In Gujarati, this is known as the Gujarat Khet Kamdar Union, and was the second issue-based group set up by Disha. It was formed in 1988 to address issues of employment, backwardness, and overall development of the communities in which they lived. This trade union was started in the Sabarkhanta district, where its main office is now located, and has expanded to cover most of Gujarat. This union is comprised primarily of Scheduled castes, other backwards classes (OBC) and tribals. This union takes up claims of non or lesspayment of wages, under share-cropping, harassment against the workers by their employers, awareness building about mechanisms through which their labor is exploited, education about laws protecting their rights, and education on how to obtain government benefits from schemes designed to help them. In 1997, the Gujarat Agricultural Laborers Union won a campaign for the provision of multi-purpose identity cards which served as proof that an individual was indeed an agricultural laborers, and thus availed farmers to receive the benefits of government welfare schemes. They have been lobbying for policy changes (submitting memos, demonstrations and rallies), and have been working on their health care and education.

Total annual Membership of Agriculture Labour Union is 85,000.

DISHA successfully campaigned for multi-purpose identification cards that verify individuals to be agricultural labourers used in order to confirm that services and programs designated for agricultural labour are administered to the right people; an estimated 40 lakh labourers will eventually benefit.

 
 
 
A poster made by a forest dwaller depicting tribals protest against illegal felling of trees and taking away the wood
 

Until 1996, the agricultural labour minimum wage was a pitiful Rs. 15 per day. Our lobbying led to a daily wage of Rs 34 in 1996, and the state has made an informal announcement to raise that to Rs. 53. We are fighting an ongoing campaign to raise the daily minimum to Rs. 73, the amount necessary for a family of four to survive.

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