KMSS activists participate in the march in Guwahati on Monday. Picture by UB Photos

Guwahati, Oct. 20: The Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) today began their three-month march to lower Assam districts with an aim to generate public opinion on issues such as flood and erosion, foreigners issue and land rights.

A 200-member team led by its president Akhil Gogoi started the march from its state head office here at 9am today and reached Pacharia village in Kamrup district, about 70km from Guwahati, at 5pm. They organised a meeting in the village and will restart their journey from there tomorrow morning.

“The march will continue for at least three months. We will visit villages and towns in lower Assam and try to understand the genesis of the problems afflicting the region and find out the possible solutions. We are launching this campaign as the issues concerning people in the lower Assam districts have not been properly highlighted in our mainstream political platforms,” Bedanta Laskar, a leader of the peasants’ organisation told The Telegraph.

During the march, the KMSS members will visit villages in Kamrup, Nalbari, Baksa, Bongaigaon, Barpeta, Dhubri and Goalpara districts.

Akhil, while starting the march, said their members would try to garner public support for permanent solution to the foreigners issue, flood problem, rehabilitation of those who lost their land to erosion and giving land deeds (patta) to the landless.

“One of the important focus of our march will be on the identity crisis many Muslims and indigenous people are facing because of largescale illegal migration from Bangladesh. We want a permanent solution to the foreigners issue so that no genuine Indian citizen suffers,” he said.

The KMSS has been leading a campaign for land rights to the indigenous landless farmers, against big dams in the Northeast, corruption in government delivery systems and demanding land to the landless in Guwahati.

The group has also been opposing the conversion of agricultural land for non-agricultural purposes and demanding a new comprehensive land-use policy in Assam.

Hundreds of their members, including its president Akhil, were arrested or detained while staging protests in support of their demands and opposing many government policies.