Villagers had announced event to protest land acquisition for a sport that does not benefit them,say they want industries in the area True to their warning,farmers from villages near the Buddh International Circuit marched to the Formula One race venue to hold a sports tournament of their own on Saturday morning. They were,however,detained even before they could enter the premises. Farmers from villages like Dankaur and Atta Gujran had gathered to hold cricket,kabaddi and athletics events on the F1 tracks as a mark of protest against land acquisition policy of the administration. We spent an hour forming teams and organising the sequence of events. At 11 am,we tried to enter the circuit,but were stopped. We knew that we would not be allowed inside,but had decided that we would begin to play at the spot where they stopped us. However,even before anything could start,they put us in police vans and took us to separate locations, said Nathiram Sharma from Dankaur village and one of the chief organisers of the protest. Sharma said he was part of the group that was first taken to the Dankaur police station. Police said around 30 people were detained and released later in the evening. The security arrangements at the circuit are very tight. Only ticket-holders and authorised personnel can enter. The group tried to force their way in. Since they had already announced what they intended to do,we had no choice but to detain them. Their presence could have led to security problems. We took them to separate locations such as Dankaur,Surajpur,Parsaul and the Police Lines in Noida. Everybody was let off in the evening, said a senior police officer. Organisers of the protest said it was symbolic of how their land had been snatched from them for a purpose that did not benefit them at all. If we had been allowed to play a sport that we were familiar with on the circuit,then maybe the argument that the circuit is for the betterment of sports would have held true. They said we dont have tickets,but we cant afford tickets for a rich mans sport. How will we have the money when the authorities have taken away our livelihood? And since no industries have come up as promised,there will be no employment in the future either, said Sharma.
