Bengal: After 5 Days of Rail Blockades, Kurmis Pause Agitation for ST Status
The Wire Staff
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Kolkata: Protests by members of the Kurmi community demanding Scheduled Tribe status are reported to have been withdrawn early on Sunday, September 25, ending a five-day rail blockade at two stations in Adra and Kharagpur divisions.
Kurmis had first taken to rail and road blockades in Bengal and neighbouring states on September 20, demanding Scheduled Tribe status and inclusion of the Kurmali language in the Eighth Schedule of the constitution.
The agitation had led to the cancellation of more than 250 express and passenger trains.
Local media has reported that talks between the Purulia District Magistrate Rajat Nanda and Backward Classes Welfare Department secretary Sanjay Bansal led to the protesters under movement leader Ajit Prasad Mahato ultimately deciding to withdraw the protest.
Ajit Mahato told reporters that the Bengal government had agreed to correct an alleged error in the Cultural Research Institute's 'Ethnographic Study Report' to the Union government. The report is understood to have critical bearing on the grant of ST status to Kurmis and was sent by the state government (through the CRI) to the Union on September 23. Community protesters, however, pointed out alleged inaccuracies in it and had been urging for their correction.
Ajit also said that the withdrawing of the protest did not mean that the larger agitation would end, and urged that no state action be taken against the protesters.
However, Times of India has reported that, Rajesh Mahato, the head of the protests at Khemasuli, said he and the protesters with him did not know of what transpired at the meeting and no letter had been issued by the state government correcting the errors in the CRI report.
As a result a stalemate continued. As many as 21 trains were cancelled afresh on Saturday as a result and chaos ensued at Kustaur on Saturday afternoon.
On Sunday morning, the news agency PTI reported that the blockade was over, with South Eastern Railway officials confirming that all trains would ply again.
"The 123-hour-long blockade at Kustaur and Khemasuli stations since 4 am on September 20 was withdrawn at 7 am on Sunday. The blockade severely affected train services in Kharagpur and Adra divisions, inconveniencing thousands of passengers every day," an SER official told the news agency PTI.
In Jharkhand and Odisha, the blockade of railway tracks was lifted on Tuesday itself.
In addition to cancellations, trains were short-terminated or short-originated, and several others had to be diverted via alternative routes.
These primarily affected the Purulia, West Medinipur and Jhargram districts.
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