Hotline Asia Urgent Appeals -- UA070711(4)

Action Requested || Sample Letter || Background
Please respond before 3 August 2007
update

Summary

Ten fishing villages on the Dharavi Islands, located along the coast of Uttan-Goria belt near Mumbai, are facing eviction to give way to Special Economic Zones (SEZ). The coastal stretch, 2 km in width and 18 kms in length, is pegged for a multi-product SEZ designed for tourism and entertainment similar to Disneyland and Las Vegas. The SEZ will displace thousands of traditional fisher-folk, salt-pan workers and farming communities who have occupied part of this heritage and ancestral land since the 12th century.

The Uttan-Gorai SEZ is the second largest in Maharashtra, India. The locals, 90% of whom are Catholics were aghast when the plans were unfolded in the Government Gazette dated 30 November 2006 and in various newspapers asking the public to submit opinions within 60 days. Immediately 10,000 objections were filed by locals within the stipulated time frame but no response has been received to date.

Pan India Paryatan Limited (PIPL), the concerned developer in this case has earmarked 5,000 hectares of land, 60% of which would be the marshy government lands and the rest privately owned by the villagers. This project is estimated at Rs50 million (US$ 1.25 million). Notices for eviction from the occupied land are expected within the next 45 days.

Action Requested
Please write polite letters expressing your concern over the large scale displacement of people from their land and culture, leading to a deprivation of their livelihood. Request the authorities to take measures to:

• Scrap the recently passed SEZ Act that legalizes land acquisition from poor farmers and indigenous people/tribes in favour of industrial expansion.

• Review the clearance process for the sanction of SEZs. The government can allocate land to corporates on lease for fixed term only rather than take away land completely from the owner.
  

Sample Letter

Background

In the past few years the policy of promoting Special Economic Zones (SEZ) was favoured by the government of India. In 2005, the Indian government enacted the SEZ Act and the SEZ Rules were notified since February 2006. The primary objective of promoting SEZs was to facilitate exports and subsequently to attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), thus enabling Indian entrepreneurs to operate under international conditions. It was also meant to create global industries and practices eventually spilling over to the mainland. SEZs enjoy a 15 year tax holiday - 100% for the first 5 years, 50 for the next 5 years and up to 50% for the next 5 years subject to the creation of reserves on export profits available to units.

The central issue of the SEZ is government acquisition of farmlands at cheap prices gifting it to corporations but failing to make public the details of these deals. This irregularity apart, the government is using the Land Acquisition Act 1864, an antiquated piece of legislation to acquire the land for SEZs whereby the government is only obliged to pay the cost of the land and not offer a rehabilitation package.

[ Impact of SEZ ]
Till September 2006, the government cleared a total of 267 SEZs of which 150 got formal and 117 got "in principle" approvals, with more in the pipeline. The rapidly rising Indian multi-national company, the Reliance Group of Industries, is planning at least 4 SEZs including 2 in Mumbai - over 10,000 hectares of land - and another in Haryana. Of all the approved SEZs, totaling 140,000 acres of land, the Reliance Group alone stands to gain 60,000 acres.

India has wrongly adopted the SEZ model of China for its economic policy. China has only 5 such SEZs but India plans to have 285 SEZs. The adverse impact of SEZs on the agricultural sector has led to widespread unrest and demonstrations at farmlands and Ministries.

No political party raised questions on the issue in both houses of parliament when the legislation was passed. It was paradoxical when even the Finance Ministry, the Reserve Bank of India and the World Bank expressed reservations on the SEZ policy. It was finally the anti-SEZ protests that led the central government, on January 22, 2007, to put a hold on the approvals for fresh SEZs. The rapid promotion and establishment of SEZs raises many issues.

Violation against existing legislations:

• The SEZ Act violates the rights of local self governments like the ¡§Gram Panchayat¡¨ (local self government at village level) and it violates the 73rd constitutional amendment, as the SEZs are exempt from town planning and supervision by municipality.

• The SEZ Act negates existing legislation like the Industrial Disputes Act 1947 under the facade of the SEZ being a ¡§public utility service¡¨ hence the labour force will be highly vulnerable with no union and no power.

Inadequate compensation:

• Land records are woefully inadequate, and fail to list people who have cultivated the land for decades. Hence, many villagers get no compensation at all.

• More than 25,000 people have been already displaced due to SEZs.

Negative impact in the Long Run:

• The Indian Finance Ministry has expressed concerns that in the long run all exporters would shift their base to these designated enclaves, robbing the government of 1.75 trillion rupees (US$38 billion) in tax revenue.

• SEZs promote a new form of colonization creating an oasis of development amid vast deserts of undeveloped rural and urban areas.

• Surrendering national sovereignty to foreign interests where no local law of the land is applicable, as SEZs are deemed foreign territories.

• Severe environmental damage to the unique ecosystems as no environmental clearance is required to set up SEZs.

• SEZs will be ruled by the all powerful Development Commissioner (DC) with no accountability that Indian NGOS claim may give rise to military rule and corruption.

Violent clashes between the protestors and the police led to the tragic massacre of around 100 unarmed people including women and children while offering prayers for protection of their land in Nandigram, West Bengal on 14 March 2007. However, according to an official statement only 14 persons were killed.

[ More on Uttan ]
Of the 125,000 population, 60 % are engaged in fishing. The SEZ project would sound the death knell for the fisher-folk, decimating their age-old industry and livelihood. This SEZ is meant to attract tourists to earn foreign exchange. The locals are apprehensive of the moral degradation that would follow. Presently this spot is one of the favourite picnic points used by people from Mumbai who want to get away from the city to unwind and relax.

On 5 May 2006, the Maharashtra Minorities Commission, reacting to complaints about the effects of the proposed SEZ in the Uttan-Gorai area, visited the area to conduct a public hearing with representatives from all 10 villages and found that the majority of the villagers who are East Indian Christians (classified as "other backward classes") are fast becoming extinct and were not consulted about the acquisition of land.

Source:
The Rally
Combat Law
Hindustan Times
Times of India
Economic Political Weekly
Facts against Myths, Vikas Adhyan Kendra Publication
Uttan ¡VGoraikars caught in SEZ Net, The Examiner

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