Mumbai: On Tuesday, around 2,000 people from the Konkan region of Maharashtra congregated at Azad Maidan, demanding development, saying not much had changed for this region since Independence. The crowd comprised youth, women and entrepreneurs from the tourism, fishery and agricultural industries, who sought change in the agricultural and economic policies for the region. Agriculture, fishing and tourism are the primary economic activities in Konkan and the government's lackadaisical approach has caused these sectors to suffer. There has been rising unemployment in the region and no government schemes have been implemented, claimed the protesters.
They sought 80 per cent reservations for the local youth in public sector jobs as majority of the employees are from other parts of the state, forcing youth from Konkan to travel to other parts of the state for livelihood. In the last ten years, the government has invested only Rs 20cr for the development of the region, the protesters alleged. “We believe in the Gandhian way of protest and we are here to voice our opinion and not to rebel against any government, because our prime agenda is to make sure Konkan prospers,” said Sanjay Yadavrao, director of the Kokan Bhumi Pratishtan.
The protesters demanded Rs 2000 crore in assistance, for the development of mango and cashewnut farming, fisheries and tourism development over a period of ten years. They also demanded subsidies for the cultivation of the Hapus (alphonso) mango. “The Konkan region contributes at least Rs 1,500 crore to the state's economy. If further investments are made, then surely, we can contribute more,” said Subodh Dalvi, an entrepreneur and activist from the region. The fishermen complained of impure water and lack of proper water treatment measures. Hari Ramnathkar, a fishery businessman from Sindhudurg, who was one of the protesters, stated, “Sewage from the cities gets dumped in the sea and often, there are oil spills on the water, which kills the fish and often harms the environment,”. Hapus (alphonso) mango is an important cash crop of the region and for some time now, there has been a battle in the marketplace as similar-looking mangoes are being outsourced from Karnataka, being passed off as hapus, claimed a fruiterer. “Our profit gets cut as they market the mangoes from a different state,” complained Mohammad Irfan.
- Pratip Acharya
