AHMEDABAD: The long-running forest land dispute between tribal farmers of Sagbara in Gujarat's Narmada district and Umarpada taluka in Surat has entered a tense new phase, with protesting farmers announcing plans to march ahead and plough the disputed land after 19 days of agitation.
Nearly 300 farmers from around 12 villages, including Halgam, Padi, Dodhanwadi, Khopi and Nal near the Sagbara border, have been sitting on a fast since August 8. Their key demand is permission to cultivate forest land in Umarpada, which they claim was allotted to families displaced by the Ukai Dam project.
However, the move has triggered a direct confrontation on the ground. While Sagbara farmers are demanding access to the land, local Umarpada farmers, backed by objections raised before forest officials, are opposing their entry and cultivation.
19 Days of fast, Now a call to plough
The protest, which began as a hunger strike, is now threatening to turn into a major showdown after Sagbara farmers announced that they would plough the land despite the opposition.
The agitators have been protesting in the Haripura Round Forest area under Vadpada Range of Umarpada for nearly three weeks, arguing that they had been cultivating the land for almost two decades after it was allotted to Ukai Dam-affected families.
According to the farmers, the dispute intensified over the past two years as local Umarpada farmers began opposing their cultivation. At the same time, Forest Department officials also stopped cultivation, insisting that the matter required approval through a Gram Sabha resolution.
Sagbara farmers say: 'We cultivated this land for 20 years'
The protesting farmers maintain that families from Sagbara were allotted agricultural land in Umarpada after being affected by the Ukai Dam project. They claim they cultivated the land continuously for around 20 years before the present conflict erupted.
Now, however, their cultivation rights have become the centre of a fierce territorial and legal dispute, with forest authorities questioning the documents and Gram Sabha resolutions submitted in support of their claims.
During an interaction with protesting farmers at the agitation site, the message was clear: after nearly three weeks of fasting, they are no longer willing to wait indefinitely for a settlement.
Umarpada farmers dig in
On the other side, Umarpada farmers have firmly opposed the entry of Sagbara farmers, arguing that people from another taluka cannot come into their area and plough the land.
Their resistance has further intensified following the brutal murder of a 12-year-old girl in Vadpada village. Local farmers say the atmosphere has become increasingly sensitive and have declared that they will not allow Sagbara farmers to cultivate the disputed land in the area.
As a result, the forest land row has now turned into a high-stakes face-off between two groups of tribal farmers from neighbouring districts.
Forest Department Cites Forest Rights Act, Gram Sabha Resolution
Amid the growing confrontation, Surat Forest Department's ACF Gaurang Lodhi clarified on August 10 that claims under the Forest Rights Act, 2006, would depend on eligibility and proof of cultivation before December 13, 2005.
He further pointed out that a Gram Sabha resolution from the village where the land is located was necessary for such claims.
Since the disputed land falls within Umarpada, officials maintained that claims made by Sagbara farmers would require the relevant local Gram Sabha process. The Forest Department also questioned the validity of resolutions submitted by the Sagbara farmers in support of their case.
Political support builds, row reaches Gandhinagar
Meanwhile, the agitation has drawn political attention across party lines. Bharuch-Narmada MP Mansukh Vasava and Nandod MLA Darshanaben Dekhmukh joined the protesting farmers in a symbolic fast. At the same time, leaders from the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party have also extended support to the Sagbara farmers.
As pressure mounted, Mansukh Vasava took up the issue with Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, pushing the dispute onto the state government's agenda.
The matter then reached Gandhinagar, where a meeting was held on August 26 with Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghvi, Forest Minister Arjun Modhwadia, Tribal Affairs Minister Naresh Patel, former minister Ganpat Vasava, MP Mansukh Vasava and Forest Department officials.
Government promises fresh talks after Raksha Bandhan
Following the meeting, MP Mansukh Vasava said the government had taken an important decision to address the forest land dispute.
According to him, after Raksha Bandhan, State Forest Minister Pravin Mali and in-charge Minister Ishwar Singh Patel will visit Sagbara with government officials and hold direct discussions with the agitating farmers.
The government, he said, has decided to examine land claims on the basis of available evidence. The talks are also expected to focus on the massive backlog of nearly 70,000 to 80,000 pending claims.
With the government promising a fresh round of talks but Sagbara farmers preparing to plough the disputed land, the next move on the Narmada-Surat forest border could decide whether the 19-day protest heads towards a settlement—or a sharper confrontation.