Today more than five thousand farmers, adivasis and workers marched through
the streets of Bhopal in a protest rally organized by the Jan Sangharsh Morcha
to declare their opposition to the proposed electricity tariff hikes. This
rally, which began from Yadgare Shahajani Park, marched through all the main
roads of Bhopal and culminated in a massive public meeting at Neelam Park.

Farmers, workers as well as leaders of the Jan Sangharsh Morcha, speaking at
the public meeting declared that the electricity tariff hike is a conspiracy
of the foreign financial institutions and multinational corporations against
the common people of the State of Madhya Pradesh. They said that they would
fight to unmask and finish this conspiracy with all their strength in the
coming months.

It may be recalled that the Jan Sangarsh Morcha had arranged, "Bijli Bachao
Azadi Bachao" Yatras all over the State in protest against the proposed
electricity tariff hike as well against the destruction of the power sector in
Madhya Pradesh on the behest of foreign financial institutions like the ADB in
the name of reforms.

These Yatras received widespread public support as they traveled through 22
districts of Madhya Pradesh. Today in the culmination of the Yatra at Bhopal,
thousands of peasants, landless people and adivasis from all over the State
came together in an impressive show of strength and unity.

The public meeting began with the garlanding of the "Bijli Bachao Azadi
Bachao" Yatris who had traveled through the State for the last fifteen
days.
Smt. Punibai of Narmada Bachao Andolan related the experiences of the Yatra.
She said that the Yatra received tremendous public support and that it served
to articulate the public anger on misgovernance and the collapse of the State
machinery vis-à-vis power sector. She said that is has become more and more
apparent that the Government is the cause of the present power sector crisis
and therefore cannot be relied upon formulating any remedies to improve the
situation for the benefit of farmers and the landless.

Shri. Bhaita Bhai of Dalit Jagrut Adivasi Sangathan, Shri. Munjibhai of
Shramik Adivasi Sangathan and Guliabai of Kisan Adivasi Sangathan of
Hoshangabad related on the power situation on adivasi area of the State. They
said that even though the country had achieved independence 55 years ago,
still power had not reached millions of hamlets in the state. Those homes and
villages where electricity had reached after substantial efforts are now being
deprived of whatever benefits they have received. The adivasis and farmers of
the State who are facing the fourth year of severe drought will be destroyed
completely if the electricity tariffs are hiked, they said.

Shri. Shailendra Chauhan and Jagadish Patidar of Nimad Malwa Mazdoor Kisan
Sangathan said that the farmers of Nimad and Malwa in the last two decades
brought in irrigation facilities at their own cost and on the basis of bank
loans, which had yet to be paid back. They said that if the proposed
electricity tariff hikes are accepted, the farmers would not be able to pay
the electricity bills in spite of selling all their harvest and that they
would be crushed under further indebtedness. They mentioned that this would
lead to large scale land alienation and land sale and this would compel
thousands of farmers to commit suicide in the manner of Shri Kishan Okte of
District Chindwaada and other farmers of Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Punjab.
They called on the farmers of the state not to take recourse to hopelessness
and despair but rather to unite together to fight against this destruction.

Shri Alok Agarwal, Convenor of Jan Sangharsh Morcha, said that it is necessary
to comprehend the conspiracy of the foreign financial institutions that lay
behind the tariff hike. The reality is that tariff hikes are a fulfillment of
the conditions of the loan executed by the Madhya Pradesh government with the
Asian Development Bank. Our struggle is to ensure that electricity remains
accessible for the common consumers at affordable rates. The struggle is also
to save the State and country from being taken over by foreign financial
institutions and powers. He warned the State government that there was
tremendous anger in the entire state and if there was any attempt to hike the
power tariffs it would cost a great deal to the incumbent government.

Shri. Sunilbhai of Samajwadi Jan Parishad said that there is foreign
interference not only in the power sector but in every sector of the economy
and therefore it is essential that all of us should come together to fight for
our rights and to save our sovereignty. Senior activist of Shramik Adivasi
Sangathan said that our first priority should be that electricity should reach
areas where it has not reached so far. She said that this was the
Constitutional duty of the State Government.

Dr. Sunilam, Member of the Legislative Assembly and Member of Kisan Sangarsh
Samiti announced at the public meeting that if the government dares to
increase the power tariff, all forces would have to come together to launch a
statewide movement. Non-cooperation movements would be launched calling on the
common people of Madhya Pradesh not to pay their unjustifiedly large
electricity bills and to fill the jails of this state.

Shri. Ramsingh Bhai of Adivasi Mukti Sangathan, Shri. Badamilal Devada of
Kisan Mazdoor Adivasi Sangathan, Hamida Bi of Bhopal Gas Pidit Mahila Udyog
Sangathan, Shri. Ajay Khare of Nari Chetana Manch, Reva, Shri. Kashiram Devada
of Adivasi Ekta Sangathan, Shri. Brij Kishore Chaurasiya of Jay Yuvak Kranti
Dal, Shri Asiwal of City Trade Union Council, Shri. Bhanage of Hind Mazdoor
Sabha and Shri. Raghav Narsalay of Focus-Mumbai as well as senior activists of
many other organizations addressed this meeting and expressed their resolve to
fight together to save their State and country from the clutch of
multinationals and from the entire economy being destroyed by the so-called
power sector reforms.

A memorandum in the name of the Chief Minister was read out at the end of the
meeting to be sent to the Chief Minister. The demands articulated in the
Memorandum included that the proposed electricity tariff petition must be
withdrawn, the agreement with the ADB must be cancelled. That the tariff
increase brought last year must be reviewed and decreased and that sufficient
and cheap electricity must be made available to all consumers in Madhya
Pradesh. Thousands of people stood together at the end of the public rally and
voiced their common resolve that Ø We will not stand any increase in
electricity tariffs. The farmers, poor and common people of the state will
fight for their right to cheap and sufficient electricity. Ø We express deep
sorrow and anger at the death of Shri Kishan Okte, farmer from Chindwaada who
was forced to commit suicide because of the anti-farmer electricity policy of
the Digvijay Singh government and said that they would work to ensure that no
other farmer would be forced to follow the way of Kishan Okte. Ø We shall use
all the strength at our command to stop the destruction of the economy of
Madhya Pradesh. We shall resist the privatization and the takeover of the
power sector by global transnationals, and the attempt to deprive millions of
consumers from their fundamental rights such as electricity. Ø The power
sector reforms being brought into this state at the instance of the Asian
Development Bank are designed to destroy the entire economy of the state. We
reject these so called "reforms" and demand that the Government of
Madhya
Pradesh immediately cancel its agreement with the Asian Development Bank. Ø
That we shall not let this country or this state become the slave of the World
Bank. Asia Development Bank and other foreign powers.

Chittaroopa Palit Suresh Patidar