Mysuru: The agitation against the proposed Nimhans hospital near Gudumadanahalli on the outskirts of the city entered its 220th day on Monday, with farmers intensifying their protest against the state govt’s land acquisition plans.As part of the demonstration, farmers staged a symbolic “broom and pestle protest” to express their anger against the state govt, accusing it of ignoring their repeated appeals.The protesters said they never consented to the establishment of a Nimhans hospital on their agricultural land. They alleged that neither Mysuru district minister Yathindra Siddaramaiah nor any govt official visited the village to hold discussions with the affected farmers despite the prolonged agitation.“We have been protesting for 220 days, but no one has come to hear our grievances,” the farmers said. They maintained that their families had been cultivating the land for generations and had regularly paid taxes to the govt.The farmers argued that the proposed site consists of fertile, irrigated agricultural land that serves as their primary source of livelihood. They urged the govt to identify barren or non-agricultural land instead of acquiring productive farmland for the hospital project.“Our land is the foundation of our survival. We will not allow anyone to take it away. Even if it costs us our lives, we will not surrender our land. If the govt wants to build the hospital here, it will have to do so over our bodies,” the protesters declared while voicing their resentment against the state govt and the district administration.Speaking on the occasion, Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha district president Hosur Kumar said the proposed Nimhans facility should not be established in a green-belt area with assured irrigation facilities. Displacing farmers who have cultivated the land for decades would be unjust, he said, urging the govt to relocate the project to a more suitable site.
