Hello Friends, Let us all participate in this candle light vigil. Also they are organizing hospital cleaning program too (which I mailed in the first week of Sep after our first LMG meeting on Sep 9th).
Block your entire day on October 2nd. I am looking forward for the day. ============================ Our Food, Our Farmers, Our Agriculture Mass Candlelight Vigil on October 2nd, 2007 to support Indian farmers and Agriculture On 2nd October, several concerned citizens and groups across the world are coming together to remind the governments that agrarian distress is not to be ignored, that farmers' suicides are continuing in an unacceptable manner in India and that farmers continue to reel under huge debt burden caused by rising costs of cultivation & living, unremunerative prices due to liberalisation and dismantled public support structures. As concerned and responsible citizens and members of the civil society in Hyd erabad, we request you to lend your solidarity to Indian farmers and our agriculture by joining us in a candle light vigil. When: Tuesday, October 2nd, 2007, 5.00 pm to 7.30 pm- Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. Where: Tank Bund, Near Secretariat, Hyderabad (exact location will be communicated in a subsequent mail). Why: Government of India and state governments have completely failed to protect our farmers' interests. Farmers in India are in extreme social and economic distress. With huge inflation and raising input costs but lesser and lesser price for their produce, Indian farmers are neck-deep in debts and are facing huge socio- economic distress. There are many state policies at the root of this situation that farmers are confronted with. Goal: To let the Government know that we will not tolerate this injustice to Indian Agriculture and the farmers - this is also a message of hope to farmers that some farming community members in the state are finding solutions to the problems confronting them through collective efforts including on establishing ecological farming and that they should all join hands to combat anti-farmer policies. This is also to let the government and the farmers know that urban consumers and concerned citizens have not forgotten the issues confronting Indian farmers and their farming. What can You DO?: Every one of us feels for this cause, so all of us should participate in the vigil. Please bring your candle and any appropriate posters/banners that you have, related to the issue. Our Demands: Ensure regular income support to farmers bring back quantitative restrictions on imports and stop liberalised trade ban GM seeds and chemical pesticides promote & support ecological, agro-diversity based farming prohibit the shift and use of agricultural land to non-agricultural uses including SEZs say NO to corporate and contract farming scrap the Indo-US Knowledge Initiative in Agriculture debt relief to all farmers make food security and food sovereignty a national development priority Caring for those who feed the nation..... We do it because it is "Our Food, Our Farmers". Hope to see you on October 2nd. For more information, contact: Rakesh Kumar Reddy, BHUMI (www.bhumi.in) : 98-854-19012 Kavitha Kuruganti, Centre for Sustainable Agriculture (CSA): 93-930- 01550 Ramanjaneyulu G V, Centre for Sustainable Agriculture (CSA): 93-913- 59702 Thanks Rakesh BHUMI www.bhumi.in weblog: http://rakesh-will-do-it.blogspot.com/ +91 9885419012 -- There are only two options, Either 'you Change' or 'Change the system' I chose the second one!!!!
