Woman of Steel

By Kalpana Sharma

The State of Jharkhand, that mineral rich southern part of the former State of Bihar, which was hived off into a separate State in 2000, has become famous recently for the achievements of Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the Indian cricket captain who seems to be on a permanent winning streak.

But Dhoni is not the only remarkable individual from this State. In the wake of the 26/11 terror attack on Mumbai, when the media was understandably concentrating on developments surrounding that tragic incident, a woman from Jharkhand was honoured at a ceremony in New Delhi. This went virtually unnoticed. She is not part of the glitterati, the "beautiful people" who seem to dominate our television screens these days. She will not be invited to television chat shows to give a sound byte. She will not feature on the front pages of our magazines and newspapers.

Yet, this exceptional 44-year-old tribal woman, a journalist and an activist, could probably teach even Mahendra Singh Dhoni a lesson or two about how to fight back even when you are down and everyone expects you to lose.

Worthy recipient

Dayamani Barla was chosen for the Chingari Award for Women Against Corporate Crime 2008. The award itself is remarkable because it has been instituted by two women who took on one of the biggest corporations in the world, Union Carbide in 1984 after one of the worst industrial disasters killed thousands of people in Bhopal. Rasheeda Bee and Champa Devi Shukla won the Goldman Environmental Prize in 2004 for their work in Bhopal to get justice for the victims. Instead of using the sizeable award money for their needs as they could have given that they were victims of the gas disaster, they decided to invest it in a trust that would recognise each year a woman struggling on the same issues as them.

In Dayamani Barla they have found a worthy recipient for the award. Like Rasheeda Bee and Champa Devi, Dayamani knows the cost of fighting against the powerful. Born in a village in Gumla district of Jharkhand to a landless family, Dayamani's father was forced to give up his house to usurious moneylenders when she was still young. Her mother had to find work as a domestic in Ranchi and Dayamani had to work to supplement the family income from the age of nine. But she also continued to study, and worked to support her family by giving tuitions and typing, at the rate of Rs.1 per hour. Many children under such circumstances would have given up education. But Dayamani persisted and cleared not just high school but even university. She did her Masters in Commerce from Ranchi University and went on to be an award-winning journalist and author. She was clear from the start that she wanted to use her pen to give a voice to those who are otherwise not heard.

There are many lessons one can learn from the struggles and lives of women like Dayamani. Currently, she is leading the fight against Arcelor-Mittal's plans to set up a giant steel plant in Jharkhand. Why should she oppose industry that will create jobs in her State? Because she believes that the price that the tribals pay when they are displaced from their lands cannot be compensated through a few jobs or money. "Natural resources to us are not merely means of livelihood but our identity, dignity, autonomy and culture have been built on them for generations," she is reported as saying. She believes that the location of such a huge plant will adversely affect the forests and water sources in the region.

Dayamani honed her skills for such a struggle when she joined the tribal groups opposing the Koel Karo dam in the 1990s. The dam would have submerged 66,000 acres and displaced 135,000 tribal families from their lands. Because of their determined struggle, the plans to build the dam were finally shelved.

Relevant journalism

As a journalist, she has used her pen to write about not just the injustices meted out to tribals resisting efforts to displace them, but also to expose the corruption in several government-run schemes like the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme. Here fake muster rolls allow contractors to claim money on behalf of the poor. Only vigilance by local groups or by the media can ensure that the scheme actually serves the purpose for which it was designed. Through her writing, primarily in the newspaper Prabhat Khabar, Dayamani has set a standard for the kind of relevant journalism that is rare at a time when celebrity and sensation dominate all media.

In Jharkhand as in other tribal dominated States, while State governments are busy signing deals with industries and mining companies to barter away tribal lands, the local people are organising resistance to these projects. The winners and losers in these struggles could well shape the future of economics and politics in this country. These battles represent an opportunity to devise a process of development that is inclusive, that is environmentally benign, that acknowledges the rights of people who have cared for the forests and the rivers, and that ensures that even if there is industrial development, it is not at the cost of these irreplaceable natural resources and vulnerable lives.

So as 2008 ends, I would like to salute women like Dayamani, for reminding us that there are other ways to "develop" and that it is possible to fight peacefully but with determination for your convictions.

Source: IndiaTogether

Tripura tribal parties oppose proposed wildlife sanctuary

Agartala: Tribal political parties in Tripura Monday launched a statewide agitation against the Left Front government's move to evict thousands of villagers for creating a wildlife sanctuary.

The Indigenous Nationalist Party of Tripura (INPT), a political ally of the main opposition Congress, organised protest rallies and demonstrations in 18 tribal dominated places across Tripura.

'More than 100,000 tribal people in three sub-divisions - Gandachara, Amarpur and Ambassa - in southern and northern Tripura would be displaced from their homes if the wildlife sanctuary is created,' said Rabindra Debbarma, INPT general secretary.

'The respective sub-divisional magistrates have already issued notices to the 1,200 tribal residents of 19 villages to submit details of their lands,' he told journalists.

The tribal wing of the main opposition Congress and some other smaller parties also have threatened to oppose the government's move. About a third of Tripura's 3.5 million people are tribals.

'The tribal people were earlier evicted from their homes and lands when the Dambur hydel project was commissioned in south Tripura in 1974 from the three hill ranges - Atharamura, Kalazhari and Bhagaban tilla bordering Bangladesh,' Debbarma said.

Tripura Forest Minister Jitendra Chowdhury, however, denied any such move for creating a new wildlife sanctuary.

'We are planning to create a 'Critical Habitat Area' for the elephants and a few other endangered wild animals in southern and northern Tripura. The latest census has shown that the elephant population has gone up from 38 in 2002 to 59 now,' Chowdhury said.

The minister said: 'In the past four years, 519 cases of 'man-animal conflict' have been registered and the move is aimed to raise the animals' vegetation and fodder and help in their conservation.'

'The government will not evict a single family. Only some tribe-wise regrouping is likely to be done,' the forest minister said.

Veteran tribal leader Dinesh Debbarma, also the general secretary of the Congress' tribal wing, said: 'The Left Front government is once again conspiring against the poor tribal people to evict them from their home lands.'

Adivasis to launch party on 4th January

Guwahati: Adivasis in Assam are finalising plans of floating a party of their own on January 4, encouraged by the electoral success of parties that represent specific communities.

The idea of a party, however, took shape more from disenchantment with established parties, especially the Congress, than the lure of electoral gains.

Since the community plays a decisive role in several Assembly constituencies, particularly in the tea belts of Upper Assam and the north bank and in lower Assam, Adivasi leaders feel they can cause maximum electoral damage to established parties.

Reeling under decades of underdevelopment, the tea tribes have been up in arms demanding Scheduled Tribe status and gradually shifting their loyalty from the ruling Congress, which the com- munity had been stead- fastly backing since Independence.

With the Assam United Democratic Front, the Bodo People’s Front and the Autonomous State Demands Committee showing electoral might, the Adivasis, too, feel that they have a fair chance as a political power.

Barring any last minute changes, the party will be launched at a convention of the community’s various associations, convened by the Adivasi Council and supported by the All Adivasi Students Association of Assam (AASAA), at Biswanath Chariali in Sonitpur district.

Though the convention will deliberate on various issues, the formation of the party will dominate the proceedings.

The president of the All Adivasi Students Association of Assam, Justin Lakra, said the launch plans were in the final stage.

“A political party for the Adivasis had become imperative for securing the welfare of the community, used as a vote bank by political parties, mainly the Congress, which has always been trying to suppress our community. Senior community leaders have failed to deliver. The Tarun Gogoi government has not been able to do anything for Assam. We will rectify the situation. The party will be launched on January 4 and it will have a national character,” Lakra said.

The government, in fact, recently announced several welfare schemes for the community in an effort to appease them but that does not seem to have cut much ice.

David Horo, general secretary of the Adivasi students’ union, said: “We (Adivasis) need to unite and we need a party instead of leaders for deliverance. See what the AUDF or the Bodo parties have achieved with their MLAs. Like them, we also want to hold the key to governance to get a fair deal. Given our population, which would be around 80 lakh according to government estimates, we are in a position to play a critical political role in the state. In fact, we are seriously thinking of contesting Tezpur and Mangaldoi Lok Sabha seats. We know we can’t win in all seats but we have the vote to damage winning candidates,” Horo said.

The tribe’s resentment against the government was evident from Saturday’s 24-hour bandh called by the Birsa Commando Force, which is in ceasefire with the government since 2004, to protest the killing of three of its cadres in Udalguri on December 21.

The Adivasis are also unhappy with the manner in which the 2007 Beltola violence was handled.

Besides the Birsa Commando Force, Adivasi students’ union and the Adivasi Council, the Adivasi Mahila Samiti, Adivasi Sewa Samiti, Orang Mahasabha, Kuruk Mahasabha, Santhal Sabha and Munda Mahasabha are among the groups which are likely to join the convention.

“The proposal to float a political party enjoys our full backing and barring last-minute changes, it could materialise on January 4,” Horo said.

The Assam Tea Tribes Students Association (ATTSA) will also participate in the convention if invited, its president Prahlad Gowala said.

Source: The Telegraph

Hundreds join Adivasi rally to mourn youths - Birsa Commando Force chief warns Dispur not to ignore the community’s silence

Dhubri: Hundreds of Adivasis converged from neighbouring districts to join a rally that was taken out from Choibari tea estate in Dhubri district this morning to mourn the death of two youths killed in an encounter with the army in Udalguri three days ago.

The silent procession snaked through areas in the vicinity, including Chapor town, Chapor police station, Bahalpur and Rangamati before culminating in the cremation of the two youths.

The three cadres belonging to the militant Birsa Commando Force, which is in a ceasefire with the government since 2004, were killed in the encounter on December 21. The outfit has called a 24-hour statewide bandh on Saturday in protest against the killings.

“The rally passed off peacefully. There was no sloganeering, no beating of chests, nor threatening gestures. But it was clear from the body language that Dispur can ill afford to remain indifferent to the demands of the community which is feeling let down because of the way the probe into the Beltola rally that turned violent on November 24, 2007 was handled. Besides, there has been no progress on the Scheduled Tribe status,” a source said.

The rally was organised by the Birsa Commando Force and Adivasis from all walks of life participated in it.

“We are pursuing peace as we believe in a peaceful resolution of all our demands. We have demanded a CBI inquiry into the killings of the three youths, Rs 10 lakh each to the kin of the dead and the security for Adivasis in the Bodoland Territorial Council areas. The only message we want to send to the government was not to ignore our silence. Members of most Adivasi organisations participated in the rally. A similar procession was taken out in the Baganpara area of Baksa district from where the other killed cadre came from,” Birsing Munda, the commander-in-chief of the Birsa Commando Force, said after the cremation this afternoon.

Though the outfit was circumspect, the president of the All Adivasi Students Association of Assam, Justin Lakra, fumed over the attitude of the government towards his community.

“It is clear that the ruling Congress has hatched a conspiracy to suppress the Adivasi community. How will it explain the killing of these BCF members who were in ceasefire? Is it justified? We have no problem if they go after Adivasi National Liberation Army (ANLA), but why after AASAA or BCF cadres? It is wrong,” Lakra said, conveying the community’s displeasure with the ruling Congress.

Source: The Telegraph

Focus on tribal development

Siliguri: The Darjeeling district administration has asked the departments to expedite development work in the tribal dominated areas of the Siliguri subdivision.

“We have marked 80 backward villages in the subdivision and have started work according to a micro plan drawn up for each village with a view to create a constant source of income,” Surendra Gupta, the district magistrate of Darjeeling, said here today.

“It has also been decided to construct houses under the Indira Awas Yojana for people residing in the gardens. But we are facing a problem in executing the scheme as the management of the tea estates has not provided the no-objection certificates. So far, not a single estate in the Terai has provided NOC to the beneficiaries.”

Gupta said they had informed the problem to Union minister of state for commerce Jairam Ramesh and also to tea board officials. “They are expected to intervene soon,” he added.

Administrative sources said the chief minister, during his visit here earlier this month, had instructed comprehensive development for the tribals through speedy implementation of schemes and disbursement of SC/ST certificates.

“The chief minister had asked the departments working in Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri districts to focus on tribal development to ensure that no further problem like the one in the hills mushroom in these areas,” a source said.

Source: The Telegraph

Rs 4.62 cr for drinking water facilities to primitive tribes

Bhopal: Funds to the tune of Rs four crore 62 lakh will be made available under Conservation-cum-Development Scheme for providing drinking water facility in the areas predominant by Saharia and Baiga primitive tribes during the year 2008-09. The state government has instructed the concerning Agencies that the work of selection of places, where hand pumps or wells are to be dug, through the Gram Sabha.

As per instructions issued by Commissioner Tribal Development Jaideep Govind, Rs three crore 49 lakh 50 thousand will be provided for sinking 466 hand pumps at the rate of Rs 75 thousand per hand pump in Saharia predominant areas. A target has been set for digging 150 wells in the areas predominant by Baiga predominant areas. For this purpose a budged of Rs one crore 12 lakh 50 thousand is being released to Baiga Development Agency. Each well will cost Rs 75 thousand.

It may be mentioned that during the year 2007-08, funds to the tune of Rs once crore five lakh were provided for ensuring drinking water facilities in areas predominant by Saharia and Baiga primitive tribes. Out of these funds, Rs 15 lakh were allocated for sinking 30 hand pumps in Saharia areas and Rs 90 lakh for digging 150 wells in Baiga areas. The state government has also issued instructions for making the progress reports of the fund utilisation within a week.

Source: Central Chronicle

Breach of Land laws in Jharkhand

By Gladson Dungdung

The Chhotanagpur Tenancy Act 1908 known as the safeguard to the Adivasis prohibits the transfer of Adivasis’ land to non-Adivasis, marked 100 years on 11th November 2008. The Adivasis across the state raised their voices for immediate action against breaching of the law as they have already lost more than 22 lakh acres of land since independence. The case of an Adivasi village 'Tetulia' situated nearby the steel city Bokaro in Jharkhand is one of the crucial examples of land alienation through tricks and breach of the laws. The village has lost it identity and now known as Bari Cooperative, where 250 posh buildings have replaced the mud houses and non-Adivasis have become the owners of the land of the Santha Adivasis. 45 Santhal families had been living in the village but their lands were grabbed, they were forced to leave the place and few who survived live in mud houses outside of the cooperative area.

The 'Bari Cooperative Society' was established in 1980 by two property dealers R.K. Singh and B.K. Singh, who approached to the Adivasis with a proposal of establishing a cloth factory and promised them for jobs other than price of the land. Finally, they acquired 50 acres of land from Adivasis in the name of Bari Cooperative but the sad part is they did not even pay Rs 1 thousand per acre as promised. 40 years old Pankisto Manjhi says, "He had been given just 10 kg of rice for 3 acre of land". 60 years old Fagu Manjhi, whose 1.27 acre of land was acquired for the Cooperative given a job of guard in monthly salary of Rs 800 but when the cooperative was closed he was left in isolation. Similarly, Kari manjhi had 9.26 acres of land in which 4.24 acres were taken by the Bari Cooperative and 2.36 acres were captured by migrant Biharis and merely 2.66 acre lands are remaining. He has filed a case in Bokaro Civil Court against the Bari Cooperative in 2006 but nothing has happened yet.

Interestingly, the land was bought in the name of establishing a garment factory but after a few days the factory was closed down and the property dealers constructed posh buildings in the land and sold these to non-Adivasis at the market rate. When the matter was brought out into light, the deputy commissioner of Bokaro, Amrendra Pratap Singh investigated it in 2005 and found that 95 percent buildings were constructed on Adivasis land, which is serious violation of Chotanagpur Tenancy Act, but unfortunately no action has been taken yet. Ironically, 28 years have already passed since Adivasis’ lands were grabbed in the name of garment factory but they are still running from pillar to post for justice and rights.

The Adivasis land alienation is not a new phenomenon in Jharkhand. It had begun during the medieval period but it arose rapidly during the British regime. The British Indian government introduced “Jamindari system” by enforcing the ‘Permanent Settlement Act’ in 1793 which created upheaval in the Adivasi community. Consequently, the series of Adivasis upsurge took place in the state. The Santhals upsurge in Santhal Pargana, Kolh revolution in Kolhan and Birsa Ulgulan in Chotanagpur, which resulted in enforcement of three legislations – Chotanagpur Tenancy Act 1908, Wilkinson’s Rules 1837 and Santhal Pargana Tenancy Act 1949. The prime objectives of these legislations were protection of Adivasis land, traditional self governance and culture. But these laws were seriously violated.

In 1969, the Bihar Scheduled Areas Regulation Act was enforced for prevention and legalization of illegal land transfer and of Adivasis. A special Area Regulation Court was established and the Deputy Commission was given special right regarding the sell and transfer of Adivasis land. According to the provision, an Adivasi can not sell or transfer land to another Adivasi without permission of the DC. When the special court started function, a huge number of cases were registered. According to the government’s report, 60,464 cases regarding 85,777.22 acres of illegal transfer of land were registered till 2001-2002. Out of these 34,608 cases of 46,797.36 acres of land were considered for hearing and rest 25,856 cases related to 38,979.86 acres of land were dismissed.

But after the hearing merely 21,445 cases regarding 29,829.7 acres of lands were given possession to the original holders and rest remains with the non-Adivasis. Further more 2,608 cases of illegal land transfer were registered in 2003-2004, 2,657 cases in 2004-2005 and 3,230 cases in 2005-2006, which clearly indicates that the cases of illegal land alienation is increasing rapidly. According to the Annual Report 2004-2005 of the Ministry of Rural Development of the Government of India, Jharkhand topped the list of Adivasi land alienation in India with 86,291 cases involving 10,48,93 acres of land.

A prominent Adivasi leader and Vice-Chairperson of the National Commission for SC & ST Bandi Oraon has undertaken a study on the implementation of various legislative measures meant to protect illegal transfer of Adivasis lands to non-Adivasis in the State. The study was confined to 15.703 cases registered in the Ranchi Collectorate in respect of Adivasis living in and around Ranchi city. The study reveals that merely 41.46 percent cases were accepted for hearing, 26.82 percent cases were rejected and 31.72 percent cases were kept in pending. But interestingly, out of the hearing cases, actual possessions were given in 96 percent cases.

The non-Adivasis used many tricks for acquiring Adivasis’ land. The best way of buying Adivasis land is get marry to an Adivasi girl and register the land in her name. This trick was widely used by the non-Adivasis. Secondly, many Adivasis surrendered their land to the money lenders after trapped by them through loan. Besides, threatening, coercion and illegal documents were prepared for acquiring land. Authorizing the Deputy Commissioner for land transfer also caused huge loss for the Adivasis as many non-Adivasi officers justified the land transfer to non-Adivasis. In many case, the court also defined the laws in the favour of non-Adivasis. Another major fact is the CNT Act was amended in 1947 for the purpose of urbanization, industrialization and for development projects caused huge deprivation of Adivasis from the land. Finally, these legislations were utterly misused, violated and interpreted against of the Adivasis by the policy makers, bureaucrats and other non-Adivasis.

In these circumstances, how can issue be addressed? The National Advisory Council constituted by the Government of India has sent a recommendation to the government of India on 19th January 2005 has ample provisions to address the issues. According to the recommendation, the state is required to play pro-active role in monitoring the restoration of lands to the Adivasis from the non-Adivasis. The transparency and access to land records (at the village level) to Adivasis in local languages, speedy disposal of cases where Adivasis are involved and oral evidence to be considered where records are not available. All pending land disputes should be settled at the earliest so that Adivasis do not face harassment from non-Adivasis, revenue officials and others. Regular updating of land records, regular Jamabandhi and display of revenue details at the village level. Where lands are restored to Adivasis, the non-Adivasis often obtain Stay Orders from the Courts which has to be obviated. All States with Scheduled Areas should have the prohibitory clause on transfer of lands from tribals.

The council strongly recommends that there should be no displacement of Adivasis for any project (mining, energy or any others) in the Scheduled Areas. The Land Acquisition Act may be amended in line with the PESA Act, 1996 so that the rights of the people are protected in the Fifth Schedule Areas. The setting up of industries in Scheduled Areas without assessing their impact on the Adivasis economy should stop forthwith. No agricultural land or land used for community purposes should be allowed to be transferred or purchased for setting up an industry. At no cost should the laws of the Fifth and Sixth Schedules of the Constitution be considered for amendment to open up the areas for control or ownership by private non-Adivasis individuals, industries or institutions. The honest implementation of legislations and recommendations would be panacea to address the issue.

Gladson Dungdung is a Human Rights Activist. He can be contacted at gladsonhrights@gmail.com

West Bengal tribal development unparalleled: Biman Bose

The West Bengal government implemented the maximum number of developmental projects for the tribal communities in its backward districts, Left Front chairman Biman Bose said Friday while reacting to Trinamool Congress allegation that the state did not implement the centrally funded projects.

"The way we’ve implemented central government funded projects for the betterment of tribals in West Bengal is unparalleled," Bose told reporters here.

On Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee’s allegation that the state did not implement the centrally funded projects for the backward classes, he said: "If the centre had any problem with the functioning, they would have consulted the state government directly."

"You cannot even see that much of development for the backward communities in our neighbouring state Jharkhand, which is considered as a tribal-dominated region in our country," Biman Bose said.

"About 60 percent of the total land reforms, which was distributed among the tribal communities in India, took place in our state," added Bose.

Terming Trinamool supremo’s comment as baseless, Bose said: "One needs to be very careful before passing such comment. If she (Banerjee) has to point a figure at the role of West Bengal government, she must gather proper information on the issue."

Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikash Parishad calls for strike

Siliguri (WB): The Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikash Parishad has called an indefinite strike in the Terai and Dooars from December 15.

The secretary of the Terai-Dooars Coordination Committee of the Parishad, Rajesh Lakra said that the strike has been called to demand the arrest of forest officers who had allegedly set 17 huts of tribal families on fire in Bir Birsa Munda Colony in Malbazar subdivision on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the Additional District Magistrate of Jalpaiguri Navgopal Hira said that an enquiry has been ordered into the setting of 17 huts on fire.

Tribals call off Lalgarh stir

By Sukumar Mahato

Lalgarh/Salboni: Exactly a month after the tribal agitation was launched in West Midnapore's Lalgarh, the Committee against Police Atrocities decided to lift the stir on Sunday. The decision was taken after the state administration agreed to almost all their demands.

Committee leaders Chhatradhar Mahato and Lalmohan Tudu met additional DM R A Israel at Lalgarh police station. After the meeting, Mahato and Tudu announced that the blockade would be lifted and they would accompany district officials when they would go to remove the trees from the roads.

The four-hour meeting ended at 7 pm. The administration reportedly agreed that police would not conduct raids between 6 pm to 7 am and if raids have to be conducted, village chiefs would accompany the policemen. Also, if the inquiry into torture on tribal women being conducted by backward classes welfare secretary R D Meena finds any policeman guilty, then he will have to be punished. The government will also have to pay compensation to the victims. Another demand removal of police camps from the area has already been met.

The administration promised that police would not harass members of tribal organizations, and a block-level monitoring committee would be formed to check torture on tribals. This committee would hold meetings every month. Only two demands that the SP should seek forgiveness and the discussions should be held at Dalilpur were not met.

While the state government was under tremendous pressure to bring the agitation to an end. The Committee Against Police Atrocities, too, was under pressure from the tribals, because the agitation was causing tremendous financial losses to local people as the cultivation of paddy was being hampered.

Earlier on Sunday, before the decision to withdraw the blockade was taken, around 200 armed CPM men wearing masks and black clothes patrolled the area in trekkers and motorbikes and cleared the blockades at Bhadutola, Penchapara, Moupal, Chengshole. They also allegedly ransacked four houses and kidnapped one person named Muroli Mahato.

The operation that continued from 11 am to 4 pm was led by Meghnad Bhuniya, CPM district committee leader, who was arrested last November along with Tapan Ghosh and Sukur Ali from Egra of East Midnapore while returning from Nandigram. Bhuniya told reporters not to take photographs of the gang carrying arms, threatening them that their lives would be at stake if they took and published the photographs.

The Committee against Police Atrocities alleged that "CPM is bringing goons from outside. They have ransacked three houses, and beat up our workers. We have been holding peaceful movement since November 6 and the local people, including tribal and non-tribal people, are supporting our movement. But the CPM has conspired with police to destroy our movement. People will teach them a lesson," said Chhatradhar Mahato.

CPM has taken a new tactic in the area by sending two separate groups one to Belpahari and the other to Salboni. At Belpahari, CPM is reportedly asking villagers to oppose the blockade because it is affecting development work and at night are threatening people disguised as Maoists asking for money and paddy, so that people get frustrated with the Maoists.

Wildlife reserve plan irks Tripura tribals

Agartala: Serious discontentment is brewing in interior tribal hamlets in Kalajhari hill range of Gandacherra and Amarpur subdivisions over the Tripura Government’s move to establish a wildlife reserve. Several tribal hamlets are located inside the forested areas where the proposed wild life reserve would come up.

The State Wildlife Advisory Board in its first meeting early this month, had approved a number of wildlife projects including setting up of a wildlife reserve at Kalajhari-Laxmipur-Dhalagari in Dhalai district and Mukhcherri and New Gomati village in South Tripura district.

Accordingly, more than 400 indigenous families residing inside the earmarked wildlife reserve were served eviction notices by the local administration for taking up the project.

Tribal people of Kalajhari, Laxmipur, Dhalagari, Mukhcherri and New Gomati village committees are at a loss after receiving the eviction notices. They are facing an uncertain future now, said Rabindra Debbarma, INPT general secretary on Saturday.

He said that eviction notices were served to those families who had earler been displaced in 1974 when Dumbur Hydro electric project was commissioned.

Around 50,000 indigenous families will be affected if the government moves ahead with the project, he said.

Strongly opposing the move, Debbarma urged the government to stop any eviction attempt in tribal hamlets at Gandacherra and Amarpur subdivisions.

If the government doesn’t stop the eviction process, the INPT will launch a massive agitation in these two subdivisions, he warned.

Tripura Janajati Jami Punuroddhar Committee (JJPC), a non-political wing of indigenous people also vehemently opposed the government’s move.

The panel has already announced its future course of action to prevent the eviction bid in Gandacherra and Amarpur subdivisions.

We will organize a public rally at Kalagari soon in protest against the move, said Hemanta Uchoi, secretary of JJPC. “We will call a general strike in Gandacherra subdivision if the government doesn’t stop the eviction bid”, he added.

Source: Assam Tribune

Continual Denial : Starvation Death in Jharkhand

BY GLADSON DUNGDUNG
24 November, 2008

The Jharkhand Government uses the naxal violence as a pretext to explain away starvation deaths

The dilapidated houses, scattered utensils, hanging torn clothes, children, barely clad, and the hopeless faces on the men and women are more than enough to reveal the painful realities of Birhors, the tribals residing in Hindiyakala village of Pratapur block in Chatra district of Jharkhand, where nine of them, one after another starved to death just this October.

Malnutrition, poverty and diseases are in the air. Besides, it has no road, electricity, drinking water, school and health facilities. The Birhor families do not get ration and kerosene oil from the ration shops. Their ration cards lay in the possession of PDS dealers. They have not been provided food grain under any scheme since 1998. According to Kailash Birhor, the officials visited the village only after the news of starvation deaths reached them. The Birhors could just about secure one meal thanks to some forest produce.

Political rhetoric followed the news of the deaths. Without conducting an autopsy on the bodies, the district administration cited food poisoning as the reason. The Deputy Commissioner of Chatra, Abu Bakr Siddiqui said, “The Birhors died of food poisoning after consuming wild roots.” One would ask, why autopsy was not carried considering it is a legal requirement. The wild roots form a regular diet of the tribals; they are aware which ones are edible and which are not. The Adviser to the Food Security Commissioner appointed by the Supreme Court, Balram, to look into the starvation death of Birhors, has found that the deaths occurred due to starvation and not food poisoning as claimed by officials of the district administration.

After civil society organizations, media and political parties protested, the state government constituted an investigation committee under the chairmanship of the secretary of welfare department, U K. Sangama and asked the committee to furnish its report within seven days. Soon after the incident, U.K. Sangama said, “The primitive tribes are in great need of government support.” But the sad part is that the investigation team went as far as the block headquarters, eventually returning, citing security concerns. The government officials have always used the prevalence of Naxalites as a major excuse for not going to the remote villages. This time, it was no different.

Ironically, over 20 government sponsored welfare schemes at an annual budget of 50 crores, are being implemented for the primitive tribes in the state but the outcome is nowhere visible. According to the government report, there are 29,06,380 people living below poverty line, 70 percent of them come from the primitive tribes. In 2002, the central government had launched ‘Antyodaya Scheme’, which envisaged providing ration to the poor section of the society, in which the poor are provided 35 kg grain (rice and wheat) at the rate of Rs 3 and Rs 2 per kg every month. After observing the seriousness of the situation, as per the 2004 Supreme Court directive, 55 quintals of grains were allocated for each gram panchayat. The Central Government sanctioned Rs 19.28 crore for Jharkhand in the financial year 2008-2009 under the Antyodaya Scheme but the state government still fails to take the food to the needy.

Consequently, starvation deaths have spread across the state. 35 tribals have already lost their lives within a month due to poverty and starvation. Out of them, 19 died in Chatra district, 4 in Gumla, 3 in Ranchi, 5 in Kodarma, 2 in Godda, 1 in Dumka and 1 in Giridih district. They are mostly from Birhor, Paharia and Savar (also known as Savar Kharia) tribes. Shibu Soren, Chief Minister, Jharkhand, said, “These people have died because of a severe disease not starvation. All the stories have been exaggerated in the media.”

Another alarming factor is the fast-depleting tribal population. The Birhors who were 8083 in 1991 had declined to 7514 in 2001. The Savaria Paharias, 48,761 in 1991 were 31050 in 2001 and the Paharias who were 30421 in 1991 have declined to 20786 in 2001. A Jharkhand Tribal Welfare Research Institute 2002 study shows 9 tribes in the state now constitute merely 0.72 percent from 0.90 percent in 2001. The report reveals that the Hill Khariyas are merely 1625, Birjiyas are 5393 and Birhors are 6579.

The judiciary is serious on the issue of starvation deaths. The Jharkhand High Court said that the state government has not been sensitive enough on the issue of starvation death. The Court issued a show cause notice to the state government on 22 October asking it to furnish a report about the steps taken for containing the starvation deaths and a status report on implementation of Antyodaya scheme in the state. After facing criticism from all the corners, the government has announced to provide free grain to all the BPL families including 45000 tribals at the rate of Rs 2 per kilogramme of wheat and Rs 3 per kilogramme of rice. But one has to wait for the result as the government has not taken any steps to break the nexus of contractors, middlemen and dealers, which is notorious for siphoning off grains meant for the poor.

The fact is the right to live with dignity is a fundamental right of everyone guaranteed under the Article 21 of the Constitution of India and the State is duty-bound to protect it. Anyone dying of starvation is a serious violation of human rights and the State is responsible for it. No wonder the politicians and the bureaucrats make serious effort to brush it off casually.

The lack of awareness, rampant corruption, lack of transparency and accountability are the obvious reasons for the failure of the welfare schemes. The starvation death can not be contained as long as the welfare schemes continue to be milch cows for government officials, dealers and middle men. The need of the hour is for the Gram Sabha to play a proactive role in the distribution of grains and other food items maintaining direct links with the district administration, thereby bypassing the corrupt Block Development Office.

Gladson Dungdung is a Human Rights Activist. He can be contacted at gladsonhrights@gmail.com http://www.indigenousindia.blogspot.com/

Struggle for Survival

By Gladson Dungdung
24 Nov, 2008

The Jharkhand government has signed 98 MoU with several national and multinational companies for setting up 74 steel plants and 24 power plants with the estimated investment of Rs 4,67,240 crore, which require approximately 200,000 acres of land. The government, the Industrialists and the Media are putting hard efforts to convince people by propagating the message that the industrialization is only way to develop the 8 years old Jharkhand therefore the villagers must surrender their land for the development projects, which would provide them jobs, infrastructure and boost the economy of the state. But the Adivasis and Moolvasis are not convinced with the ideas as 70 percent of them still rely on agriculture, forest produces and livestock for their survival. They are resisting against displacement, attacking the company's officials and not allowing them to enter into the villages. Consequently, the government is not able to execute even a single MoU at the grassroots for last 5 years.

There is turmoil against displacement in the state. On 1st of October 2008, the villagers attacked on the Kohinoor steel plant near Jamshedpur, seized 70 trucks and stopped the work. They alleged that after acquiring their agricultural land, the company neither compensated nor gave them jobs as promised and the company is also causing huge environmental affect in agriculture, water sources and public health therefore they would not allow the company to destroy their livelihoods. In another case, the villagers attacked 3 surveyors of Bhushan steel Yusuf Ahmad, Sheetal Kumar and Sahdev Singh when they were conducting land survey near Sarmanda River at Potka of East Singbhum district. The villagers caught them, painted on their faces with cow dung, asked them to eat straw and cow dung, garlanded with shoes and paraded in the villagers on 11 September 08. Somari Hembrom of Roladih village (Potka) justified it by saying, "We had already declared for not giving our precious land to the Bhushan Company but despite of this, these people were measuring our land without informing us therefore they were taught a lesson".

Similarly, the villagers attacked Jupiter Cement factory, beaten the workers and stopped the factory on 11 September 2008 at Kharsawan alleging for violating the land related laws. Recently, the Indian CEO, Project head and other officials of the steel giant Arcelor Mittal were not allowed to enter into the villages in Torpa- Kamdara areas where Mittal has proposes a 12 million ton steel plant. The Jindal Steel, Esser Steel and CESE were forced to leave the proposed areas. The Jindal steel has singed MoU for 5 million ton steel plant with the estimated investment of 11500 crore, needs 5500 acre of land for a steel plant and already has purchased 70 acres of land and the Bhushan Steel has proposed a steel plant with the estimated investment of Rs 10,500 crore. It needs 3400 acres of land for the project and it has bought 90 acres of land. According to the villagers, both the companies have appointed some middle men, who are making false land deeds. Shalendra Mahto of Ghatiduba village said, "The middle men have sold the land of many farmers in the villages to Jindal and Bhushan companies by making false deeds but we are not going to give up our land".

The people's struggle for protection of livelihood resources has spread across the state. Loha Nahi Anaj Chahiye (We want grains not iron), Jal, Jungle aur Jamin Hamara Hai (Land, forest and water belong to us) and Jan denge, Jamin Nahi Denge (We will surrender our lives but not land) are a few overwhelming slogans being raised in the proposed areas of Arcelor Mittal in Torpa-Kamdara, Jindal Steel in Asanbani, Bhushan Steel in Potka, CESE in Shikaripada, Kohinoor Steel in Saraikela-Kharsawan and many other proposed areas. A series of mass meetings, Road blocks and Rallies are being organized in these areas, where thousands of Adivasis and Moolvasis are participating and echoing their voices. The message they want to convey is that ‘they won't give up agriculture land for industry’.

The Bisthapit Virodhi Ekta Manchi, Adivasi Moolvasi Astitva Raksha Manch, Bhumi Sangharsh Samiti, Bhumi Suraksha Sangharsh Samiti, Bhumi Sudhar Andolan, Khutkatti Raiyat Bhumi Sangharsh Samiti, Gaon Ganrajya Parishad, Majhi Pargana Mahal, Bhumi Raksha Gramin Ekta Manch, Bhumi Sudhar Andolan, Creaj Jan Mukti Andolan, Jharkhand Ulgulan Manchi and JMACC are some of the prominent organizations working against displacement in Jharkhand, have cautioned the state government against increasing intrusions of representatives from several industries in villages, registering false cases against anti-displacement activists and threatening the villagers. "Our message is loud and clear that we do not want to give our land for industries", says K.C. Mardi the convener of Bisthapan Virodhi Ekta Manch who played a major role in throwing out the Jindal Steel and Bhushan Steel from East Singhbhum. "Such attempts should be stopped immediately because the conspiracy to snatch our land would cause social unrest in the villages" he added.

According to a young Activist Ramesh Hembrom, the development of agriculture is a need of the hour. He said, "It is more important to boost up agriculture than setting up industries in Jharkhand, as agriculture production in Jharkhand is marginal. If the government provides irrigation and other facilities, local farmers could reap three crops in a year." Dayamani Barla the convener of Adivasi Moolvasi Astitva Raksha Manch, the organization fighting against the Arcelor Mittal at Torpa-Kamdara said, "We will not allow the company to enter into the villages because one can not be rehabilitated after displaced." "The lands belong to our ancestors therefore we will not leave it", she added.

The people's resistance has created upheaval in the state. The Federation of Jharkhand Chamber of commerce and industries had organized a protest march in Ranchi on 15th September, 2008 for condemning the attack on companies, pleaded for filing cases against the anti-displacement activists and demanded protection to the industrialists. The president of the Chamber, Manoj Reddy said, "The chamber opposes such actions against industrialists. We demand to file cases against the culprits and protection for the industrialists." "The political support to the anti-displacement movements should be stopped", he added. After pressure building on the government, 3 criminal cases were registered against 1025 anti-displacement activists under the sections 307, 147, 148, 149, 323, 341, 342, 427, 506 of IPC and 3 of them were arrested but released after the huge people's protest.

The industrial minister of Jharkhand, Sudhir Mahto has assured the Industrialists for providing them protection. "The industrialists will be provided security if they demand. The government is committed for industrialization therefore we will talk to the people and sort out their problems," he said. According to the Chief Minister of Jharkhand, Sibu Soren, the people are afraid of displacement as they had bitter experiences in the past therefore they are resisting against it. He said, "Every one knows what happened after establishment of the Heavy Engineering Corporation at Ranchi, Bokaro Steel plant at Bokaro and Tata Steel plant at Jamshedpur, only the outsiders got the jobs". "We will promote industrialization with the consent of the people, when the industrialists visit villages they should inform the villagers and administration," he added.

The fundamental question is why people do not want to give their land for the Industries and development projects? One would go back to understand the pains and sufferings of the displaced masses, which suggests that after the independence, 1710787 people were displaced after acquiring 24,15,698 acres of their lands for setting up the Power Plants, Irrigation Projects, Mining Companies and Steel Industries in the Jharkhand. In every project approximately 80 to 90 percent Adivasis and Moolvasis were displaced but merely 25 percent of them were halfway rehabilitated and no one has any idea about the rest 75 percent displaced. The benefits of these development projects were only enjoyed by the Landlords, Project Officers, Engineers, Contractors, Bureaucrats, Politicians and outsiders, and those who sacrificed everything for the sake of the "development" are struggling for their survival.

Gladson Dungdung is a Human Rights Activist. He can be contacted at gladsonhrights@gmail.com www.indigenousindia.blogspot.com

Will tribals embrace BJP in Chhattisgarh again?

By Supriya Sharma

The tribal belt in north Chhattisgarh has seen volatile conflict over conversions. And the politician who thrived on it the most was Dilip Singh Judev, once the BJP's star campaigner. He may no longer be as powerful, but the influence of his brand of politics still remains.

"This was a historic moment. No one else has ever laid his moustache at stake in politics. People ask me what am I staking this time, I tell them moustache is not something to stake again and again," said Dilip Singh Judev, BJP leader.

It was flamboyance that in 2003 made Dilip Singh Judev the BJP's poster boy from Chhattisgarh.

His "Ghar wapsi programme," that reconverts Christian tribals to Hinduism, made the BJP sweep 25 of the 34 tribal seats, bringing it to power.

But while the party won, Judev who was caught on tape accepting bribes as union minister lost out.

Within Chhattisgarh, BJP chief minister Raman Singh may have eclipsed Judev. But on his home turf he is still king. It is Judev that decides who gets a ticket from Jashpur, his bastion in the north of Chhattsigarh.

His latest choice is Jageshwar Bhagat, a product of the Sangh's Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram.

"If the Raja asks, one has to obey," said Jageshwar Ram Bhagat, BJP candidate, Jashpur.

Jageshwar Bhagat's obedience would be familiar feudal loyalty, had it not been for the added layer of cultural indoctrination. It's emerged from the encounter between Hindutva and tribals.

It's an unequal encounter that Hindutva tries hard to conceal with images like that of Ram embracing Hanuman."Yes, just like adivasis are being embraced by Hinduism," said Jageshwar.

The question is will the tribals embrace BJP this time as well ?

Tribal Christians contest elections, but Church people skeptical of chances

Raipur: Only 10 of 939 people running for seats in Chhattisgarh state's legislative assembly are Christians, and most of them have little chance of winning, Church people say.

More than 15.2 million people are expected to take part in the voting for the central Indian state's 90-member assembly. Polling is being split over two days due to the limited number of election officials and polling stations.

Two people were killed as violence marred the first day of voting, on Nov. 14, when about 6.4 million people voted to fill 39 seats. The Christian candidates, all members of tribal groups, are running in constituencies where voting is scheduled for Nov. 20. Results are to be announced on Dec. 8.

The Congress party, the state's main opposition, set four slots for Christians among its assembly candidates, while the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP, Indian people's party) nominated only Hindus.

The BJP is considered the political arm of radical groups that want to make India a Hindu theocracy. About 95 percent of Chhattisgarh's 20.8 million people are Hindus. Muslims form about 2 percent and Christians less than 1 percent. Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs are among the smaller communities.

Most Christian candidates are running in constituencies covered by Jashpur and Ambikapur dioceses. Both are in the ecclesiastical province headed by Raipur archdiocese, based in the state capital of the same name, 1,175 kilometers southeast of New Delhi. The most prominent Christian candidate is Ajit Jogi, 62, the state's first chief minister after being carved from Madhya Pradesh in 2000. Like neighboring Jharkhand state, carved from Bihar that same year, Chhattisgarh was established ostensibly to advance the welfare of its significant tribal population.

The Congress party has projected Jogi, a Church of North India member, as its chief ministerial candidate. His wife Renuka is also a candidate with the party.

Ramdev Ram, is contesting under the Congress banner in Lundra, in Ambikapur diocese. His parish priest, Father Bhakti Bhushan Kerketta, says Ram "is sure to win."

Even though Ram does not practice his faith, "he is a Christian at heart and his family members are all practicing Catholics," Father Keretta said. He explained that Ram has kept a distance from his religion "to get into politics" but is popular and supports the Church.

In the last election, in 2003, he lost to a BJP candidate by only 42 votes.

The remaining Congress party candidate, Uttamdin Minj, is a Catholic contesting in Kunkuri, in neighboring Jashpur diocese. The engineer-turned-politician said he aims to change legislation that harasses Christian missioners when they buy tribal land for the Church. "It is a problem for our Christian community. It has to be solved," he said.

Uttamdin, 42, promises to halt the BJP government's move to take over tribal land for industries, which he warns would destroy tribal culture. Instead, he plans to promote "high-tech and agricultural-based" jobs for tribal youths.

However, Church people are skeptical about Uttamdin's chances. Two other Catholics are running as independents in the same constituency.

Father Edmon Bara, Jashpur diocese's public relations officer, thinks the three will split Catholic votes and help the BJP candidate to win instead. The Church wanted Congress to field Apolina Xalxo, a Catholic woman who would have won, he said.

Xalxo told UCA News she rejected an offer from Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (liberation front of Jharkhand) to contest the seat on its ticket. "I didn't want to divide our votes," she said.

That party did, however, nominate some candidates in Chhattisgarh including Congress-rejected Sanjay Tirkey in Pathalgaon, also in Jashpur diocese. A Catholic woman, Hemlata Minj, is contesting the same seat on the Bahujan Samaj Party (common people's party) ticket.

Father Stany Tirkey of Pathalgaon said Church people tried to persuade Tirkey to withdraw to avoid splitting tribal Catholic votes.

A Lutheran, Lalsai Minj, is a candidate of the National Congress Party in Samri, Ambikapur diocese, but Father Solomon Tirkey of Lorangi parish says his chances too are slim.

Communist Party of India candidate Xavier Minj, a Catholic from Jashpur constituency, has little support, said Father Dilip Kispotta, assistant parish priest of Jashpur. Catholics might vote instead for Congress' Vinay Bhagat, a tribal Hindu who supports the Church, he said.

Source: UCANews

Tribals vow to step up protests

Kantapahari/Calcutta: A set of tribal leaders today threatened to intensify its agitation even as another group held a meeting with the administration and promised to withdraw all roadblocks except in Lalgarh, where Maoists are calling the shots.

The People’s Committee Against Police Atrocities, which is spearheading the agitation in Lalgarh and Jhargram, held a meeting with nearly 600 village heads and said the administration would have to concede all their demands. They want the police superintendent to hold his ears and apologise for the arrests and detentions since the November 2 landmine blast targeting the chief minister, and officers to crawl on the ground.

“If our 11 demands are not met, we will intensify our movement,” said Sidhu Soren, its general secretary.

About 5,000 villagers gathered on a field in Lalgarh’s Kantapahari, a Maoist hotbed, this afternoon to hear the outcome of the meeting.

District magistrate N.S. Nigam had called the other meeting with five Santhal organisations led by the Bharat Jakat Majhi Marwa in Midnapore town, about 50km away.

The highest leader of the Marwa, Nityananda Hembram, later said: “We will withdraw the blockades from other parts of Jhargram. But we’ll not speak for the Lalgarh people. We think their demands are legitimate. We want the administration to go there and speak to them directly. Our agitation against police atrocities will continue but we will withdraw the blockades.”

There are doubts, however, on how much influence these leaders have on the agitators. On November 14, Marwa leader Munshiram Murmu was beaten up when he tried to persuade a group to lift a blockade in Jhargram town.

“The movement is now being controlled by Maoists,” said Nirmal Jash, the inspector in charge of Jhargram.

“The Marwa leaders have no control on those on the ro- ads. The agitators’ initial de-mands, to release the three schoolboys held after the Salboni blast and removal of the Lalgarh inspector-in-charge, were promptly met. Now they have placed a series of absurd demands, including release of all tribals arrested in the past 10 years. They want to make Lalgarh inaccessible to the administration and create a free-zone.”

Residents said Maoists were roaming freely in Lalgarh in the absence of security forces. “A week ago, they came under the cover of darkness, sometimes wearing masks. Now, they organise campaigns during the day,” said Sundar Murmu of Bansber village.

Deputy superintendent Shyamal Ghosh, now posted at Lalgarh police station, said: “The large area that includes Belpahari, Banspahari, Lalgarh, Binpur and Shilda has become a free-zone for Maoists. We can’t go even 500 metres from the police station because of the roadblocks.”

CPI (Maoist) state secretary Kanchan said in a statement today: “We are with the people of Lalgarh. The chief minister will have to apologise in front of the people for torturing tribals in West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia.”

Addressing a civic poll rally in Howrah this evening, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee accused “a section of people” of misleading the tribals. “Who is going to benefit by digging up roads and exploding mines?” he asked.

Source: The Telegraph

Five tribal kids die after taking milk and snack at school - Tragedy on the eve of children’s day

Ranchi: At least five tribal boys have died after consuming milk and snacks in a government-run residential school in Jharkhand, the tragedy unfolding on the eve of children’s day and certain to impair the trust that persuades parents in backward belts to educate their wards.

The age of the children could not be ascertained till late tonight but the youngest studied in Class II and the oldest in Class VIII.

As many as 68 children fell ill at Rajkiya Adivasi High School at Bero, 45km from Ranchi, this afternoon, half an hour after they had milk along with beaten rice (chira) and banana.

Police said they were investigating whether the milk was contaminated because some students complained of an odour. But RIMS doctor J.K. Mitra said: “Nothing could be said about the nature of the poison before proper examination by the toxicology department.”

A doctor in Delhi said the speed with which the children began to fall sick pointed to a poisonous substance rather than an infection.

“Something that made them extremely sick within half an hour is more likely to be a poison than a bacterial infection,” said Ambrish Mithal, a senior consultant endocrinologist in New Delhi. “But sometimes toxins produced by bacteria may be already present in food and gross contamination may cause symptoms fast.”

Twenty-four critically ill students were admitted to the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Ranchi.

The five victims — as Sunder Bhagat (Class VIII), Sikandar Oraon (Class II), Jackson Minz (Class VIII), Vineet Oraon (Class V) and Jugeshwar Oraon (Class VIII) — died while they were being taken to the hospital. Five more were being treated at the intensive care unit tonight.

Hostel superintendent Yugeshwar Sahu, who also suffered food poisoning, has been admitted to the same hospital in a critical condition.

The children who had consumed the milk and snacks around 4pm fainted either on the premises of the school, established to promote education among tribals, or near a river where some had gone to play or relieve themselves.

Karamchand Bhagat, a Class X student, said: “Out of 248 students, around 140 had lined up for the milk. Some threw the milk after detecting a foul smell, while some stored it in their room to take it after dinner.”

The school provides gram and jaggery as breakfast at 6am and a lunch of rice, pulses and vegetables at 9.30am. After the 4pm snacks, a dinner of rice, pulses and vegetables is served at 6.30pm. Paneer and eggs are on the menu once a week.

Making food available in schools is one of the key features of India’s efforts to promote education. Despite some criticism, the mid-day meal scheme — it has no link with today’s tragedy — is considered successful in drawing children to schools and keeping them there.

M.S. Bhatia, the Ranchi senior superintendent of police, said the milk suppliers would be arrested.

“The Milk was supplied by some local suppliers. Usually 40 litres of milk are purchased every day but 30 litres were supplied today. Apparently, something was wrong with the milk and we have started an investigation,” he said.

Chief minister Shibu Soren has ordered the suspension of all teachers of the school. Sources said the teachers had fled the school.

The government has announced Rs 1 lakh for the relatives of the children who died. However, as it is a residential school, few parents live in the vicinity and little information was available on their whereabouts.

Source: The Telegraph

Salwa Judum may stay in Bastar after polls

By Mohuya chaudhuri

Just before the assembly polls in Chhattisgarh, there are more security personnel than candidates campaigning in Bastar. The mood is low key and listless in this election.

Except for district headquarters like Jagdalpur, it is hard to say that voting will take place in few days.

Maoists have called for a boycott of the elections. The fear is so great that no one travels beyond 10 kilometres from urban centres. Posters cannot be put up or pamphlets distributed. Two BJP leaders who didn't listen ended up brutally murdered.

Even the man who set up Salwa Judum to fight Naxals says it isn't worth taking the risk.

"No one is going into the interiors. I am on their hit list so I don't want to take any chances. Why go to sensitive areas?" said Mahendra Karma, Congress candidate.

The fight is no longer between the Congress and the ruling BJP. The CPI offers a strong challenge as well.

But the surprise element this time is the dreaded Salwa Judum, a civilian peace movement that is tarnished by its own brand of violence. Though launched by Congress leader Karma, Judum supporters have defied him and are contesting from six out of 12 seats.

The camps, which are their captive voter base are sprinkled all over south Bastar.

For three years now, Salwa Judum has controlled the lives of tribal people in these camps and in villages as well. Though the movement has suffered several setbacks, Salwa Judum leaders still exert a significant amount of influence on people. But will the elections change its fate?

It may not be that easy since the camp population has dwindled from 50,000 to around 13,000 and even those who still remain have turned away from the Judum.

On being asked whether they will vote for Salwa Judum, a special protection officer said, "We will vote for those who will give us benefits afterwards and take care of us."

Even so, the Judum may play spoilsport and split votes, whoever wins the spectre of Salwa Judum will remain.

Tribals seek land act amendment

Ranchi/Jamshedpur: On the eve of 100 years of the Chhotanagpur Tenancy (CNT) Act coming into existence, the tribal organisations in the state advocated amendment in the act besides its proper implementation.

The organisations conceded that the act helped the tribals retain their land, but sought legal rights to sell their plots to tribals from any part of the state. They also advocated scrapping of the Bihar Scheduled Area Regulation Act (1969), which has the provision of legalising illegally transferred tribal lands.

Against the backdrop of industrialisation efforts by several business houses in Jharkhand, who now need land, the tribals want the CNT Act amended so that their lands could not be acquired for industrialisation. They want the state to constitute a committee of experts to draft the amendment.

“Around 20,000 cases of land restoration are pending across Jharkhand at this point of time. This proves that the act has been ineffective in preventing sale and transfer of tribal land across the state,” said Surya Singh Besra, the head of Jharkhand Front and a noted tribal leader.

“Today, the tribal population in Jharkhand stands at just 26 per cent. This will dwindle further if steps were not taken to ensure that the tribal land remained with tribals,” said district head of (youth) JMM Ramesh Hansda.

The CNT Act had come into existence on November 11, 1908. According to the CNT Act provision, a tribal landholder can sell his land only to a tribal person residing under the same police station where the land is situated.

“In 1975, the CNT Act was amended and general land holders were given the right to sell their land to any person from any part of the country. This facility should be extended to tribals as well, as it would enable them sell their land to any tribal from across Jharkhand,” said P.N.S. Surin, a CNT Act expert and a former bureaucrat.

Surin, with other experts, has prepared a formula to amend the act.

Rashmi Katyan, a noted lawyer of Ranchi civil court and an expert of the CNT Act, said: “There is little scope of amendment in the CNT Act to stop land acquisition for public purposes. But other loopholes created by successive amendments can be plugged.”

Meanwhile, several tribal organisations took part in a meeting organised by BIRSA, Ranchi, an NGO, today to discuss the relevance of the act.

“We will be handing over a memorandum to Governor Syed Sibtey Razi suggesting various corrections in the act, which is important in the present day,” said Binit Mundu, the co-ordinator of the programme.

Jharkhand Parha-Raja Mahasamiti, an organisation of tribal chieftains, would also hold a rally here on Tuesday to commemorate the 100 years of the act in Jharkhand.

Source: Telegraph India

Starvation stalks tribals of Jharkhand

By Sandeep Bhaskar

There are reasons to be worried about the tribals of Jharkhand facing extinction.

The death of over a dozen members belonging to primitive tribes, including three children, in a span of past one month, isn’t good news. The incident has kicked up a controversy with social workers attributing eight deaths in Jharkhand’s Chatra district to malnutrition, while the government cites food poisoning as the root-cause.

Now the state government has ordered a probe into the deaths.

Officially, while the death of eight Birhors (primitive tribal group) were registered from Hindiykala village of Chatra, three children died in Jharnakund Birhor Colony in Jhumari Tilaiya block of Koderma district in October. This apart, death of nine Baigas (another primitive tribal group) are reported from Bhitaha village of Chatra and one Birhor from Dumka district.

According to reports, while one Bhitor Birhor (48), a resident of Jhaluhotang village of Silli block, Ranchi district, died due to lack of medical care on October 27, a pregnant Rita Birhor of Lokai Birhor Colony was allegedly turned away from Sadar Hospital in Koderma recently.

However, if Balram —Jharkhand advisor to Supreme Court commissioner of food security N C Saxena — is to be believed, the death of eight Birhors in Hindiykala was due to chronic starvation. Balram has sent a report to the apex court urging it to direct the state government to control hunger deaths among these primitive tribes.

“During the ‘on the spot’ survey, all circumstantial evidences suggest that the deaths occurred due to malnutrition and starvation. Of the 27 Birhor families, in Hindiykala of Pratappur block, only four families had cards under the Anotyodaya Yojana in which foodgrains were shown distributed way back in 1998. While, the mid-day meal in schools and the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) were found to be erratic, hardly any foodgrains were found in the households. Consequently, these people are living on makka (maize) and kanda-gethi (a kind of bitter root),” said Balram.

Dinesh Singh visited Hindiykala as a member of the team led by Jharkhand advisor to Supreme Court commissioner of food security. He observed that the villagers suffered from swelling and oedema. “This is a symptom of acute malnutrition. So, it is high time the government steps in and helps them,” said Singh.
However, trashing the social workers’ reports, Chatra deputy commissioner Abu Bakr Siddiqui said the deaths were due to food poisoning and that it had nothing to do with starvation.

Meanwhile, the state government has constituted a three-member committee to probe the cause of the deaths. The committee headed by the state welfare secretary U K Sangma is expected to submit the report shortly.

Whatever be the committee’s findings, the progressive decline in the population of primitive tribes — especially Birhors, Pahariya and Sauriya Pahariya — is reason for concern. Spread over 24 districts of the state, Jharkhand boasts of having eight groups of primitive tribes. But worse, despite a plethora of schemes, their population is staggeringly low.

While the 2001-census report put the primitive tribes tally at around 2.40 lakh, the population of the three groups Birhor, Pahariya and Sauriya Pahariya declined further from the 1991 census report. As against 8,038 Birhors in the 1991, their population dwindled to 7,514 in 2001, whereas the population of Pahariya and Sauriya Pahariya slipped from 29,256 to 20,786 and 47,826 to 31,050 respectively between 1991 and 2001.

But leading to a startling further revelation, a study conducted by state Tribal Research Institute (TRI) during 2002-03 found the strength of primitive tribes at about 1.90 lakh.

This despite a string of schemes for them in the state, which includes Primitive Tribe Housing (Birsa Awas Yojana), Swarnajayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana, food support programme, direct jobs for educated youth, health and vocational training, Janashree Beema Yojana, Adim Janjati Pradikaran, Adim Janjati Bharat Darshan and Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS). The state government has also earmarked Rs 50 crore specifically for primitive tribes, from an annual outlay of Rs 300 crore for the welfare of all tribals.

Source: Deccan Herald

Poor Indian tribals hail Obama victory as sign of change

Ranchi: Hundreds of tribal people beat drums, fired crackers and distributed sweets in eastern India on Thursday to celebrate Barack Obama's victory as the first black U.S. president-elect.

Tribals are among the poorest and most backward sections of Indian society and say they suffer racial discrimination in a country enjoying an economic boom in some areas.

When news of Obama's triumph reached the state capital of Jharkhand, hundreds in traditional tribal dress thronged to a statue of Mahatma Gandhi, dancing and shouting slogans of optimism.

"The victory of Obama in U.S. election is indication that racial discrimination will end in all forms," Ajay Tirkey, the president of a tribal organisation said.

"This is a historical moment of the world that a black has been elected to president of most powerful country of the world. We hope even India will soon get a black president".

Reporting by Nityanand Shukla; Editing by Matthias Williams and Bill Tarrant

New tribal party formed in MP

BHOPAL: With the Assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh drawing closer, a new tribal political outfit - Aadijan Mukti Sena (AMS) - has been formed to contest elections from the western part of the state.

"We have registered our party with the Election Commission last week with an object to create political awarness among tribals," AMS state President Vijay Narayan Singh said.

The party would field 25-30 candidates from Dhar, Khandwa, Mhow and other places, adding they would announce the name of their candidates in two or three days, he said.

Singh said his party had got leaders from Bhil, Bilala, Korku and other tribes.

He said tribals in the state were being exploited because they lacked political awareness and leadership. Already, two tribal political parties, the Gondwana Gantantra Party (GGP) and its breakaway group Gondwana Mukti Sena (GMS), having a bearing over tribals in eastern MP, are contesting the polls.

In the last Assembly polls held in December 2003, the GGP had won in three assembly segments in eastern MP.

Source: The Times Of India

Eco awareness camp helps tribal children strengthen bond with nature

By D. Radhakrishnan

Udhagamandalam: Thanks to a two-day eco awareness camp facilitated by the Hill Area Development Programme (HADP) and organised by the Departments of Tourism and Tribal Welfare, about one hundred tribal students from various parts of the Nilgiris strengthened their bond with nature.

In the process, the children studying in Standard VI to VIII had a whale of a time.

Concept


In a bid to enhance awareness about the unique ecology of the Blue Mountains among children belonging to the lower strata of the society here and in the plains, the concept was introduced by the HADP last year.

District Adi dravidar and Tribal Welfare Officer K.Ponnuswamy said that the students including 50 girls hailed from tribal communities such as Irula, Kurumba, Paniyan and Kattunayakan.

They were studying in 13 Government Tribal Residential schools in various places including Thengumorahada and Hallimoyar in a remote part of the district.

HADP Assistant Project Director J.Haldorai said that the transport, stay and food for the students were taken care of by the organisers.

The students were accompanied by their headmasters.

Pointing out that on Thursday, they had been taken to Sim’s Park in Coonoor and Dodabetta here, Tourist Officer S.Dorairaj said that they were also given a chance to see the Tea Museum. In the evening, an audio-visual presentation on the environment was made by V.Sivadass, Managing Trustee, Nilgiri Environment and Cultural Service Trust.

Enthusiasm


On Friday, Ooty Lake and the Government Botanical Garden were among the places they visited. From the beginning till the end the tribal children had displayed considerable enthusiasm.

While M. Bommi, a Standard VIII student of the Government Tribal Residential Middle School, Kargudi, near the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve, said that she was thrilled, R.Satheesh hailing from the Kaatunayakan community and studying in Standard VII of the GTR School in Mukkatty said that he was seeing Ooty for the first time. K.Sudha, a Paniyan girl, said that the boat ride had made her very happy.

Kishore, partner of the canteen and amusement park at the Boat House, said that the outing had given him a chance to serve the children belonging to the economically week tribal families.

Headmaster of the GTR School in Mukkatty R.Sekar said that the outing had helped the tribal children get valuable exposure.

Source: The Hindu

20 tribals die in Jharkhand in one month

Despite a plethora of welfare schemes, 20 members of three primitive tribes of Jharkhand have died during the last month.

The government has attributed the deaths to food poisoning while social workers say the deaths occurred due to malnourishment.

In Chatra district alone, 17 members of two primitives tribes have died in two villages, officials say.

In Hindiyakala village, around 210 km from state capital Ranchi, eight members of the Birhor tribe died early in October while nine members of the Baiga tribe died.

Two members of the Birhor tribe died in Koderma district in the last one week while one death has been reported from Dumka district.

"In Hindiyakala, the Birhor tribals died due to hunger. They were not getting foodgrain from the public distribution system for a long time," said Balram, an advisor to a panel appointed by the Supreme Court to supervise the food security schemes in the state.

He also refuted the claim of government officials that the tribals died due to food poisoning.
The Jharkhand government last week constituted a three-member committee headed by Welfare Secretary U K Sangama to assess the situation in the three districts and probe the cause of the deaths.

"We will submit our report to the chief secretary on Friday," said Sangama.

Jharkhand has 30 tribes, of which nine have been declared as primitive tribes. Their population is just 0.80 per cent of the states' 26.90 million population. The state government runs 10 schemes for them, among others, to provide jobs to youth who complete their schooling, food and housing but despite this, the population of the primitive tribes is declining and hunger deaths are reported, officials privately admit.

"We plan the programmes and ensure funds, but the schemes have to be implemented by the district administration," a defensive Sangama said.

"We will ensure free foodgrain for the primitive tribes. All necessary steps will be taken to prevent malnutrition among them," was all that Jharkhand Chief Minister Shibu Soren said when asked about the deaths.

Source: NDTV

Tribal service wins NGO award

Ranchi: A Jharkhand based NGO has been selected for the Swami Rama Humanitarian Award 2008 for its contribution in tribal welfare.

The NGO, Vikas Bharati, would be given a cash prize of Rs five lakh along with a citation at a ceremony to be held in Dehradun on November 13.

The award has been instituted by the Himalayan Institute of Hospital Trust, which runs a post-graduate medical institute and hospital with 700 beds at Dehradun and works for micro rural development, health, education and water management.

A panel of judges headed by former chief justice of the Supreme Court M.N. Venkatachaliah selected Vikas Bharati for its work in remote villages in Gumla and Latehar districts. “The award is an honour for the members of Vikas Bharati, who work tirelessly for the development of the tribals,” said Ashok Bhagat, the secretary of the NGO.

Source: The Telegraph

Tribals pitch for separate identity

Two hundred adivasi leaders assembled in Delhi on Wednesday to demand recognition of their religion in the national census. Tribals worship nature but are often categorized as Hindus or slotted under other religions by census enumerators.

With a population of over 8 crores, adivasi groups say it's time for the government to recognize "adhi dharma" as a separate religion.

The group will meet the Home Minister on Thursday.

Rameshwar Oraon, Minister of State for Tribal Affairs says: "Adivasis come third after Hindus and Muslims. Yet there is no separate category for our religion. We are put under Hindu or other religion. We demand that a separate column be made for adivasis."

The development comes at a time when reports have come in from different parts of the country, including Kadhmal in Orissa, that tribals are being increasingly categorised as Hindu.

Dr Karma Oraon, head of anthropology department at Ranchi University, says: "This has been going on for a long time now. We should have reacted earlier. But over the last thirty years, we are now coming together and fighting to save our religion."

Adivasis say this is a fight for their religious identity.

Source: NDTV

Just cards, but no jobs for Tribals

Dumka: When job cards were distributed among villagers of Chiharbona under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) in 2006, migrant labourers had started dreaming of a dignified life. But, two years on, their hopes have nosedived.

Reason: the tribal daily wagers of the hamlet never got a job against the card though it is mandatory under the act to provide 180 days of work against the card.

Located around 20km away from Dumka district headquarters, Chiharbona, a typical tribal hamlet, does not have any income-generating opportunities. Lack of irrigation facilities and infrastructure has made life difficult for the residents of the hamlet.

The village, divided into six tolas (localities), comprises Santhals, Paharias and economically weak non-tribals. Most of those living there are daily wagers and many migrate to distant places in search of jobs.

“When 44 people from our village received the job cards in 2006, we thought our fortune would change in soon. But now we are frustrated,” said Sibodhan Marandi, a resident of the village. Suresh Moholi, Marandi’s neighbour, echoed him.

A block worker said that no work had been allotted under NREGA in the village. He 6also disclosed that job cards were not distributed among several villagers due to lack of work.

The frustrated villagers have not thrown away the cards, though. They still have a glimmer of hope.

With cards in plastic covers, several of them are still running from post to pillar to get some job. It’s a different matter that they have no idea when the card would actually establish their right to work.

Babu Dhan Hansdak, a landless labourer of Chiharbona, Premlal Marandi and Dhaneshwar Marandi are still hopeful that one day their cards would fetch them jobs.

Source: The Telegraph

Fanning Communal Fires

BY GLADSON DUNGDUNG
20 October, 2008

Hindutva groups attack a mistake in a Bible translation into a tribal language in Jharkhand

After a successful campaign against Christians in Orissa, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Chhatisgarh, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Kerala, the rightwing Hindutva forces – RSS, VHP and BJP are all busy fanning the communal fire in Adivasi dominated areas of Jharkhand. A hate speech against the missionaries by the RSS chief K.C. Sudarshan at Ranchi on September 14 and the BJP’s huge agitation in the Jharkhand Assembly on the issue of wrongly translated Bible on 22-23 September, was followed by the allegation of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) General Secretary Pravin Togadia, who visited Ranchi on 3 October, that the missionaries were humiliating Adivasis and their Sarna religion in the name of social service. He also justified the violence against Christians in Kandhamal of Orissa. He said, “The violence against Christians in Kandhamal of Orissa and the agitation against church in Jharkhand are the manifestations of the missionaries’ unholy work.”

The rightwing Hindutva groups, protesting the flaws in the translation, have created communal tension in the state. The Sarna Adivasis too are organising a series of agitations against the Church. They burnt the effigy of Cardinal, demanded action against the publisher and ran a smear campaign against the Church. According to Ajay Tirkey the president of the Kendriye Sarna Samiti, the issue will be taken to the villages. “We will fight against it till the culprits are punished”, he said. The members of Sarna Raksha Manch, Karma Oraon and Bahura Ekka are trying to politicise the issue. Karma Oraon said, “The missionaries are working for destruction of the Sarna religion. We are, therefore, campaigning against them as it hurts sentiments the Sarna Adivasis”.

This has provided a golden opportunity for the Hindutva groups to pounce on. The Bible has been translated in Adivasi language “Kurukh” spoken by the Oraon Adivasis the second largest Adivasis of Jharkhand. The “Nemha Bible”, as the translation is called, uses a word “Sarna-tree” in place of “green-tree” in the original Bible. After spotting this error, the Bible Society of India apologised to the Sarna Adivasis and withdrew the books from the market. Secretary of the Society Soma Bhatker said, “The Bible has been translated to the local dialect and 3000 copies were published in demand of North Western Gossner Evangelical Lutheran (NWGEL) Church in 2000. The Society then apologised for the mistranslation and withdrew the book”. Bishop of NWGEL Church Nirdosh Lakra said, “The hurriedly done translation of the first edition would have led to the flaw.”

Although this does not concern the Catholic Church, the Cardinal Telesphore P. Toppo has apologised to the Sarna community for the wrong translation and appealed to the communities to sort out the differences through dialogue. He said, “The matter needs to be sorted out through dialogue and the unity of the Adivasis should not be broken. There are many burning issues in the state that demand the unity.”

A forum of Adivasis, the Jharkhand Indigenous People’s Forum sees the issue differently. According to the forum, the issue of the Bible has been raised deliberately to divide Adivasis on communal lines so as to quell the uprising of those affected by displacement. The Bible was published a long time ago but the timing of the protests with the elections just round the corner raises suspicions about their intentions. The Forum’s president Xavier Kujur said, “The Rightwing wants to divide the Adivasi community so that the MOUs signed by the BJP government can be executed. We should question their intentions.”

The general secretary of the CPI (ML) Dipankar Bhattacharya has demanded the banning of the RSS, VHP and Bajrang Dal for spreading communal hatred.

Observing the seriousness of the matter, Sibu Soren the Chief Minister of Jharkhand has warned the rightwing Hindutava forces against fanning the communal flame in the state. He said, “The state government will ban the VHP and Bajrang Dal attack on the churches takes place in the state.”

In the last monsoon session of the Jharkhand Assembly, the issue of reservation to converted Adivasi Christians was also raised by the BJP, curtailing the proceedings of the house for a couple of days before the Jharkhand High Court judgment that conversion does not lead to a change in social status. The Sangh Parivar had argued that the Christian Adivasis, professing a foreign religion, should not be entitled to reservation.

The communal divisions among the Adivasis were engineered during the regime of the BJP. Sangh Pracharaks and former Chief Ministers of Jharkhand Babulal Marandi and Arjun Munda both claimed that Adivasis are Hindus. Babulal Marandi had justified the claim by saying that 'every one who had links with the Sindhu Ghati (Sindhu Valley) was a Hindu because the word ‘Hindu’ derives its meaning from ‘Sindhu'. Reiterating Marandi's stand, Arjun Munda stated that there are similarities between the Adivasi religion and Hinduism, as Hindu Gods are worshipped in many Adivasi festivals.

Both the Chief Ministers supported the other stalwarts of the Sangh Parivar – K.C. Sudarshan, Praveen Togadia and Dilip Singh Judeo — as they went around spreading hatred among the Adivasi communities in the name of “Ghar Vapsi” (‘homecoming’ meaning re-conversion) and reservation to Christian Adivasis. They distributed trishuls (tridents), idols of Hanuman and Ganesh. The communal passion has already been ignited by the Rightwing in the state but it has stayed away from attacking the Christians, churches and their institutions only because the BJP is not in power.

It is an irony that in a secular state, the political parties use religion to canvass and nobody is bothered. Instead of punishing them, the likes of Babulal Marandi and Arjun Munda are rewarded for dividing people in the name of religion. The people who once occupied Chief Minister’s chair accompany the team that gives out trishuls (tridents), idols of Hanuman and Ganesh instead of providing livelihood and education to the people. It is a political conspiracy to divide and rule the Adivasis.

Gladson Dungdung is a Human Rights Activist. He can be contacted at gladsonhrights@gmail.com

Tribals call meeting after Bible translation attacks their beliefs

Ranchi: In the wake of a controversy following the recent translation of the Bible into a local language Kuduk, a number of tribal organisations have called a Mahapanchayat (large meeting) here Oct 19 to discuss issues related to their cultural identity.

The translated version exhorted people to destroy the trees and the places they worship. The issue had rocked the state assembly. The Bible Society of India has apologised for the error in translation and both the society and the state government have decided to recall all copies of the translated Bible from shops.

'The Mahapanchayat, to be attended by the representatives of seven states, will discuss many issues related to tribal people. There is a conspiracy to end the tribal identity across the state and in the country,' president of Kendriya Sarna Samittee (KSS) Ajay Tirkey told IANS. 'The Mahapanchayat will discuss how the cultural identity of tribals can be protected.'

The meeting will be attended by the representatives from Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Rajashthan, West Bengal and Jharkhand.

'It will also discuss the translated Bible issue and decide our course of action,' said Tirkey. Kuduk is the language of one of the tribal groups who live in Jharkhand.

Source: Indo Asian News Service

No reservation for converted tribals: Tribal body

Ranchi: An organisation representing tribals in Jharkhand on Sunday demanded that reservation facility should be withdrawn from those tribals who have converted to another religion.

They also demanded change in population counting so that the converted tribals are no longer counted under the category of tribals.

"There is strong need to introduce Sarana (as tribals are known in Jharkhand) code so that tribals could be separated from converted ones," Moti Kashap, member of Adivasi Jan Parisad (AJP), a tribal body, said on Sunday.

He said: "There is also a strong need to end reservation facilities to converted tribals. Both measures are required to protect the tribal culture and identity in the state."

AJP members will go to New Delhi to attend a meeting regarding population counting on Sarana code. Tribal leaders allege that in Jharkhand, reservation facilities were being enjoyed by the converted tribals and Saranas are deprived of their rights.

They also demanded a nation-wide ban on translated version of the Bible.

Bible Society of India had come out with a translated version of the Bible in Kuduk language. The translated Bible reportedly says that the places where Sarana's worship should be destroyed.
The issue rocked the state assembly and the state government announced that the book would be recalled.

UNICEF: SCs/STs account for 50% pregnancy deaths

Of the 301 women who die annually for every 1,00,000 live births, there are many stories that go untold. New data suggests that among the women dying during pregnancy, delivery or post-partum complications, a large proportion — about 50% — are from the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes.

According to data collected by Unicef from 16 districts of Rajasthan, West Bengal, Orissa, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh, the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) shows that women are dying of preventable causes of death.

In the first phase of implementation of Unicef's maternal and perinatal death inquiry and response (MAPEDIR), cases of 1,600 women were analysed. While in Dholpur (Rajasthan), 49% of deaths were from SC/STs, in Purulia (West Bengal) of the 375 deaths examined between 2005 and 2008, 51% were from SC/STs.

In Ranchi (Jharkhand), 123 deaths in the last year were examined, of which 56% were from SC/STs and in 8 districts of Orissa — including Koraput, Rayagada, Kalahandi, Nuapada, Bolangir and Sonepur — the percentage of SC/ST deaths was as high as 68. In Madhya Pradesh's Shivpuri district, 60% of the deaths were of SC/STs while in Guna district the figure was 49.4%.

In some states, the MMR was higher that the national average of 301 — 358 in Orissa, 371 in Bihar and 379 in MP. Since many deaths occurred in the anonymity of women's homes or on the way to seek help at a medical facility, they often go unrecorded. An estimated 80,000 pregnant women or new mothers die each year in India often from preventable causes, including haemorrhage, eclampsia, sepsis and anaemia.

"The tragic reality is that too often maternal deaths are not visible. They don't leave any trace behind, and their deaths are not accounted for," Chris Hirabayashi, Unicef India deputy director of programmes, stating that Unicef was committed to continue working with the National Rural Health Mission to promote surveillance as a key strategy to lower maternal and child mortality.

For India to achieve the Millennium Development Goal of reducing maternal mortality by three quarters by 2015, social and economic factors like the low status of women in communities, the poor understanding of families on when to seek care, lack of transport, poor roads, the cost of seeking care, multiple referrals to different health facilities and delay in life-saving measures in rural areas need to be addressed. For the survey, a team of state government health and nutrition officials and NGO members, headed by a member of the local village council, conducted interviews with surviving family members at the community-level.

Source: The Times Of India

De-reservation of SC/ST jobs ends

New Delhi: In a politically significant decision in an election year, government on Wednesday decided to end de-reservation of posts meant for scheduled castes and tribes in central government jobs.

A meeting of the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, approved enactment of a law to enforce job reservation for SCs and STs by stipulating penalties on offices which do not implement them effectively.

Briefing reporters after the meeting, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said the Cabinet gave its nod to enact the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Reservation in Posts and Services) Bill 2008.

"Posts reserved for SCs and STs will not be de-reserved and they (vacancies) will be carried over," he said, adding the proposed bill would contain provisions for imposing penalties on offices which do not implement the job quota.

Source: The Times Of India

Tribal students to rally in Delhi

All tribal students from Manipur and currently based in the capital are all set to hold "massive" rally in New Delhi on October 10 to show solidarity to the Manipur tribal students' demands.

According to leaders of the tribal students based in New Delhi, the October 10 rally will start at 10 am from Jantar Mantar to Parliament Street as a mark of "extending our solidarity to the demands of All Tribal Students Union Manipur (ATSUM) and Manipur University Tribal Students Union (MUTSU) for justice and equality and in condemnation of the brutality of the Government of Manipur in dealing with the democratic aspirations of the tribals".

The New Delhi based tribal students' leaders also said that the October 10 rally is also to demand for a separate "Hill University" for the tribals in Manipur.

The tribal students based in New Delhi strongly condemned the arrest of the student leaders in Manipur on October 6.

Source: The Sangai Express / Newmai News Network