KARWAR: Over 3,000 people took to the streets on Friday to oppose the allotment of land on Karwar beach to the Coast Guard. The protest call was given by various organisations, including Karwar Samrakshana Samiti, District Bar Association, Janashakti Vedike, NGOs and other institutions.They came in a procession shouting ‘We want justice’ from the Kali bridge along the national highway and embraced casuarina trees on the beach where the Coast Guard proposes to build its station, before continuing along the main street from Kajubag to London Bridge near the post office, covering a distance of 3.5 km.The agitators staged a Rasta Roko on the national highway for almost an hour.Many teachers, lawyers, political leaders, businessmen, students and fishermen, including women took part in the agitation. Advocate S P Kamat, former minister Prabhakar Rane, Satish Sail, Congress leader, K R Desai of Karwar Samrakshana Vedike, Madhva Naik of Janashakti Vedike, Ganapati Mangre, fishermen leader and others addressed the rally. Rane warned that the people would resort to an indefinite hunger strike if the order was not withdrawn within a month.The demonstrators also submitted memorandum addressed to the President of India, prime minister, Secretary of Defence, CM and the principal secretary (Revenue) t o the Deputy Commissioner.The memorandum pointed out that about 70 per cent of land on the beaches of Karwar taluk had already been acquired for the Sea Bird project, rendering many landless. During the course of acquisition, it was mutually agreed by the district administration and fishermen organisations to preserve the land on Karwar beach being acquired by the Coast Guard as it is for the use of traditional fishermen and farmers.Secondly, the state government had invested crores of rupees for the development of tourism on the beach. The agitators said that as per a state government order dated May 20, 1971, the said land can be granted to departments of the state government in Karnataka only and not to the Central government or private persons.Therefore, granting of land by the then DC to the Coast Guard in 2008 amounted to violation of the GO, they stated.Since the beaches along the coast stretching over 20 km had already been occupied by the Navy, the only beach left for the people is the Karwar beach.Moreover, only 20 per cent of the land acquired by the Navy has been put to use.Obviously there is sufficient land with the Navy in Karwar taluk, where the Coast Guard station can be built, since the Coast Guard also comes under the Defence Ministry.“The Naval base is only two km from Karwar hence there is no need to build the Coast Guard station here,” the memorandum said.
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