By Yusuf Jameel
They don’t allow us to chop down a single tree. We can’t build a small dwelling, not even a chalet on our farming land. But then they come and uproot thousands of fruits and other trees in the name of upgrading infrastructure,” whined Abdul Gani Reshi.
Reshi is among the fruit-growers and other farmers of Reshipora, a picturesque village of Kashmir Valley’s southern Shopian district surrounded by dense deodar forests, apple orchards, and terraced mustard and rice fields, offering breathtaking views of the valley and nearby mountains. For the past one month they have been protesting over “forcible” takeover of their farming land, mainly apple orchards, for a new railway project.
Earlier this week, the agitating farmers, some of them draped in white shrouds symbolising they were ready to give their lives to save their orchards, marched through the village streets chanting “We want justice”. Before dispersing, they pledged before a group of visiting reporters to “intensify our fight”.
Next day Shopian’s Deputy Commissioner Faz Lul Haseeb rushed here and after moving through the apple orchards and other farming land being acquired by the Indian Railways for laying a 27.6km line from Awantipora in neighbouring Pulwama district to the Shopian town told the agitating farmers, “I have been in touch with the Railways authorities. We are looking into the issue, and I assure you all the stakeholders will be taken on board.”
This story was originally published in deccanchronicle.com. Read the full story here.