Mumbai, Jan 27 (PTI) As thousands of farmers crossed into neighbouring Thane district as part of their long march' to Mumbai, the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) on Tuesday said Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis gave its delegation a concrete assurance about fulfilling their demands.<br> A delegation of AIKS, affiliated to the Communist Party of India (Marxist), met the chief minister at his residenceVarsha' here.
In a statement issued in the evening, AIKS leaders said the delegation earlier had a nearly two-hour meeting at the state secretariat `Mantralaya' with Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule, Water Resources Minister Girish Mahajan, Tribal Development Minister Ashok Uike, School Education Minister Dadasaheb Bhuse, Forest Minister Ganesh Naik, the chief secretary and senior officials.
The government had not issued any statement till late in the evening on these meetings.
Nawale said that the government agreed to re-examine all forest rights claims at the district level, acknowledging that discrepancies between land eligible for title and actual possession had arisen due to incorrect reports of the forest department.
Committees headed by sub-divisional officers will be formed in each district to re-examine every forest rights case, and the entire exercise will be completed within three months, he said.
An implementation committee including ministers would be constituted to expedite the process, and crop inspection on forest land would be carried out to enable cultivators to access all government schemes, the AIKS leader said.
"The state government agreed to procure paddy and tribal crops such as varai, nagli and sawa, along with strawberries and baal hirda, from cultivators of forest land at fair prices, and to extend the paddy bonus to them as well," he said, adding that e-crop inspection of forest landholders would be undertaken to ensure they receive benefits of all applicable schemes.
On temple lands, Nawale said the process of drafting a law to transfer such lands in the names of cultivators had begun following sustained agitation by the Kisan Sabha, and a draft has been shared with the organisation. While welcoming certain provisions, the AIKS has sought substantial changes, and a meeting chaired by the revenue minister will be held within eight days to address shortcomings, he added.
Nawale also claimed that the government accepted the demand to retain rainwater from seven west-flowing rivers in tribal areas for local use and for drought-prone regions of Maharashtra, instead of diverting it elsewhere. "A concrete action plan involving construction of a chain of check dams has been decided upon, with a detailed blueprint to be prepared at the Nashik district collector level. The proposals submitted by the Kisan Sabha should be seriously considered," he said.
He claimed the government agreed to immediately implement court orders allowing recruitment of up to 50 per cent of sanctioned posts under the Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA).
On power supply, Nawale said the government would collect information on districts where electricity for agricultural irrigation is currently provided at night, and take a decision to shift farmers to daytime power supply in those areas.
The AIKS leader further claimed that a decision would be taken immediately to increase the honorarium of school nutrition meal workers, whose current pay is meagre.
School Education Minister Dadasaheb Bhuse promised concrete action to repair school buildings in remote tribal areas and recruit teachers wherever required, he said.
The delegation urged the chief minister to retain the Nashik-Pune high-speed rail alignment via Akole as per the earlier survey, and Fadnavis assured that technical issues related to any proposed change in the route would be reviewed, he said.
A decision on withdrawing the agitation would be taken after discussions with the AIKS state leadership and the protesters gathered at Khardi in Thane district, said Nawale.
Ministers Mahajan and the Nashik district collector would address the protesters on Wednesday evening, following which the decision on the agitation would be announced, Nawale said.
The protesters, carrying red flags, began the 'long march' on Sunday after an agitation outside Dindori tehsil office in Nashik district failed to elicit any concrete assurance, former MLA J P Gavit told reporters earlier in the day.
They decided to take their demands directly to the state government by marching on foot to Mumbai. The marchers covered nearly 60 km over the past two days and began their descent through the Kasara Ghat on Tuesday morning.