Eviction fears haunt farmers on Yamuna floodplains after DDA demolitions

After 'anti-encroachment' drive in Delhi, displacement of decades-old residents raises questions about the rights of environment and humans

On an overcast April afternoon, a dejected Islam (he only identifies his first name) sits still on a cot at his jhuggi facing a row of tall office buildings. A farmer, who has been living on the riverside for 40 years, next to the ITO bridge over the Yamuna, he now stares at displacement.

The wheat crop he had sown on 10 bighas (6.19 acres) of land was razed by the Delhi Development Authority’s (DDA) bulldozers in February, along with tens of jhuggis or slums on the Yamuna floodplains. Some jhuggis, such as the one where Islam and his family live, are still standing.

“Yahaan park banega, navein chalengi... (A park will be built here, and boats rowed),” he says about the evacuated site, claiming he has been told so by residents of the area.

Ram Prakash, who lives near the Yamuna Bank Metro station nearby, is in a similar situation with many families who were neighbours until recently now no longer there. “Earlier, they (DDA) used to raze farmlands only. Now, they are also removing jhuggis,” he says.

Like Islam and Ram Prakash, many are dreading evacuation. According to a People’s Archive of Rural India report published on the United Nations Development Programme website, the Yamuna floodplains are home to 5,000-7,000 farmers, a majority of whom are rural migrants. They cultivate about 24,000 acres in a stretch of 22 km of floodplains — from Wazirabad barrage to Okhla barrage, the points at which the river enters and exits the national capital. (Those who were displaced have taken temporary refuge in and around Wazirabad.)

Most of these families have been practising agriculture for more than 20 years, but most of them do not own the land — as is the case with Islam and Ram Prakash. A majority of them are sharecroppers or cultivate the land on rent, while DDA owns the land.

Last November, the DDA pasted a notice at the slum where Islam lives.

“The Delhi Development Authority has been directed by the National Green Tribunal to remove all kinds of encroachments from the Yamuna floodplains. Hence, remove all your belongings from DDA’s land in time and cooperate in the developmental work of Yamuna floodplains. Otherwise, you will be solely responsible for the damage caused during the anti-encroachment drive,” the notice reads.

The DDA is undertaking a “restoration and rejuvenation” project to reclaim the encroached land around the river. In the space where Islam grew crops, it planted saplings of the peepal tree to mark it as an encroachment-free eco zone.

DDA officials did not respond to questions sent by Business Standard.
 

Farmers of Yamuna floodplains find buyers for their produce at vegetable markets in places like Azadpur and Ghazipur. A significant part of Delhi’s demand for fruits, vegetables and flowers is met by these farmers.

“During the harvest season, supplies from these areas not only meet Delhi’s demand but some of it is also sent to the NCR (National Capital Region),” says Anil Malhotra, former member of the agricultural produce marketing committee in Azadpur.

Redevelopment plan
 

The 2015 NGT order, cited in the notice earlier, restricted all kinds of encroachments on the Yamuna floodplains and directed the DDA to redevelop the area.

Of the Rs 7,643-crore budget of the DDA for 2023-24, it plans to spend Rs 405 crore for redevelopment of the Yamuna riverfront. Divided into 10 sub-projects, which include creation of biodiversity parks along the river, the project is estimated to cost Rs 928 crore.

“Farming is not a direct threat to the Yamuna but it hinders the functioning of floodplains,” says C R Babu, professor emeritus at Delhi University’s Centre for Environmental Management of Degraded Ecosystems and a member of a committee set up by the NGT to monitor the redevelopment of the river.
 

“When you farm there, you are taking up all the wetlands. That means the land cannot store floodwater, a large amount of which will flow downstream,” he explains.

Babu, who has played a significant role in conceptualising the creation of biodiversity parks in Delhi, also flags the use of fertilisers and pesticides by farmers as it pollutes the river.

Conflicting rights
 

The restoration of the Yamuna has been complicated by two conflicting ideas. On the one hand, environmental concern has led the authorities to take action. On the other hand, it has posed a threat to the safety and livelihood of those living there for years.

Anagha J, programme officer of the Delhi-based Housing and Land Rights Network, reflects on the latter. She says that the farmers are being evicted arbitrarily and their crops are being destroyed. She suggests that the authorities knew about the “encroachment” for many years as the residents have documents like voter ID cards and driving licences. “So, they have a claim at the place. But their claim is not being recognised,” she says.

The Delhi Slum & JJ Rehabilitation and Relocation Policy, 2015, says that slum dwellings that came up before 2015 “shall not be demolished without providing alternate housing”.

“The process is there. There should be a survey (where eviction has to be carried out), then the eligibility (for alternate housing) should be determined and then eviction (should be carried out). But the due process does not get followed,” says Anagha.

She argues that there are many reasons for pollution, including industrial effluents, but the farmers bear the biggest cost.

Babu, however, says that industrial pollution is not the main contributor as there are not many industries in the city. “The serious problem is the discharge of domestic sewage into the river.”

Finding a common ground
 

This tussle over environment and human rights has converted into a legal battle as the Yamuna evictions have been challenged in different courts in the city.

However, there remains a common ground to explore for all stakeholders.

Babu says that the wetlands in the biodiversity parks can be used for pisciculture to create livelihood opportunities for the affected farmers. “This expert committee has recommended this to the NGT.”

Dev Pal Maurya, a law student tracking the legal cases related to the eviction and associated with Project Eka Foundation, a not-profit organisation in Delhi, says that instead of fruits and vegetables, the farmers can be allowed to grow flowers on the floodplains as there is a good demand. Their services can be used in maintaining the biodiversity parks as well, he adds.

“The narrative of environment vs human rights does not really serve our purpose,” says Anagha, stressing the need to devise solutions that are agreed upon by all.

For now, the farmers are not very hopeful. “All these jhuggis will be razed,” Ram Prakash says. His family has not sown anything this season, while the children have stopped going to school. Asked about his plan for the future, he says: “Everyone finds ways to survive. We will too.”