Khedut Mazdoor Chetna Sangathan (KMCS), Indore, Madhya Pradesh (M.P.).
2–3 minutes
Rahul Banerjee is an engineering graduate from IIT Kharagpur, a senior tribal rights activist and a writer, he has been a leading activist of the Khedut Mazdoor Chetna Sangathan (KMCS). The KMCS was one of the early organisations fighting for tribal rights in the villages of Alirajpur District in M.P. in the early 1980s. Many of these villages also fall within the submergence zone of the Sardar Sarovar Project (SSP).
In his interview here, Rahul describes the formation of the KMCS, the many issues the KMCS took up including its struggle for the rights of tribals to forest land and KMCS’s subsequent involvement in the struggle against the SSP. Rahul also describes the social, political and economic conditions prevailing in the early eighties in the tribal villages of Alirajpur. He talks of the role of Social Work and Research Centre (SWRC), Tilonia, Rajasthan in the formation of the KMCS. He talks about the important role played by activists, both tribal as well as non-tribal, in the formation of KMCS as well as the Narmada struggle. His interview throws light on the work of organisations working in the area, including areas bordering Alirajpur in Gujarat and Maharashtra in the early eighties like the Anandniketan Ashram, the Arch-Vahini, MARG and the Narmada Dharangrast Samiti. This interview not only helps us understand the situation of the tribals in the submergence zone of the SSP in M.P. but also helps us understand their struggle against the SSP and the role played by KMCS in consolidating that struggle.
Rahul Banerjee maintains a blog: “Anaarkali – The saga of Bhil Adivasi Indigenous People.” The blog can be viewed here.
The blog as Rahul explains is about, “A non-Adivasi person’s respectful celebration of the struggles of the Bhil indigenous people of India against the depredations of modern development – mostly exhilarating but sometimes depressing stories of a people who believe in drinking life to the leas.”
Interview Duration:
01:39:48
Language:
Audio in English, Subtitles in Hindi
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