Farmers protesting against Bidadi Township took part in public hearing with Justice V. Gopala Gowda and others at Bairamangala Circle in Bidadi on Thursday.
| Photo Credit: ALLEN EGENUSE J.
On the 500th day of the farmers’ agitation against the Bidadi Township Project in Bengaluru South district, the protesters participated in a public hearing with retired Supreme Court judge V. Gopala Gowda, who alleged that the preliminary notification for the project would itself be held “void”.The protesting farmers raised several concerns, ranging from the loss of self-reliance to the loss of steady sources of income that would follow if the acquisition was carried out. While the public hearing was also open to farmers supporting the township project, none attended, although they have set up a small camp just 50 metres away from the venue.Farmers’ plightManjunath, a farmer from Kempashettidoddi, said that he owns just 16 guntas of land and earns over ₹60,000 a month from it.“When my land is acquired, I will get a very low sum, and I cannot buy fresh land nearby due to the exorbitant rates. Where shall I go and work?” he questioned. He further stressed that there are about 150 people in his village who do not own any land, and the impact on them would be unimaginable.
