KSIC land row intensifies: Farmers stage protest in Mysuru against stadium plan

Amid growing opposition to the proposed construction of a sports stadium on land belonging to the Karnataka Silk Industries Corporation (KSIC) filature factory at T. Narsipura, members of the State Farmers’ Organisations Federation staged a protest in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office in Mysuru on Thursday, demanding that the project be scrapped.

Opposition to the proposal has grown louder after Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s son and MLC Yathindra Siddaramaiah asserted that a stadium would be constructed on the premises of the KSIC factory despite concerns raised by several sections.

Thursday’s farmers’ protest was led by federation state president Hallikerehundi Bhagyaraj. The protesters raised slogans against the State government and condemned elected representatives and officials over what they termed an attempt to divert land associated with the historic Mysore silk industry.

Shouting slogans such as “Save KSIC” and “Protect sericulture farmers”, the protesters urged the government to withdraw the proposal to utilise five acres and eight guntas of land belonging to the KSIC unit for the stadium project.

Addressing the gathering, Bhagyaraj said the silk weaving factory in Mysuru was established in 1912 by Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar to safeguard the interests of farmers, generate employment and preserve the Mysore silk tradition. Diverting the land for a sports facility would be “anti-farmer” and “anti-labour” and would threaten the legacy of Mysore silk, he alleged.

He said generations of families in Mysuru and Chamarajanagar districts have depended on sericulture for their livelihood. “Income from silk cocoons has sustained families for decades, meeting their needs such as food, clothing, education and employment. Even our forefathers survived on the earnings from selling cocoons. Closing such a factory is unjustified,” he said.

Bhagyaraj urged the government to instead strengthen the factory by allocating a sum of ₹100 crore in the Budget and installing two more machines to generate employment.

He also claimed that the factory site is home to hundreds of birds and more than 550 trees, which could be destroyed if the stadium project proceeds.

In a statement here, he claimed that the Department of Youth Empowerment and Sports has submitted a proposal to construct a 200-metre athletics track along with badminton and kho-kho courts on the land. He also expressed concern that a drinking water pipeline supplying T. Narsipura town might pass through the proposed site.

Demanding that the government drop what they described as an “anti-farmer” and “anti-people” project, the protesters urged the authorities to identify an alternative site for the stadium.

The farmers warned that if the government and district administration proceed with the project, their organisations would intensify their agitation and organise a padayatra from T. Narsipura to the Deputy Commissioner’s office in Mysuru to mobilise public support and protect the KSIC land.