Hans News Service Bengaluru

Theagitation against the proposed Bidadi Township project intensified on Thursday as farmers in Bhairamangala village of Bengaluru South district launched a symbolic “blood protest,” declaring they were willing to shed blood but not part with their agricultural land.

The protesters pricked their fingers and dropped blood on the township layout map, raising slogans of “We will give our blood, not our land.”

Farmers and women participants demanded that the state government immediately withdraw the township proposal, warning that they would intensify the agitation if their concerns were ignored.

The protest received a major boost with the participation of former Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde, who expressed solidarity with the agitating farmers. At the protest venue, he drafted and submitted a memorandum urging the government not to acquire agricultural land forcibly in the name of development. Addressing the gathering, Justice Hegde said he had ignored medical advice to stay indoors because he could not remain silent while farmers were protesting on the streets.

He stressed that no development was possible without protecting agriculture.

“Artificial Intelligence cannot feed people. If agriculture declines, the country will face serious consequences in the future,” he said.Hegde also criticised the destruction of lakes and green spaces for urban expansion, questioning the government’s valuation of mature trees at Rs 40,000 without considering the decades required to grow them.

“Governance means understanding the pain of farmers. Taking away their livelihood and asking them to do some other work is not development,” he said. He assured the protesters that he would continue supporting their movement and urged the government to protect farmers and fertile agricultural land before pursuing large-scale development projects.