The farmers’ front of the All India Forward Bloc (AIFB) on Saturday said that they will sharpen their movement against alleged land grabbing in Howrah’s Panchla block.

Farid Mollah, a farmer leader of AIFB, said the issue would be one of the key points of discussion during the two-day state conference (June 14-15) of the party’s farmers’ wing, that was held in Cooch Behar. “We have repeatedly urged the Howrah District Magistrate to take action against land grabbers, but no steps have been taken by the administration,” he said.

In a letter to the District Magistrate, the local Forward Bloc leaders have alleged that a group of land mafias, with some “administrative backing”, are active in the Panchla area.

“These people are filling fertile agricultural land with fly ash to convert it into highland, making it unfit for cultivating paddy and other essential crops,” the letter claimed.

The party, in its letter, alleged that there is a nexus between land grabbers, anti-social elements, and sections of the block administration, allegedly backed by the ruling party. The letter urged the administration to “excavate a branch canal from Sahpara to Dighirpar and Mallik Bagan to restore irrigation facilities” and allow farmers to resume cultivation. “We urge you to take strict action against the land grabbers and those complicit within the administration to prevent illegal activities in the area,” it read.

Mollah said the trend of agricultural land being encroached upon for real estate and fisheries business is not limited to Howrah. “This is the situation across Bengal. Agricultural land is vanishing, the government is turning a blind eye. We’ll intensify our movement against this,” he said. He criticised the Centre’s agricultural policies, pointing out the absence of a separate agricultural budget. “Central government is anti-farmers. They’re cutting funds for schemes like MGNREGA. We will protest against this too,” he added.