sustained mass movement resulted in a temporary truce initiated by the administration resulting in a few of the retrenched persons being given employment on payment of minimum wage of Rs 104 for 8 hours while the rest of the workers are paid Rs 90 for 12 hours. The movement is continuing at a slow pace and the workers working inside are beginning to grow restless with the pressure of work, low payment and inhuman conditions.

In Ghoorpur area government apathy and connivance of the local landlords has resulted in failure of the local 4 km long canal from functioning optimally. Over the last 15 years, the area irrigated by the tail has remained deprived. As a result of this farmers of the area have not sown wheat for last 10 to 15 years. For last one year the farmers led by AIKMS took up this struggle and through repeated applications and demonstrations for maintaining the canal, supplying electricity regularly and running both the pumps simultaneously forced the administration to actually look into the problem. In the process the farmers had gheraoed an official in their area and forced the police to get him released after making a promise of running the canal properly.

The pumps were repaired, the illegal outlets were closed, but still water remained inadequate even when the electricity came. The pump operator revealed that he is under threat from the pradhan and the ex pradhan and other landlords of the area to run only one pump at a time, the logic being that the other pump is a standby. With only one pump operating the water could never reach the tail. The landlords' interest was to ensure that only the areas near the pump get ensured supply. While farmers prepared to put further pressure, the landlords instigated fights by some to be beneficiaries on frivilous ground and forced FIRs on some of the leaders. They instigated them to work towards only partial running of the canal saying that the full running would deprive them of water.

While AIKMS leadership enforced truce through explaining the real issues they prepared the people to go in for more decisive steps for running the canal. Finally in November the farmers sat on the main highway with dried, undeveloped paddy crop on their heads and blocked the road. After more than 4 hours of the blockade the administration inspected the area and took measures for 22 hour electricity supply and regular operation of both pumps. With water supply being maintained, the question of re-digging the distal parts of the canal came up and the farmers were once again successful in forcing the irrigation officials to permit them to do so without the contractor, with payment to be made to them for the same.

This agitation, which has taken one full year has revealed to the farmers anti-people character of landlords belonging to their very castes who are also the people who monopolize posts of gram pradhans and fair price shop dealers.

A few issues of non payment of wages for work done under village development programs have also been taken up through mass protests. These movements have forced the contractors to pay the workers wages which had remained unpaid for last 2 years.

These small successes have increased the interest and confidence amongst the masses in building their movements. The landlords are trying to undo even these victories and the administration is standing by them. To advance the movement, the people have to build more and more agitations on these and other issues and take steps to defend the movement.