Maharashtra farmers to hoist tricolour in fields on Independence Day to protest Shaktipeeth Expressway

Mumbai: Farmers from 12 districts in Maharashtra will hoist the national flag in their fields on Independence Day as part of a unique protest against the proposed Shaktipeeth Expressway, which they claim will destroy fertile agricultural land.

The campaign for the August 15 protest will carry the slogan "The tricolour flutters in our field, Shaktipeeth has no place in our farmland," sending a strong message to the state government, Congress MLC Satej Patil said.

The decision was taken at an online meeting of the Shaktipeeth Expressway Virodhi Sangharsh Samiti on Saturday, attended by farmers and public representatives from the affected districts, he said.

The Maharashtra cabinet in June this year approved the allocation of Rs 20,787 crore for the ambitious `Maharashtra Shaktipeeth Expressway’ which will pass through 12 districts, linking eastern Maharashtra with southern Konkan.

The 802-km expressway is expected to cut the travel time between Nagpur and Goa from current 18 hours to eight hours, as per officials.

The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) will implement the project, and HUDCO has sanctioned a loan of Rs 12,000 crore for the acquisition of nearly 7,500 hectares of land, the officials earlier said.

The expressway aims to link all 'Shaktipeeths’ in the state and develop rural areas through tourism and connectivity, they added.

The high-speed corridor will pass through the districts of Wardha, Yavatmal, Hingoli, Nanded, Parbhani, Beed, Latur, Dharashiv, Solapur, Sangli, Kolhapur and Sindhudurg.

Patil said the protest move symbolises farmers' demand for "freedom" from the project.

He alleged the expressway's cost had risen from Rs 86,000 crore to Rs 1.06 lakh crore and urged the government to instead focus on road construction in underdeveloped areas and loan waivers for farmers.

Farmer leader and former MP Raju Shetti said the protest was aimed at "freeing the land" at a time when cultivable area in the country is shrinking.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Vinayak Raut claimed the expressway would benefit only contractors and politicians, while MLA Kailas Patil took a swipe at the chief minister, saying the project may be a "dream" or "cream" for him.

The meeting also resolved to pass anti-expressway resolutions in gram sabhas on August 15 and to launch a signature campaign in villages, former MLA Ruturaj Patil said.

He said the campaign would begin in 10 villages of Kolhapur South constituency in the coming days.

The protest is part of a wider agitation, with farmers from the affected areas also expected to join the August 13 nationwide protest called by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha at Bindu Chowk in Kolhapur, Satej Patil said.