Reluctance towards Indigenous language

(In context to Jharkhand)
''Languages are precious storehouses of history, experience and culture; a crucial link between the past and the future'' - Jeanie Bell, Aboriginal Linguist

Language is considered as the cornerstone of culture and the ultimate expression of belonging as it is through language that culture is shared and transmitted. A unique world view is expressed and identity is moulded and recreated. And for the indigenous community language is expressed through prayers, myths, spiritual belief, ceremonies, law, poetry, oratory, or through everyday greetings, conversational styles, humour, ways of speaking to children, or through unique terms for habits, socio-cultural organization and values of the community.
It is sometimes argued that when an indigenous language disappears (when there are no longer any speakers of the language) then the group itself does no longer exist as such which is of course not the case in many instances as of today. There are still indigenous communities who are able to maintain a strong community despite having lost the use of their traditional language and self-awareness as indigenous peoples.
Education is used as an instrument of assimilation in most countries has resulted in the loss of many indigenous languages. There are generations of indigenous people who were taught that their languages are inferior to the national language thus created a negative social stigma of being indigenous as “inferior.” On the other hand, education has also the potential of saving and reviving indigenous languages that are at the brink of extinction as manifested in some countries and territories today. With the empowerment of indigenous movements and recent developments with regards to the recognition of indigenous peoples’ rights at the national and international level, indigenous languages has become an integral aspect of indigenous peoples’ right to culture.
There are 300 to 400 millions indigenous people who speak about 5000 languages in the world wide. And in India there has no major survey done about the count of the tribal languages but it was said that there are more than 270 main dialects spoken. The tribal languages were segregated into three types Dravidian, Sino-Tibetan and Austric. In Jharkhand there are 34 languages or dialects spoken by the tribal groups and non tribal groups. Among the tribal languages 6 have the scripts (Ho, Santhal, Munda, Oroan, Kharia, Bhumij). The Santhali is considered as the official language under 8th schedule.
In order to promote the indigenous language it was made mandatory in the constitution. Under the Indian constitutional mandate under article 350 A, primary education should be imparted in mother tongue. So, the state government is towards the mandate for implementation. The Jharkhand Human resource development had set to implement at the grassroots on indigenous language. It had made compulsory for the teachers to have knowledge of the local language (tribal and non tribal) who were then teaching in Hindi. The students from the government school right from standard I to standard VIII.
The Jharkhand government printed books in five tribal languages for primary school children but failed to appoint teachers on time leading to a wasteful expenditure of Rs 1.05 crore, a CAG report has said. The books were published according to the government’s decision to impart primary education in tribal languages in addition to Hindi in the tribal state. The state’s human resource department had approved printing of books in five tribal languages — Mundari, Kharia and Khuduk in Devnagari script, Santhali in Olchiki script and Ho in Barangchhiti script – for students from Class I to V.
Government neither appointed teachers, who could teach in tribal languages in particular scripts nor these books were made part of the syllabus rendering the cost of printing books wasteful.” Still there is no teacher to teach the language. There has being no recruitment of teachers for the past years. Still in the many areas the teachers were non tribals who do not have the sensitivity towards the indigenous language. Though there are students doing graduate in Indigenous language, but they do not get a space to transfer their knowledge to others.
It is Hindi and English in the primary school which governs. This is the biggest dilemma of the indigenous language that, on one hand it speaks about the promotion and protection of indigenous language and on the other hand it just do not make any appropriate arrangement to make it successful. The government seeks to have bi-lingual education hence, Hindi and English was taught in the primary schools.
The demand for the local language by different groups and a constitutional mandate for the promotion of local language had raised demand for non indigenous language. This is once again is threat to the indigenous language. It can fall into politization by some groups and can completely scarp indigenous language from education. (for instances there were demand for Bengali and Urdu as the second language in Jharkhand) The very word “local language” is not defined properly; it can be the indigenous language or other non indigenous language. In Jharkhand there are non indigenous people residing and they are distributed unevenly all through the area. To advocate for non indigenous language (Bengali and Urdu) is also not wise when we promote to protect the indigenous language.
Again there is another constitutional change going for to have tri-lingual education at the primary education. This will create another kind of confusion in the state as there are many indigenous languages or the local language spoken at different pockets. Suppose if there is Hindi, English and Santhali as the tri-lingual then it might be acceptable in Santhal Pargana but not in Chotanagpur or in Kolhan area. This is because there are fewer or negligible speakers in Kolhan and Chotanagpur area, as the area is dominated by Ho, Mundari, Kurukh speakers. Even in Santhal pargana the indigenous group Paharia and Birhor will be deprive to promote their languages. Again, if Hindi, English and Khorta or panchpargania are considered, then the indigenous language will be deprived. Hence, it is not possible to advocate for any particular indigenous language in the state.
Its is really a threat to the indigenous language if the promotion is not successful through the government, then only Hindi and English will be language for culture expression. Therefore, it is necessary to teach, impart, and promote all the indigenous language of the state. There should be some alternative to promote indigenous language keeping in mind the geo-ethnic specification for instances in Chotanagpur area Mundari and Kurukh to be taught, similarly in Kolhan Ho etc.
The tri-lingual can be a virtual idea in the state of Jharkhand as it gives space for indigenous, national as well as global language. This tri-lingual can be based on the geo-ethnic specification. But, which one to be called as first language, second or third has to be justified. As for the demand from different indigenous groups all over the world, the respective indigenous language has to make as the medium of instruction under the education system. This simply directs Hindi and English are secondary. But, when one reflects to other states the regional language, the respective state language is place first followed by English and Hindi; this is just the reverse in Jharkhand, since it was made to consider Hindi the only language.
How will our education system reserve the indigenous language or whether it will lead to loss? Amidst the global language how these language will able to compete with its naturalness? What is the attitude of the indigenous community to go for protection of their language when there is so much exposure through media and telecommunication in non indigenous language? Not only that when there is demand of global language for capital accumulation. What will be proactive ness by the state government for promotional of the indigenous language. These are the few questions left for debate.
Writer: Jyoti Sonia Dhan

Supreme Court partly upholds tribal law

New Delhi: The Supreme Court, while partly upholding the Kerala Restriction on Transfer by and Restoration of Lands to the Scheduled Tribes Act, 1999, has said the legislation is more beneficial to the tribal people than the 1975 law that was repealed.

A Bench of Justice S.B. Sinha and Justice Mukundakam Sharma partly allowed the appeals filed by the Kerala government against a judgment of the Kerala High Court dated August 24, 2000, to the extent that the 1999 Act repealed the 1975 law relating to agriculture land. However, the Bench held that the State admittedly had no legislative competence to enact legislation in relation to non-agriculture land. While enacting the 1999 Act, the State could not have disadvantaged the persons who held non-agriculture land, having enacted the 1975 Act, and thus could not have repealed a portion thereof. “We, therefore, are of the opinion that to that extent the 1975 Act would continue to be applied.”

Writing the judgment, Justice Sinha said: “The 1999 Act, if given a holistic view, is more beneficial to the members of the Scheduled Tribes than the 1975 Act. If the State contemplated a legislative policy for grant of more benefits to a vast section of people, taking care of not only restoration of land but also those who have not transferred any land at all or otherwise landless, the statute by no stretch of imagination can be treated to be an arbitrary and an unreasonable one.”

“Furthermore, we have noticed that the members of the Scheduled Tribes are educated and we can safely presume that most of them are serving various institutions. We are satisfied that the Legislature of Kerala kept in view the necessity of protecting the interest of the small landholders who were in possession and enjoyment of property which had belonged to the tribal community and at the same time ensured that the tribal people are not thrown out of their land and rendered homeless.”

The Bench said: “Keeping in view the promises made by the 1999 Act, it is obligatory on the part of the State to provide the land meant for the members of the Scheduled Tribes. If they do not have sufficient land, they may have to take recourse to the acquisition proceedings, but we are clear that the State will fulfil its legislative promise failing which the persons aggrieved will be entitled to take recourse to such remedies which are available to them in law.”

Source: The Hindu

Tribals block highway in Darjeeling against Gorkha agitation

Tribals blocked a highway here on Saturday to protest against the frequent strikes called by the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM), an organisation demanding a separate state called Gorkhaland.

Activists of Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad (ABAVP - a tribal group), imposed a daylong road blockade as soon as the GJM suspended the road blockade in their strongholds uphill for 12 hours in their ongoing agitation for Gorkhaland.

The tribals said the GJM agitation disrupted normal life in the Terai region and demanded arrest of the culprits, allegedly belonging to GJM, who killed one of the tribal supporters.

"We want immediate arrest of culprits belonging to GJM who killed our supporter recently. Also we are very much bothered about the frequent strikes called by the GJM. They can carry out their strike in Darjeeling, Kurseong and Kalimpong in any way they like. But in Terai they cannot do anything. This should be immediately stopped," said Rajesh Toppo, Secretary, ABAVP.

Earlier, the GJM, called a halt to project work of the National Hydroelectric power Corporation (NHPC) at Kalijhora.

The GJM says that the closure of the project is part of their movement and a way to put pressure on the Central Government, which they allege, does not pay heed to their demands.

The tripartite talks involving the West Bengal Government and the GJM is scheduled to be held in New Delhi on August 11.

Earlier, the Centre had proposed to hold the talks on August 24, but the GJM wanted it to be preponed.

The last tripartite meeting between the three sides took place on December 29 last year where it was decided to take forward the talks after the Lok Sabha polls.

Source: Sify

Toy making empowers Koraput tribal ladies of Orissa

By Manoj Kumar Das

Tribal ladies in Koraput district of Orissa are engaged in the art of making toys from paper pulp, which helps them to earn their livelihood. A self-help group is engaged in training them in the art. In the past days it was found the tribal ladies relaxing at their homes after lunchtime. Looking forward to financial independence, they can gain some amount of living and which made them to start themselves engaging in toy making profitable business. Tribals found expressing happiness over the fact that they are now able to help their family financially. Now days they are planning to increase their productivity to increase their earnings. It is found the tribals instead of relaxing in the day time after lunch are engaging their time in toy making.

“We have created birds, trees and other things from paper pulp. An artist taught us to make toys from paper pulp and now we are making toys ourselves. We plan to invest some money so that we can purchase more paper pulp to make more dolls,” said Premika, a tribal women engaged in making toys.

The toys highlight the tribal art and culture. A lot of these toys are sold in exhibitions and fairs. It is also found the tribal hand made toys are capturing the Koraput and being a profitable business.

Migrant tribals fuelling Naxalism in Sambalpur

SAMBALPUR: Even though Naxals made their presence felt in the district with the brutal murder of former sarpanch of Tampergarh, Kader Singh, on January 23, 2003, a closer look reveals that the red rebels made inroads into the district in the mid ’80s when tribals from Jharkhand began trooping into the district.

The tribals from Jharkhand began reaching the area in batches through Gurundia block in Sundargarh and made the forests in Jujomura, Naktiduel, Rairakhol and Kuchinda blocks in the district their home. Being forest dependent communities, they cleared the forests and set up habitations there.

Their settlement was formalised when they were issued record of rights (RoR) of the forest land in early ’90s by the then RDC (NR). The settlement of the tribals from across the border helped the Naxals from Jharkhand spread their tentacles because of cultural and linguistic affinity. And soon some of the top Naxal leaders remarried girls from these hamlets to win the confidence of the innocent tribals. With this their effort to raise ‘peoples militia’ got a fillip, experts said.

Such hamlets, inhabited by tribals from across the border, have sprung up in Tampersingha, Meghpal, Jarabaga, Burda, Gariakhaman, Dangapita, Sahajbahal, Katasahi, Patharburda in Jujomura block. Similarly in Rairakhol block some hamlets have been noticed in Hemamura, Beldihi, Pradhanpali, Patakhaman, Hindol, Panchloi, Jamunali, Dangapathar, Girdihikhaman, Goverdhanpur, Sagajuri, Sunamudi and Satyanandpali.

The areas have witnessed a spate of Naxal violences in recent times. The last encounter with the Naxals, which saw sub-inspector Narsingh Mahakud falling to Naxal bullets, took place in Katasahi under Jujomura block.

While three persons were killed in cold blood and four injured by the Naxals in Burda way back on May 27, 2005, four personnel were mowed down by Naxals in Tampersingha and Banjaritikra villages under Meghpal gram panchayat in separate incidents on July 7, 2005.

Another person was hacked to death on the same day in Larabira under Chamunda gram panchayat. Likewise Arjun Dehuri of Talab was killed and his body traced from Makarchuan forest in Gariakhaman on August 9, 2007. While involvement of the tribals from across the border in Naxal activities is yet to be established, sources in police said Naxals enjoy their tacit support and hospitality during their movement in the forests.

Source: Express Buzz

Recruit more tribals in defence: CM to Antony

BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today demanded creation of more job opportunities in the armed forces for tribal youths.

In a letter to Defence Minister AK Antony, Naveen said that more opportunities for jobs should be created to bring the tribal youths to the mainstream of society.

He suggested that more recruitment rallies of the Army should be organised in the tribal-dominated districts of the State.

Taking into account the physical attributes of the tribal youths, Naveen demanded that eligibility criteria on width of chest and height should also be relaxed.

Besides creating more employment opportunities for the tribal youths, this will help in the improvement of their socio-economic status, he said.

Road to end tribals’ woes

Coimbatore: Two thousand four hundred tribal people living in 600 houses and 13 tribal hamlets in and around Gopinari along the Kerala border in Periyanaickenpalayam range may have their long-pending demand met when the administration lays a 2.5-km stretch road connecting Singuli with Anaikatti.

District Collector P. Umanath, District Forest Officer I. Anwardeen and Range Officer N. Panneerselvam met the tribals on Friday and inspected the area where the road needs to be relaid. At present tribals living in Gopinari, Melbhavi, Alankandy, Alankandypudur, Kattasalai, Pattisalai, Colonypudur, Singuli, Moonukuttai, Arakadavu, Kuliyur, Kaaliyur and Senguttai have to travel 13 km to reach a hospital at Anaikatti run by a tribal welfare trust. They have to enter Kerala and then re-enter Tamil Nadu as the existing route passes through Kerala and cross two check posts to get emergency medical help.

The tribals have been demanding that the mud road between Singuli and Anaikatti be made a pucca road so that they could easily reach the hospital without entering Kerala. The new road will reduce the distance to 6 km.

Dr. Umanath inspected the area and as the proposed route was out of the reserve forest boundary, he has asked the Block Development Officer to prepare a proposal for laying a 2 to 2.5-km long road which will end the tribals’ ordeal.

Source: The Hindu

Tribal students given free books, but no teachers to teach

Ranchi: Tribal students in Jharkhand had been given books free of cost in two academic years, but the books remained untouched as there was no qualified teacher to teach them in tribal languages.

The government had in 2003 decided to introduce tribal languages for class I to V and printed books on the basis of manuscripts prepared by the Tribal Welfare Research Institute (TWRI) and distributed them among the students in 2004-05 and 2007-08 on non-returnable basis.

But the students could not utilise the books printed in five different tribal languages in the absence of qualified teachers to teach the languages, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) pointed out in its report ending March 31, 2008.

Printing and distribution of books worth Rs 1.05 crore without the support teaching staff nor making the languages a part of the syllabus resulted in the wasteful expenditure, the report said.

Failure to appoint teachers for teaching tribal languages in particular scripts prior to free distribution of the books defeated the very purpose of promoting education in tribal languages, observed the CAG report.

Similarly, the National Programme for Nutritional Support to Primary Education, commonly known as Mid-day Meals (MDM) also suffered due to inflated enrollment figures, lack of infrastructural facilities, under-utilisation and Mismanagement of funds, according to the CAG report.

Revealing that Cooking fund of Rs 21.92 crore remained unutilised, the report said during the period 2004-08 lifting of food grains against the allotment was short by 24 per cent.

Twelve per cent to 34 percent children were not covered under MDM---this was despite inflated reporting of enrollment and expenditure reported on non-existent Education Guarantee Scheme and Alternative and Innovative Education, the report concluded.

Similarly, the National Programme for Nutritional Support to Primary Education, commonly known as Mid-day Meals (MDM) also suffered due to inflated enrollment figures, lack of infrastructural facilities, under-utilisation and Mismanagement of funds, according to the CAG report.

Revealing that Cooking fund of Rs 21.92 crore remained unutilised, the report said during the period 2004-08 lifting of food grains against the allotment was short by 24 per cent.

Twelve per cent to 34 percent children were not covered under MDM---this was despite inflated reporting of enrollment and expenditure reported on non-existent Education Guarantee Scheme and Alternative and Innovative Education, the report concluded.

Source: Zee News

Enhanced Allocations for Several Tribal Welfare Schemes

In the Budget proposals presented in the Lok Sabha for the year 2009-10, the allocations in respect of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs has been increased from Rs. 1984.16 crore (Revised Estimates of the previous financial year) to Rs. 3220.11 crore. In percentage terms, this indicates an increase of over 60 % over the previous year’s allocations.

There has been a marked increase in allocation for several schemes of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. For instance, allocation for the Schemes of Post Metric Scholarship, Book Bank and Upgradation of Merit of ST students has been enhanced from Rs. 194.90 crore (Revised Estimates – R.E.) to Rs. 217.85 crore. Similarly, the allocation for the scheme for Ashram Schools in Tribal Sub-Plan Areas has been increased from Rs. 30 crore (R.E.) to Rs. 41 crore.

The highest increase however is proposed under Central Assistance for State Plans under which Assistance for schemes under proviso (i) to Article 275 (1) of the Constitution has been enhanced from Rs. 392 crore (R.E.) to Rs. 1000 crore. Under this provision, grants are given to 22 TSP (Tribal Sub Plan) States and four Tribal Majority States for creating critical infrastructural projects in the Tribal Areas for the Welfare of STs and for raising the level of administration of Scheduled Areas in those States to that of the rest of the State, with a view to bringing them at par with the developed areas.

Source: Ministry of Tribal Affairs

Odisha moves to control tribal stir for land rights

Bhubaneswar/Malkangiri: In its efforts to cope with the growing agitation by tribal people in the backward districts of the state and prevent clashes between and tribal and non-tribal people, Odisha government has started initiating a series of measures to implement the laws pertaining to land rights in scheduled areas.

The efforts were aimed at preventing faceoff between tribals and non-tribals in the backward regions and also check the growth of the Maoists in the regions that were witnessing agitation by tribal people for land rights.

In districts such as Malkangiri, Rayagada, Koraput, Nawrangpur and Gajapati, the administration has started taking steps to resolve various types of land disputes, including the cases where land belonging to tribal families had been taken away by non-tribal people.

In Malkangiri district, the administration has decided to start a campaign from Monday to circulate a form among the tribal people and collect information about land rights.

Once the administration gathers data on the grievances of tribal families, particularly those who were landless and or whose land had been taken over by non-tribal people, immediate steps would be taken to solve the issues in question, according a senior administration official.

Thousands of landless families had settled over government land of various categories, including forest land, in Malkangiri and other districts. These people were facing harassment at the hands of the staff of different government departments from time to time.

The state government has also approached the High Court seeking vacation of stay on the implementation of the Forest Rights Act. Once the court vacates the stay, it is believed that the government will be able to grant land right to over 20000 families in Narayanpatna Block of Koraput district alone.

Meanwhile, the tribal agitation for land rights in Narayanpatna has started spreading to other parts of the district with tribal people forcibly cultivating the land belonging to non-tribals. Such incidents have already taken place in Narayanpatna, Bandhugaon and Palur areas of Koraput.

The state government that had been sleeping over the frequent demand of tribal people for land rights for the past several years when the situation went out of its control in Narayanpatna recently.

Source: KalingaTimes

Orissa tribal girl makes it to J-8 meet

The tribal dominated backward Orissa district of Koraput, which had always remained in news for wrong reasons like acute poverty and increasing naxal activities, is in the spotlight now for a completely different reason now, thanks to the achievement of a teenaged tribal girl from a remote village in the district.

Sixteen-year-old Sanjukta Pangi, from Karanjaguda village under Pottangi block, one of the poorest in the country, has been selected to represent India in the J8 (Junior 8) international youth summit, which is currently being held in Italy along with the G8 conclave.

In fact, Pangi, daughter of a small time farmer, has already left for Rome, the capital of Italy, to attend the prestigious conference. Accompanying her for guidance is an official from the district. At the international submit, the young tribal girl will rub shoulders with 56 youth representatives from G8 member countries such as the United States, UK, Russia, Japan, Italy, Germany, France and Canada besides six other countries –– India, China, Brazil, Egypt, Mexico and South Africa.

They will discuss the impact of climate change on the lives of children and young people. If Koraput district officials are to be believed, Pangi, a plus two student at a local college, will be speaking on the impact of climatic change on the lives of the poor tribals in the backward Orissa district.

Pangi, who was selected for the important international youth conclave through a programme conducted by the UNICEF, however, will not be the sole representative from India. She will be accompanied by two other young delegates from Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh.

Source: Deccan Herald

Rs 40 crore for SC/ST development lapsed

Thiruvananthapuram: The Adivasi Maha Sabha (AMS) state committee has said that the State Government has lapsed over Rs 40 crore allotted for SC/ST development in the State during 2008-09.

Addressing a news conference here on Friday, AMS state president Mohan Thriveni and secretary S.Babu said that the LDF Government had curtailed the size of the Plan Fund. They said that by stopping the Bharath Darshan programme, the tribal students had been denied an opportunity to tour the country.

The LDF Government also stopped conducting the youth festival of tribal students, they said. A request for information on the surrender statement furnished by the SC/ST Development Director was turned down by the State Information Officer, they said. The AMS office-bearers alleged that the LDF Government had not included any new project for tribals in the State Budget after it came to power.

The demand for providing medical identity card for tribals was rejected citing the heavy costs involved in it. The Government has not initiated any steps to construct a permanent building for the Post-Matric Hostel in the capital.

The CBSE school at Njaraneeli has not been completed. They said that the Union Government had sanctioned Rs 25 lakh to improve the quality of education of the students. But, this fund was diverted for erecting fencing at the Model School at Kulathupuzha.

When a complaint was raised, instead of probing the corruption involved in it, an inquiry was ordered against the complainant, they said.

While 80,500 tribal families wait for title deeds under the Forest Rights Act, the Government is blocking the project citing lack of fund and staff, they said.

Source: Express News Service

Koraput Tribals launch sanitation drive

Koraput (Orissa): Tribals in Orissa’s Koraput District have launched a sanitation drive to keep their villages clean and hygienic.

‘Sanjog’, a government run programme, was organised jointly by Panchayat Raj department, women and child department, health department and education department at the block level.

Villagers themselves decided to take up the cause of maintaining cleanliness and building toilets.

‘Earlier, tribals were not able to understand how to use toilets and how to clean hands with soap after using them. I tried explaining all these things to them. Now they have understood. Whatever government has done for them it is very good. I am very happy. Now they don’t go out in the open, they visit toilets only,’ said Sabita Pujari, Village Sarpanch.

An awareness rally was organised to educate villagers how to use toilets built for their convenience.

Also, they were educated to wash their hands with soap after going to the toilet or before meals and children were taught to keep their school premises clean.

‘The objective of the programme is to provide water and sanitation facilities to improve the quality of life of rural people of the Koraput district. We have done number of activities. The first was to provide individual toilets at the village level to all households and to cover all school toilets,’ said Sankali Biswal, District Programme Coordinator.

Earlier, poor hygiene and lack of sanitation were causing diarrhoea among children and adults in the region.

Source: SindhToday

Neglect fired up tribals in Kandhamal: report

By Subhashish Mohanty

Bhubaneshwar: People's anger at a district administration that was indifferent to their plight caused the riots in Orissa's Kandhamal district last year, a judicial commission investigating the violence has said. The report was submitted on Wednesday.

The Orissa government ordered the probe after violence erupted after the murder of the VHP senior leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati on August 23, 2008 by suspected Maoists. Former Lok Pal Justice SC Mohapatra was heading the panel.

"Sources of the violence were rooted in land disputes, conversion and re-conversion and fake certificate issues," said Justice Mohapatra in his interim report on the violence which claimed 43 lives and damaged many houses and churches. He did not elaborate on the conversions and reconversions issue.

However, the report also cited how continued the exploitation of tribals and land-grabbing prodded the people of the area. "The riots also happened because the SC/STs suspected 'Pano' dalits of capturing their land by fraud," Justice Mohapatra said.

The tribals were aggrieved when they found out that non-tribals were taking away their jobs by giving false caste certificates. Even though the local administration was aware of this, it did nothing to stop the fraud. The fake certificates were a major factor because it created discontent among the Kandha tribals who constitute 52 per cent of Kandhamal's population.The Commission is silent on the role of the VHP in the violence, though the final report is expected to contain something on this. The report, however, came down heavily on the police for doing nothing to stop the violence.

Justice Mohapatra, who submitted the interim report on July 1, said the government should take steps immediately to take remedial measures. "It will take at least two years to complete inquiry, but the interim report will help the government intervene immediately," he said

Source: DNA

State still indifferent to tribals' woes

By Arnab Ganguly

Amlasole: In 2004, starvation deaths of five Sabars in Amlasole village had hit national headlines. But the state government had scoffed at the reports, describing them as "media hype". Later, it had said that the "deaths were due to malnutrition, not starvation".

Five years down the line, Amlasole is still paying for the state government's arrogance and complacency. And this apathy towards the village, 240 km from Kolkata, continues even after the state government has burnt its fingers over the Maoist siege of Jangalmahal.

Far from reaching out to Amlasole's villagers, the West Midnapur district administration has asked them to traverse the 25-km distance to Belpahari if they want to collect their entitlement of 6 kg of free rice per family. But travelling that distance is something the poverty-stricken tribals can ill afford. So, Amlasole residents held a meeting in the village on Wednesday to urge the BDO to set up a rice distribution centre in neighbouring Kakrajhor, 3 km away.

Moreover, even the word that free rice is being distributed hasn't reached all villagers. Among them are Muna Sabar, her husband Banamali and their five children. "I was down with fever for the past four or five days. But we are in the dark about rice being distributed free," said Muna. The family has ration cards, but is forced to survive on a diet of spinach and other vegetables sans cereals. "How can we buy rice that costs Rs 14-16 a kg. My husband barely earns Rs 40-50 a day, picking leaves and doing other odd jobs," she said.

Menoka Mandi, too, had a similar tale of woe. "I didn't know rice was being distributed free. No one told us," she said.

Though fellow Amlasole resident Gurcharan Munda had heard the BDO's message about distribution of free rice from Belpahari, he just didn't find it worth undertaking the journey. The only way to reach Belpahari from Amlasole is to hitch a ride on a trekker, paying Rs 15 for a one-way trip. "More than one person from each family has to go to carry so much rice back home. Besides paying Rs 30 per head for a round trip, there are attendant costs on meals and tea at Belpahari. The cost of the journey simply makes it uneconomical to collect the free rice," said Munda.

Amlasole isn't the only village the state needs to reach out to if it is to win the hearts of the people in Jangalmahal. Tales of neglect could also be heard from Simulpal, where Shibai Mura said: "I went all the way to Belpahari on Wednesday to collect rice, but was told that the authorities had stopped distribution. I returned empty handed."

Source: The Times Of India

Oraons want Sukhdeo as next Jharkhand CM

By Uttam Mukherjee

Lohardaga: While efforts are on to form a new government in Jharkhand, Oraon tribals see young and dashing Lohardaga MLA Sukhdeo Bhagat as the next chief minister of the state.

They argue that representatives from three out of the four major tribes in Jharkhand have already been given opportunity to serve the people as CM. Now it is turn for Oraons to have an MLA belonging to the tribe as the CM of Jharkhand.

Narayat Oraon, chief of Raji Padha Samiti - the core body of Advasis - said time demands that the Oraons be given the honour to chose Congress' Lohardaga MLA Sukhdeo Bhagat as the most suitable candidate as the chief minister of Jharkhand.

He cited the examples of Madhu Koda from the Ho tribe, Babulal Marandi and Shibu Soren from Santhali and Arjun Munda from Munda tribe who had earlier served the state as Cms much to the pride of their respective tribe.

"Now when efforts are on to form a new government in the state, an MLA from the Oraon tribe be made the CM ," the Padha chief said.

"Sukhdeo Bhagat is the pride of Oraon tribe. Not only is he the most suitable candidate to be made CM, there are other reasons, too. Bhagat is well qualified and a post-graduate from Delhi University. This besides, Bhagat has administrative experience given that he joined politics after resigning as circle officer. In last four years his attitude and sincerity impressed everybody in the Assembly. He is also non-controversial and equally popular among Opposition leaders," Oraon said.

When asked for his reaction, Bhagat said although he respected the sentiments of his tribe, the matter (his becoming the CM) rests with the party leadership and the UPA MLAs.

"I'll abide by whatever decision is taken in favour of the state's progress," he said. On the possibily of government formation, Bhagat said he was optimistic that a new government would be formed by the second week of July.

He, however, made it clear that the government would be formed only in the conditionn that it is Congress-led with the UPA partners and others giving unconditional support.

Source: The Times Of India

Left government neglected tribals in Lalgarh, admits Bardhan

Bringing to the fore fissures in West Bengal's ruling Left Front, alliance partner Communist Party of India (CPI) has said the state was being run as "a one-party government more or less" and the rise of Leftwing extremism in Lalgarh was due to "neglect".

CPI general secretary AB Bardhan, who made the charge, also said that neglecting the cause of tribals in the state had paved the way for the rise of opposition Trinamool Congress in the state.

Participating in CNN-IBN's "Devil's Advocate", Bardhan said West Bengal was being run as "a one-party government more or less" and the lack of consultation with other Left party leaders was one of the failings of the Left government.

On the Lalgarh operation and the reasons for the Maoist upsurge, Bardhan said it was due to "an element of neglect" and in "not undertaking the work that should have been done, particularly in an area inhabited by tribal people".

"There is a need for paying special attention to the tribal people, development and all that," he said.

Asked whether he accepted that the Left government in West Bengal is guilty of neglect, the veteran communist leader said though the government had done a lot for the tribal people, they failed to take the agrarian reforms further.

"They neglected it. Yes, I will say so. If the Left Front government was not failing in some respects, what scope would the Trinamool have? None. Mamata Banerjee or the Trinamool leadership can take advantage of only our weaknesses," Bardhan said.

Bardhan also slammed the Left leaders for their "arrogance".

Asked whether he only had Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leaders in mind when his party said that Left leaders should shed their arrogance, Bardhan said: "Including my leaders also."

"Some of my leaders are also in positions of authority. In West Bengal and Kerala, the governments are the local bodies, anybody who comes to power tends to become a bit arrogant," Bardhan said.

Source: Indo-Asian News Service

Orissa move to restore tribal lands

By Hrusikesh Mohanty

Berhampur: The state government has decided to strictly enforce laws under land reform Act and restore tribals' lands which are at present non-tribals’ possession. The decision comes after the Narayanpatna incident when the Chasi Mulia Sangha, a tribal organization took possession of over 500 acres of land allegedly taken away by non-tribals. The tribals also staged a demonstration at Bandhugaon in Koraput district recently demanding return of their lands.

"We have settled 33 cases and returned about 15 acres of land to tribals in Narayanpatana block by June 10," revenue minister S N Patra said here. He also addressed the media after reviewing the performance of his department in Ganjam and Gajapati districts. The settlement was made between May 10 and June 10.

The clash between tribal and non-tribals in Narayanpatna started over land in May first week. The area was cut off from rest of the country as Maoists blocked the roads.

"Two senior officers have been deputed to settle the cases of tribals in Narayanpatana. They will settle the cases by holding camp courts," the minister said. “Effort are on to settle land disputes in other districts through camp courts,” he said.

The government has asked the people who purchased the land belonging to tribals after 1956 to submit the affidavit showing the reasons of purchase the lands from tribals under Section 22 of the Act. "We have asked the district administrations to examine the records after 1956," the minister said.

Besides, the government has also decided to give patta to tribals who settled in forests under the Forest Right Act. About 30,000 to 40,000 tribals in the state would benefit while 20,000 would be get the jungle land in southern Orissa districts, including Koraput, Kalahandi and Kandhamal districts.

"The government is ready to provide land patta to tribals settled in forest areas as soon as the court vacates the cases," the minister said.

Earlier, the minister asked tehsildars for quick disposal of mutation cases and stress on collection of land revenue, implement other government programmes to provide land to landless families.

Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) N K Sundaray, revenue divisional commissioner (southern) Satyabrata Sahu, director, land records, collectors of Ganjam and Gajapati and tehsildars of both districts attended the meeting.

Source: The Times Of India

Maoist law chokes Lalgarh tribal traditions

Lalgarh: There is a generation divide in the Lalgarh warzone. Most tribal youths have joined the Maoist-led People's Committee Against Police Atrocities (PCPA). Many have joined the guerrilla ranks. They are dictating terms and overruling age-old tribal customs to establish a new, Maoist philosophy-inspired order which this belt has never seen before.

And that's something the elders can hardly tolerate.

The mukhia system, for instance, has been abolished. Instead, the Maoists are laying down the plan of action and the younger generation is only too eager to accept that. The Left radical ideology has more takers than the traditional tribal way of life.

Elders in the tribal community are a very worried lot, as they believe this could harm them on two counts.

First, they point out, the basic tribal issues of poverty, unemployment, water scarcity, education and recognition of their Alchiki language are being ignored as the young men intoxicated by the power of the gun take up arms. Second, when the rebellion is eventually crushed, which they believe is only a matter of time, police could turn ruthless.

"Our young men have gone out of control. They are more interested in seizing power with the help of the gun. They have taken charge of the area and are not willing to pay any heed to our advice. In the bargain, we are not only making police and non-tribals our enemy but also losing out on our traditional sources of income. Our core demands have been pushed to the backburner," said Naren Munda, a village elder near Ramgarh.

The tribal population in the area is largely dependent on the forests, while the rest make a living from the land. The younger tribals, on the other hand, believe that armed rebellion is the only way since they have been ignored and exploited on their own land for generations. With the Maoist rebellion, the tribals of Jangalkhand have got a new-found identity, a sense of belonging where they have been dominated and treated as outsiders, and a position of power which they never enjoyed. They are not willing to give it up even in the face of death.

"This is a fight to reclaim our territory. It was sparked off by police atrocities but now it is a fight for our existence. Tribals had been pushed to the wall and the only option for us is to fight back. This war has helped us win back our self respect," said Shiben, who is leading the charge in a village.

But most elders don't agree with Maoist ideology. Nor do they endorse the armed resistance. "Basic values like respect for elders have been sacrificed. Even religion has lost importance," rued a former village chief.

Police has been trying to use this difference of opinion to win back tribal confidence. In several villages, they have been knocking on doors trying to build a rapport with the locals. A bridge with the tribal population will help to alienate the Maoists, they believe. But tribals have so far not been receptive. It is a weak effort launched a little too late, they believe.

Source: The Times Of India

Koraput headed the Lalgarh way: Tribals look to Maoists for ‘liberation’

By Soumyajit Pattnaik

It’s a similar story, headed for a similar ending. Koraput, an under-developed Orissa district, has been cut off from the world for the last five days and looks in danger of becoming another area “liberated” by Maoists.

Like Lalgarh in West Bengal, before it was won back.

Dispossessed tribals on one side and alleged grabbers on the other are in the middle of a violent battle for land waging in Koraput, which is 560 km from Bhubaneshwar. And no prizes for guessing who is winning.

The administration exists on ground but only just. It has no clue as to how much land was lost by tribals and is able to only hazard a guess about how much has been reclaimed by them through peaceful or not-so-peaceful means.

The tribals don’t bring their complaints to the local administration any more. They go straight to organisations backed by the Maoists. In fact, the tribals are not complaining at all. They simply grab back what was grabbed from them.

“They come and hoist a red flag in our agricultural land, signaling the end of our possession over it. I owned 11 acres of land. Now, I’m hiding in the houses of my relatives,” said Madhusudan Pondu, 72, of Balipeta village.

Both the locals and the administration said Chasi Muliya Adivasi Sangha, an organisation of dispossessed tribals, is spearheading the agitation. But its violent ways are blamed on a more radical section within it.

The targeted non-tribals have no choice but to leave the area completely – an estimated 200 people have left the Narayanpatna block of which Pondu’s Balipeta village is a part, in recent days.

The Narayanpatna area has been completely cut off for the last five days as sangha activists have blocked the main arterial road with trees.

On Thursday, nine personnel of the Orissa Special Striking Force who tried to clear the road were killed in a landmine blast triggered by the Maoists. Now, no policeman wants to go anywhere near Narayanpatna.

The mainstream sangh leaders held a convention on Saturday but the hotheads from Narayanpatna stayed away. One of them, Nachika Ling, a tribal in his 30s, is believed to be leading the radicals.

This is where the Maoists come in — they are believed to be Linga’s chief backers. And this is where the story begins to sound like Lalagarh’s, where a committee of locals agitating against the police took on the state with the help of Maoists.

“The Maoists want the hawks within the CMAS to take over the organization so that they can guide the tribal movement in the manner the Naxals have done in Lalgarh,” said a senior official refusing to be identified.

“Linga is hand-in-glove with the Maoists,” Sanjeev Panda, DIG of Koraput area, told Hindustan Times. “He was arrested before and spent two to three years in jail before he was released on bail.”

Linga and his group are reported to have forcibly occupied hundreds of acres of land and handed them over to the tribals. The group has also damaged nearly hundred houses belonging to alleged “land usurpers”.

But the state hasn’t given up here yet, unlike in Lalgarh. “Presently, 100 CRPF personnel, about 30 men of India Reserve Battalion and one unit of Orissa Special Striking Force are deployed in Narayanpatna,” said police officer Panda.

And they are not leaving.

Not yet.

Source: Hindustan Times

Showcasing tribal art and culture through cinema

By Mahim Pratap Singh

Bhopal: The International Festival of Films on Tribal Art and Culture was inaugurated by Union Tribal Affairs Minister Kantilal Bhuriya at Ravindra Bhavan here on Friday.

Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan, State Tribal Welfare Minister Jagannath Singh and Czech Republic’s Ambassador to India Dr. Hynek Kmoníèek were present on the occasion.

“The Central Government is doing a lot for the tribals all over India through grants and aid to State governments,” said Mr. Bhuriya. Madhya Pradesh has been granted Rs.129 crore by the Centre this year. The Centre also implemented the Forest Act in December 2007 under which the Madhya Pradesh Government has begun giving land rights (pattas) to original forest dwellers,” he added.

The Chief Minister said that for centuries tribals had been pushed to the margins and all development had been taking place at their cost and the Madhya Pradesh Government was doing its best to compensate them for the injustices meted out to them over the years.

“The Madhya Pradesh Tribal Welfare Department, with support of its creative division Vanya, is all set to launch Vanya Radio, a community radio catering to tribals in the State,” said Department of Culture director Shriram Tiwari.

“The launching process is in the final stage of acquiring licences, and once that is done the radio will start broadcasting in a month or two,” he said. The Chief Minister wrapped up his speech fast, lightening the atmosphere with some humour, saying politicians have a knack of talking unstopped once they are given the mike.

“State Minister Jagannath Singh made a great suggestion of organising a tribal Olympics of sorts, with tribes from all over the world participating in competitive sports,” said Mr. Chauhan, humorously adding, “For this I ask Mr. Bhuriya to provide us financial assistance from the Centre, because there is a lot of it there, and we will definitely organise it.”

The Czech Ambassador said the film festival was a commendable effort in that it draws together tribal cultures not just from one country but from all over the world.

“Ours is a small country with barely more people than in New Delhi,” said Dr. Kmoníèek. “India knows us through our cars (Skoda) and our shoes (Bata), but we also want us to be known for our culture and this festival will go a long way in helping us do that,” he added.

Source: The Hindu

Tribals on warpath in Lalgarh

Lalgarh (WB): Hinting at a state within a state, tribal leader Chhatradhar Mahato said his organisation could build infrastructure in just eight months in restive Lalgarh, which the state government could not do in 32 years.

"If the state government had done 10 per cent of the work we did, the situation would have been different," Mahato, Convenor of the People's Committee Against Police Atrocities (PCAPA) said.

"We have laid at least 50 km of gravel path, dug tanks and tube wells and revived irrigation canals with the help of villagers," he said.

Mahato claimed the PCAPA built a 60-feet-deep reservoir at Barapelia, where its headquarters is situated, and planned to revive a canal for irrigation.

A health centre with a doctor was also functioning at Kantapahari, he said.

Though the government built the road to Midnapore town, all link roads were constructed by the PCAPA, he said, claiming that this saved villagers from walking for miles through forests.

Maoists are on the rampage in Lalgarh, in Midnapore district of West Bengal bordering Orissa, targetting CPM cadres and party offices protesting against police "atrocities".

Source: The Times Of India

Tribals up in arm in Koraput, grab land taken over by non-tribals

Bhubaneswar: More than 5000 tribals living in four panchyats under Narayanpatna block in southern Maoist dominated Koraput districts are up in arms. They have forcibly taken over their lands allegedly cornered by non-tribals over a period of time and are demanding immediate change of record of rights into their names.

The situation remains tense as the officials have not yet been able to bring the agitators to negotiating table. On top of it, the tribals have blocked the road leading to Naraynpatna by felling trees, officials said.

The tribals organized under the banner of Chasi Muliya Adivasi Sangh (CMAS) forcibly occupied lands belonging to non-tribals across Narayanpatna block of Koraput district on Monday. A month ago, the tribals were alleged to have killed a 40-year-old man and destroyed hundreds of homes in several villages of the in an offensive - rarely seen in the area for ages. Several harijan families, who left their villages for fear of being attacked are still without shelter and food, according to have yet to return home, according to Mr Ratan Das, who lead a team of social activists under the banner of Orissa Sadbhaban Sahnit Abijan [OSSA] to Naryanpatna last week.

CMAS has been fighting against illegal possession of tribal lands though fraudulent means and other basic facilities from the government. In fact, CMAS leader Nachika Linga had confessed before the CMAS team of restoring 150 acres of land to tribals which had been taken over by non-tribals.

Officials, however, said attempts are being made to restore land to rightful tribal land owners under due procedure of revenue laws. “We have already restored some 20 acres of land to tribals suo motto in just a month’s time. It will take some time to identify the land usurped by non-tribals. We have called CMAS for discussion, but they remain unrelenting”, southern revenue divisional commissioner, Satyabrat Sahu on Wednesday told “The ET” over telephone from Koraput.

Mr Sahu said the government had taken up several development activities as demanded by CMAS.

For the last 36 hours, Narayanpatna has remained cut off from the district headquater while the CMAS had demanded the officials to come to their villages for discussion. As the villages come under Maoist influence, the district officials seem not prepared to fall to their trap.

Sources said some 500 acres in five grampanchyats under Narayanpatna block have been illegally taken over by non-tribals affecting about 5000 tribals. Only 15% comprise non-tribals in the block with a population of 45,000.

Source: Economic Times

First Bhil tribal bishop ordained

Jhabua: The first bishop to be ordained from the Bhil tribal community says he want to "empower" his people "socially, economically and politically."

Bishop Devaprasad Ganawa of Jhabua told UCA News on the occasion of his June 16 episcopal ordination that he wants to take up "a holistic revival plan" for his community with the people's support.

The Divine Word prelate also stressed the need to protect tribal dialects, culture and traditions, as well as fight increasing drug and alcohol abuse that have become part of tribal life.

About 10,000 people, mostly Bhil tribal Catholics, attended the ordination ceremony, with many saying they have high hopes that the new bishop would help them develop as a Church community.

The predominantly tribal diocese in central Indian Madhya Pradesh state, created in 2002, has been without a bishop since its first prelate, Bishop Chacko Thottumarickal, was transferred to neighboring Indore diocese in October 2008.

Archbishop Leo Cornelio of Bhopal led the ordination ceremony, which saw tribal people in traditional dress dancing to the beat of drums. Eleven other bishops, including three archbishops, more than 300 priests and about 500 nuns also attended.

Sharing his elation during the event, Vijay Martin Meda, a Catholic, told UCA News: "Now the tribal people can go and see the bishop directly to share their problems. They will feel that they would get a proper hearing as the bishop knows the community well."

He also said people expect the new bishop to expand education, health care and other Church services "to every remote corner of the diocese, even where there are no Catholics."

Manual Ganawa, nephew of the new bishop and a catechist in the diocese, shared that "we now have overcome the biggest hurdle, the communication gap."

Although the former bishop and other missioners were "doing a good job," several of them failed to see the importance of local traditions and customs as they came from "outside the community," he said.

Father Casmir Damore, a Bhil tribal, echoed this view, saying that the ordination of Bishop Ganawa "is a dream come true for our community,"

Bishop Thottumarickal also told UCA News that a local person heading the Church here is in a better position to identify with people's feelings and sentiments than people from outside the community.

In his homily during the Mass, he noted that a local person becoming bishop "was a real recognition of the aspirations of the people."

Fifty-eight-year old Bishop Ganawa heads a diocese of about 31,000 Catholics in an area which is home to about 4 million people, mostly Hindus.

Presently, 14 of the 61 priests in the diocese are from the Bhil community.

Christianity is more than a hundred years old here with the first parish set up in 1896 in Thandla village.

The Catholic Church created Jhabua diocese out of Indore and Udaipur dioceses so as to better meet the needs of the tribal people.

Jhabua district is considered a backward district in India, having poor health care facilities and a less than 23 percent literacy rate. The district made headlines in 1998 with the rape of three Catholic nuns by suspected members of rightwing Hindu groups.

Since then, the local Church has witnessed a series of attacks on its members. Extremist Hindu groups have accused the Church of using education and health care to attract and convert gullible tribal people.

Source: Indian Catholic

Santhal tribals celebrate 'Baha' festival in Jharkhand

Durgapur (Jharkhand): With the local priest distributing Sal and Mahua flowers to both men and women, and tribals dancing to drum beats, the colourful festival of 'Baha' was celebrated amid traditional gaiety in Durgapur region of Jharkhand recently.

In the three-day long festival, the first day was dedicated to purification. On this day, tribals gather at the spot named 'Jatherthan' (holy grove) in their village and set up an abode for the deity.
Later the priest offers prayers.

On the second day, the tribals once again gather at the 'Jatherthan' singing and dancing, and the priest after offering prayers, performs various rituals in honour of the deity and their ancestors.

The priest later visits all the houses in the village where the women wash his feet and he gives them Sal flowers as per tradition. Sal flowers have a special
significance for the tribals.

The Sal and Mahua flowers with which the priest offers the prayers and performs the rituals, are distributed and we all wear them.

Men tuck these behind their ears while the women adorn their hair with these. We sing and dance to celebrate the Santhal holi. The priest goes from house to house, where women wash his feet, he then gives them the Sal flower. This is our tribal traditional 'Baha' festival, said Lobin Murmu, President, Santhal Samiti, Durgapur.

he third and last day is that of celebration. The tribals also celebrate the 'Baha' Holi, the festival of colours, as part of their traditional heritage.

And throughout the festivities, the priest sleeps on a straw mat on a floor purified with cow dung.

The Santhals are one of the largest tribal communities of India, inhabiting the states of Jharkhand, West Bengal, Orissa, Assam and Bihar. (ANI)

Tribals run hydroelectric power plant in Orissa

Bodomonjari (Orissa): Tribals in Orissa's Koraput district have set up a hydroelectric power station with the help of a self-help group-All India Backward Class Village Development organization here.

"Initially the project was started under the guidance of the organisation but now villagers with their hard work know how to manage the electricity plant.

Now the project belongs to the villagers only," said Hanak Tandi, a member of the project committee.

Today, these tribals are also operating the hydroelectric power station. A committee of 20 villagers has been formed to take care of the management of the project, which generates around 30 kilowatt of electricity out of which villagers currently use 10 kilowatt.

"We provided material like iron, cement and other equipment for the construction of the power plant. The villagers did all the construction work. They did not ask for any wage in return. I believe it is more than Rs. 300,000 now," Tandi added.

"We never thought that electricity would come in our village. We have got many benefits from it. Now with the electricity our kids are able to study," said Madhusudan Tandi, another villager.

Villagers say that previously they were totally dependent on rains for cultivation. But now they get enough water for irrigation from the plant.

Moreover, each family of the village contributes Rs 20 per month for the project management, which is deposited in the bank. The amount will be used to meet the repairing expenses.

Source: NewsTrackIndia

Tribals lose confidence in Bengal govt, turn to Maoists for reforms

By Romita Datta and Aveek Datta

Lalgarh (West Bengal): Madan Sardar gave his two sons, Sanjoy and Pradip, the best education to be had in a small village in West Bengal’s West Midnapore district, and wanted them to eventually move to a big city, preferably Kolkata, and study more.

Sardar, who has always had links with ultra-Left political outfits and is now an activist with the People’s Committee against Police Atrocities (PCPA)—a radical political group backed by the Maoists that has seized administrative control of a large area in West Midnapore district— didn’t initially want his sons to get involved in politics.

But after completing school, Sanjoy and Pradip, 19 and 16, respectively, have decided that they are going to join the “guerrilla movement” of the Maoists. “Very soon, their training will begin at a camp deep inside the forest,” says Sardar, who was initially unwilling to let his sons go, but eventually gave in to their wish. “Even my sons now believe that the only way to bring about reforms is through armed struggle.”

The crisis in Lalgarh, where the Sardars live, intensified in November after the Maoists tried to blow up with landmines a convoy carrying West Bengal’s chief minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, and then Union steel minister Ram Vilas Paswan.
The police detained and allegedly tortured several tribals on suspicion of harbouring Maoists, following which the tribals fought back by driving the police out of Lalgarh. The administration has since not been able to regain control of the area, which is now under the administration of PCPA.

Maoists are fast making inroads into tribal areas in West Bengal’s West Midnapore, Purulia and Bankura districts, where agricultural yield is low, poverty is high and the state government has done little to develop basic infrastructure. Even drinking water in these districts is scarce, say locals.

Under a directive issued by the Union government in 2005, state governments are required to put aside at least 28% of their funds for being spent in backward areas. But in West Bengal, “no department except forests” has been following the directive, according to Jogesh Barman, the state’s minister for welfare of backward classes.
“My department gets around Rs300 crore a year for being spent on backward areas, but if other departments also spent 28% of their funds on these areas, we could have done a lot of things,” adds Barman.

The two key departments of food and health, for instance, should have together spent at least Rs675 crore on helping backward people over the past four years, show budget documents of the West Bengal government, but officials admit almost nothing has been done. On paper, though, most departments comply with the Union government’s directive.

“Is it possible to separate funds for tribals? Is there any tribals-only hospital in the state? So, what could we do? We had no option but to divert funds to hospitals and medical colleges in Kolkata and other towns,” says P.K. Mohanty, joint director of the directorate of health services.

Years of neglect have resulted in people in tribal areas losing confidence in the state government, according to Abhirup Sarkar, a professor of economics at Kolkata’s Indian Statistical Institute (ISI).

“Till 2006, the Left Front had a huge support base among tribals. But since then, its support base among the tribals has vastly eroded,” says Sarkar. “One reason for this alienation is deprivation, and the other, I think, is restrictions imposed by the administration on exploitation of forest resources. These people are largely landless, have no skill or capital to run businesses, and were completely dependent on forests for livelihoods.”

An ongoing study at ISI shows there are at least 1.8 million poor people—or people below the poverty line—in Midnapore alone (the data for the study was gathered before the Midnapore district was split into two).

In Bankura and Purulia districts, which are not as populous as Midnapore, fewer people are poor, but in these two districts as well, rural poverty is as high as 28.5% and 31%, respectively, of the total population, according to Buddhadeb Ghosh, professor of economics at ISI.

In West Bengal, 16.9 million people, or about 28% of the state’s rural population, are poor.

But deprivation and poverty alone didn’t lead to the Maoists gaining a hold on these districts, says Sarkar. “Tribals in north Bengal, too, face similar problems, but they haven’t raised arms against the establishment. The Maoists managed to make inroads into West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia districts because of their proximity to the Maoist belt in Orissa, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh,” he adds.

The Communist Party of India (Marxist), which along with its allies has ruled in West Bengal for 32 years, has after its recent debacle in the general election realized that the state government hasn’t been doing enough in backward areas.

In a recent interview with Mint, West Bengal’s commerce and industries minister and the No. 2 man in the state cabinet, Nirupam Sen, said, “The state government must address certain issues more sensitively, particularly issues facing the tribals, the poor and backward people. In our state, about 50% of the people are backward. We have to understand how best the state government could intervene and help backward people.”

Source: LiveMint

Who pays the price of development?

By Gladson Dungdung

The ‘Kelaghgh dam’ is the most beautiful dam constructed on Chhinda river in Simdega district of Jharkhand situated at a distance of 4 km from the district headquarter. It is the best tourist place in the district with lovely water dam surrounded by multiple hills which attracts tourists very much. There is a plateau in the dam where a small and beautiful park exists. Besides, the district administration provides the facility of motor boating and a hotel is also constructed where the tourists can avail the lodging and food facility. But how many of us really know that this beautiful place is made on the grave of Adivasis (indigenous people)? Their only livelihood resource that was land had been snatched away from them during the construction of the Dam. The promises made for providing jobs, adequate compensation and rehabilitation packages were not fulfilled. The owners of the lands were left to die in the name of ‘development’.

The Kelaghagh dam was constructed in 1980 under the minor irrigation project of the irrigation department of the government with the aim of irrigating land of the Simdega block, where three villages – Bernibera, Bara Barpani and Bhudhratoli completely submerged in the dam with the affected people of approximately 3500. These villages were highly populated by Kharia, Munda and Oraon Adivasis, where they used to practice their interesting tradition and culture.

Interestingly, the project failed to achieve its objective. Presently, the water reaches to only one village – Meromdega and the water supply to Tukupani, Jambahar and other areas was stopped since a long time. Though the irrigation project uprooted the well-off Adivasis of three villages but only one village is being benefited from the project. Secondly, the Simdega Notified Area Committee supplies the drinking water to Simdega town from the dam but the displaced people, those who have been living near by the Dam get supply water neither for drinking nor for irrigating their a few pieces of land.

A village called Bernibera situated at a distance of 5 kilometers in the eastern part of Simdega lost it origin, meaning and identity, which had a historic origin made of two words – Berni and Bera. The ‘Berni’ is the name of an herbal plant, which is used as a medicine to cure fever, and the plant is also used to make a rope. Another word ‘Bera’ is a Kharia (language of Kharia Adivasis) word meaning a big piece of fertile land. Hence, there were big pieces of fertile lands and Berni herbal plants were also in plenty nearby the village therefore the village was named Bernibera. The people of the village used to yield plenty of wheat, paddy and vegetables. But when the dam was constructed the big pieces of fertile lands submerged in the dam and the herbal plants also disappeared from the area.

70 years old Mangaldas Kharia is one of those unfortunate victims of Bernibera village faced displacement while construction of Kelaghagh Dam. His family was well-off as his father (Jakarias Kharia) had 20 acres of fertile land in the village and he was also working as a teacher in a government primary school. He had also purchased another 10 acres of land in a village called Lathakhamhan, where he used to teach is a school with a dream of making a good life for his sons (Mangaldash and Isaac). Since he had two sons therefore he was willing to settle them in two different places so that there would be no chances of any conflict between them. But his dream was washed away by the dam. His land of Bernibera village was submerged in the dam and he was given merely Rs. 11,000 as compensation.

Finally, the family had no option than settling down in Lathakhamhan village, where the family had 10 acres of land. The land of Lathakhamhan village was divided between two brothers (Mangaldas and Isaac), which led to a huge division in the family. Though Mangaldas Khria survived because he got the government job as teacher in the place of his father but his younger brother Isaac suffered the most. Later on Isaac and his wife were brutally murdered and their four kids left the village and living else where. They are still not able to settle down. Thus, a well-off family was destroyed by the development project and Mangaldas Kharia is still fighting for the compensation for the land. He recalls that how women those who were protesting against the construction of dam had been kept in the Hazaribagh Jail for three days in 1980.

The villagers had started protesting against the land acquisition by shouting a slogan ‘No to Dam’ but the protest was stopped when the police atrocity was inflicted on the people. In 2007, the displaced people again started a fight with the government for the jobs and compensation promised during the land acquisition for the dam. 70 Raiyats (land owners) including Mangaldash Kharia have filed a case in Gumla Civil Court claiming for the jobs and compensation for their lands. But the unanswered question is will the justice be delivered to them? They have paid the heavy price for the development but get no opportunity to enjoy its taste. Ironically, the government of Jharkhand has signed 102 MoUs (Memorandum of understand) with the corporate houses for establishment of steel plants, mining industries and power plants without addressing the issues of more than 15 lack displaced masses. Are we still advocating for this kind of unjust development processes in India?

Source: www.jharkhandmirror.com

Five tribals killed, village torched in Assam

Guwahati/Imphal: At least five tribals were killed and several injured Wednesday in an early morning strike by separatist militants who also set ablaze an entire village in strife-torn North Cachar Hills district in southern Assam, police said.

In a separate incident, two insurgents of the United National Liberation Front (UNLF) were killed in a shootout with paramilitary Assam Rifles personnel in Chandel district in eastern Manipur.

"A group of terrorists struck at Boro Chamon village, under Haflong police station in Assam's militancy ravaged North Cachar Hills district early in the morning and fired indiscriminately killing five Zeme Naga tribals on the spot and injuring 10 people," a senior police officer told reporters in Guwahati.

"Before fleeing from the area, the tribal guerrillas, yet to identified, set on fire all the 56 houses in the village," the official said.

The dominant Dimasa tribe and Zeme Naga tribe have been engaged in a turf war in the hill district where several militant outfits including Dima Halam Daogah (DHD), Dima Halam Daogah-Jewel faction, National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-IM) and NSCN (Khaplang faction), are also active.

In Manipur, Assam Rifles troopers during routine patrolling engaged in a half-hour gun battle with the UNLF ultras and shot dead two rebels on the spot while the other cadres managed to escape at Chakpi village in Chandel district.

"A sophisticated rifle, two magazines, large cache of ammunition and an improvised gun were recovered from the spot," a Manipur police spokesman said.

According to police officers, over 200 people have so far been killed in militancy-related incidents in Manipur this year.

Security has been intensified along the Nagaland-Assam border to prevent Dima Halam Daogah (Jewel Gorlosa faction) militants from sneaking in following the crackdown on insurgent groups by army and paramilitary forces in North Cachar Hills district.

"A strict vigil is being kept on the Nagaland-Assam border, especially in Niuland area of Dimapur district and Peren district, where the fleeing DHD militants might infiltrate," said Assam Rifles inspector general Pallab Choudhury.

A central team headed by Special Secretary (Internal Security) Raman Srivastava visited the trouble-torn southern Assam last month and held a series of discussions with state government, security and railway officials.

"After the central team's visit, the union government has asked the Assam government to step up security in North Cachar Hills district following repeated attacks by militants on trains, civilians and security forces," said Assam Chief Secretary P.C. Sharma.

Meanwhile, Special Task Force (STF) commandos arrested North Cachar Hills Autonomous Council (NCHAC) chief executive member (CEM) Mohet Hojai and two other senior officials last week for alleged links with the outlawed outfit, Dima Haolam Daogah (DHD) or the Black Widow group.

After Hojai's arrest, the Assam government has recommended to the governor to suspend the NCHAC.

Source: The Times Of India

By Gladson Dungdung
Intercountinentalcry

25 May, 2009

The state of Jharkhand known as the abode of Adivasis (Indigenous People), containing 40 percent of India’s minerals, has been witnessing a series of people’s resistance against unjust development for decades. The industrialization has been chalked full of investor uncertainty and city dweller middle class cries foul but the anger of the Adivasis against the land acquisition for development projects is not calming down in the state. In a fresh incident, thousands of Adivasis from the Talsa village near Jamshedpur entered into the offices of the Deputy Commissioner of East Singhbhum at Jamshedpur on May 19, to resist the Uranium Corporation of India Limited’s (UCIL) drive to acquire their land for its new tailing pond near Turamdih mill.

The villagers started gathering in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office in the morning. They were armed with the traditional weapons – bows, arrows, axes, swords and sickles. The agitators with placards, banners and traditional weapons were up in arms against the PSU under the leadership of the village chief Durga Charan Murmu. The Adivasis became angry when UCIL informed them of its land acquisition drive through a public notice last month. The company proposes to acquire 276.62 acres of land for its tailing pond project. The tailing pond will be used for dumping waste generated from UCIL’s Banduhurang mines. The villagers have been fighting UCIL for compensation since 1983 but their issues were never addressed, and now they have have joined hands against the company’s new project.

The Adivasis demanded that the Deputy Commissioner should come out of his office for receiving the memorandum. They rejected the officers’ plea to submit their memorandum to sub-divisional officer Kartik Kumar Prabhat who was present at the spot in the capacity of the Magistrate. After a hue and cry of the district administration, the villagers agreed to submit their memorandum to the Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) H.N. Ram who arrived at the spot. “We have taken the memorandum and would look into the demands made by the villagers,” H.N. Ram said. The villagers called off the protest after the ADC promised the villagers to look into the matter and take the appropriate action.

The painful suffering of Talsa village began with the notification for land acquisition in 1983-84. According to the agreement made between the Talsa Gram Sabha and UCIL management in 1983, the company promised to provide employment for two to three members from each displaced family. Accordingly, the UCIL management started making appointments and providing jobs to 45 displaced persons by 1988. But in 2000, the management suddenly decided to resume the extension project and went ahead without fulfilling its commitment. The majority of those displaced between 1984 and 1985 were not rehabilitated properly and left in isolation.

According to the 2001 Census , the total population of Talsa village is 912. The village is highly dominated by Adivasis with the population of 889. Presently, the village population has increased—therefore approximately 1500 people will be completely displaced if the company acquires the land. These villagers have already given half of their agricultural land to the UCIL but now the company plans to acquire the entire village. The villagers are strongly resisting it. Section 144 (a law that prevents the assembly of five or more people and gives the government “absolute power” in “urgent cases of nuisance or to apprehended danger”) has been imposed by the Gram Sabha after a meeting of villagers on May 10. According to the village head Durga Charan Murmu, the UCIL failed to meet its promises made in 1983 therefore Adivasis don’t want to give their lands to the company at any cost. “Most of the villagers depends on agriculture for their livelihood, we have a place of worshiping our God and our culture is based on land therefore we don’t want to lose our remaining land any more,” Murmu said.

The people of mining areas live in constant threat due to radiation as there are open cast uranium mining projects being operated. After the uranium ore is mined and processed, the “yellow cake” is sent to the Nuclear Fuel Complex in Hyderabad for enrichment. The waste is then brought back to the UCIL complex for further extraction. Finally, the waste is dumped into the ponds, which is open and unprotected. In the last year during the rainy season, the radioactive waste from the tailing pond of Turamdih uranium mines spilled over into the village’s wells, ponds and fields. The UCIL admited it but denied its threat to life due to radiation. But the fact is aquatic creatures died, fishes got strange diseases and crops were affected therefore the villagers had stopped using water of the pond and wells.

However, the UCIL claims that it has not seen any effect of radiation on its workforce. But the people’s lives are in danger in the uranium mining areas of Jharkhand. Precisely, because on the one hand, they lose their land and do not paid sufficient compensation as promised, and they also suffer from chronic diseases like lung cancer, skin disease and physical deformities caused by radiation on the other. In fact, lives have been lost, cattle have died and human suffering is ongoing but the state who’s duty it is to protect the rights of these people, instead promotes the nuclear terror in the name of development. Therefore, the Adivasis of Jharkhand have decided not to surrender their land for any project and fight against such terror, which has carried with it a heavy cost on the villagers for decades.

Gladson Dungdung is a Human Rights Activist and Writer based at Ranchi, Jharkhand. He can be contacted at gladsonhrights@gmail.com gladson@jharkhandi.com

4 lakh tribals displaced due to Maoist activities

New Delhi: More than four lakh tribals have been displaced due to extremists activists by Maoists in various parts of India, a non-government organisation has claimed in its latest report.

"A total of 4,01,425 tribals have been displaced due to armed conflicts and ethnic conflicts across India," Asian Indegenous and Tribal People's Network (AITPN), which has special consultative status with the UN's Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), claimed in its report.

"These displaced persons (tribals) have been living miserable lives without basic amenities including food, water, shelter, medical services, sanitation and livelihood opportunities," it added.

About 1.2 lakh members of Gutti Koya tribes of Bastar and Bijapur districts of Chhattisgarh fled to Andhra Pradesh's Khammam between January to June last year to escape violence by the maoists and the salwa judum activists, the report said.

Initially, they were provided humanitarian assistance by the Andhra Pradesh Government and tribals benefitted from NREGA and were also provided with ration cards.

But, these benefits were later withdrawn by the Andhra Pradesh Government soon after maoists killed more than 30 Greyhound personnel in an ambush at Chitrakonda reservoir in Orissa on June 29 last year and police accused Gutti Koya tribals of being supporters of the maoists, the report said.

The AITPN said that about 36,991 tribals from 201 villages in Dantewara district and 10,949 tribals from 275 villages in Bijapur district are living in 23 government-run makeshift camps in the state following the armed conflicts in the region.

Over 96,000 tribals, mainly Bodos, are staying in relief camps since the communal clashes broke out between Bodos and "non-tribal" Muslims in Assam in August 2008.

In Tripura, 30,000 Bru tribals of Mizoram, displaced after an ethnic clash a few years ago, continue to languish in six relief camps and struggle for their basic rights, AITPN said.

Source: The Times Of India

Where are tribal women in Indian politics?

By Manipadma Jena

Underneath the gloss of the UPA victory on 16 May lies a sober reality. Around the country, adivasi women are known for their leadership qualities, and yet, they do not get equal opportunities to contest elections.

Bhubaneswar: For a decade, Mukta Jhodia, 49, hitching a ride on her husband's bicycle, would go into remote tribal villages of Kashipur in Orissa's Rayagada district to dissuade people from giving up their farmland for bauxite mining. In 2007, Mukta received the Chingari Award instituted for Women Fighting Corporate Crime. Then there is Sumoni Jhodia, 60, who was the unofficial advisor on tribal development from 1993-95 to the erstwhile chief minister, Biju Patnaik. That's not all: Among the 12 tribals killed in police firing at Kalinganagar in Jajpur district in 2006, two were women.

Mukta, Sumoni and those killed in the firing are from the Scheduled Tribes (ST), which make up 22.21 per cent of Orissa's population. It is women like them who form the backbone of people's movements. In terms of leadership qualities, they generally do better than their more economically prosperous counterparts from the 'general castes'. Yet, they do not get equal opportunities to contest elections and be a part of the law-making process so crucial for their communities.

Even the nomination of Padma Shri Tulasi Munda, 61, to the Rajya Sabha in 2006, was blocked by the Adivasi Mahasabha comprising several tribal organisations. It was a surprising case of tribals pitting themselves against other tribals, but it reinforced the fact that when it comes to political power sharing, the deeply entrenched G-Factor, or gender factor, kicks in.

The G-factor has clipped the wings of many women interested in contesting elections. Only a minuscule percentage has made it and the fact that the Women's Reservation Bill has remained in a limbo since 1997 has not helped. So what one has here is gender disempowerment within the larger disempowerment of tribals as a community. Of the 157 candidates contesting the Lok Sabha (LS) elections this time, only six per cent were women. The situation was replicated in the polls to the Orissa legislative assembly: Only 10 per cent of the total 1,397 contestants were women.

Orissa has 33 seats out of the 147 in the legislative assembly reserved for tribals. At the parliament level, five of the total 21 seats are reserved for ST candidates. Historically, political parties have never fielded more than an insignificant number of women from these seats. But when women candidates have been given a chance, they have won - not just once, but twice and thrice - proving that they too can master the 'winnability factor'.

Saraswati Hembrum, 60, starting as a Sarpanch (village council head) and went on to represent the Congress Party from Kuliana in Mayurbhanj for three terms in the state assembly from 1980 to 2000. She was also the first tribal woman to be given ministerial charge. Frida Topno, 84, a gazetted state government officer, won the LS seat in 1991 and again in 1996 from Sundargarh district. Sushila Tiriya, 52, went to the Rajya Sabha twice (in 1994 and 2006) from Mayurbhanj and once to the LS. Interestingly, Frida and Sushila, both graduates, are deeply committed to social work and have chosen to remain single.

Two high profile women from tribal communities contesting elections from Orissa this time (LS and assembly elections in the state were held simultaneously in two phases on April 16 and 23) are Draupadi Murmu and Hema Gamang. Draupadi, 50, a Santhal and a graduate, is a two-time Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA from Rairakhol, Mayurbhanj. This time round she is contesting the LS seat from Mayurbhanj. She started her career as part of the government clerical staff, and went on to become a minister.

Hema, 48, from the Saura tribe of Rayagada, was the youngest entrant in this lot. She was only 38 when she entered the LS in 1999 from Koraput district on a Congress ticket. Although there were local politicians in her family, it was her husband, Giridhar Gamang, who was instrumental in opening the portals to mainstream politics to her. He was the Orissa Chief Minister at that time and had won in six consecutive LS elections. He needed Hema to keep his LS seat safe, while he dominated state politics. Hema readily acknowledges this, "I was acquainted with politics and knew grassroots party workers well, having campaigned for my husband. But I was not keen to jump into the thick of the fray at that point."

Once in, though, she not only learnt the ropes but also developed a taste for power. In 2004, she fought a furious and very public battle with her husband to retain her Koraput LS seat, which her husband wanted back. The Congress sided with Giridhar and Hema had to settle for the Gunupur assembly seat in Rayagada. History repeated itself in 2009 as well. She gave up the Gunupur constituency, which she had nurtured because both her brother and son wanted to contest from there. This time she fought from the Laxmipur assembly constituency in Rayagada. Observes Hema ruefully, "The men try to push a woman around in politics as well!"

What does it take for a woman from a tribal community to get a foothold in national politics? "Family political background, personal qualities, exposure to the world outside one's own community, education and adequate funds - in that order," says Hema promptly.

In sharp contrast to Hema, Draupadi Murmu does not come from a political background. Today, after eight years as a legislator and after heading two ministries, her nomination affidavit reveals that she has no house to her name, only a modest bank balance and some land. What works for her? "Showing results," Draupadi quips. She concedes, however, that being in the right place at the right time and having access to the right people helps, although that did not get her the LS ticket in 2004, which she had badly desired. The selection committee doubted whether a woman would be able to fight Jharkhand Mukti Morcha's strongman, Sudam Marandi. So her male colleague, Bhagirathi Majhi, was fielded instead. He lost and this may have forced the party to do a re-think: Draupadi was pitted against Marandi this time.

Sahadeva Sahu, a former Chief Secretary in the state government and Convener of Orissa Election Watch (OEW), a civil rights organisation, agrees that tribal women don't stand a chance when it comes to getting tickets. "They cannot even speak up for themselves," he observes.

Laments Tapasi Praharaj, a Bhubaneswar-based activist from the Left-leaning All India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA), "Women participate more in the election process in every way. But, they are given a raw deal at the time of ticket selection." This despite the fact that women figure high among voters: It was the women of Malkangiri and Koraput this time who bravely exercised their franchise despite boycott calls given by Naxal groups.

Neither the Congress nor the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) have fielded a woman in these LS polls. As for the assembly elections, BJD Chief Naveen Patnaik, although he claims to be committed to the empowerment of women and tribals, fielded only eight women for the 130 assembly seats the party is contesting. Sonia Gandhi's Congress has not done much better: Only 15 out of its 147 candidates are women. None of the Left parties - CPI, CPI (M) and CPI (ML) - have fielded a woman candidate. Significantly, out of the total 140 women candidates in the assembly elections this time, 37 - or roughly one-third - are contesting as Independents. The figure reflects the high level of frustration among women candidates at being denied party nominations.

If the status of women in these neglected tribal communities is to change for the better, political parties across the board in tribal-dominated states like Orissa will have to do a serious re-think on their ticket distribution strategies.

Manipadma Jena is a freelance journalist from Bhubaneswar.

Tribals exempt markets from North Bengal bandh

People of the tribal areas of North Bengal got some respite on Tuesday as the tribal body which had called for an indefinite bandh three days ago exempted tea gardens, shops and markets from it.

Government offices, however, remained shut and transport remained cut off due to the bandh. Adivasi Vikas Parishad, the tribal body, on Tuesday announced that the strike will end on May 17, when they will court arrest en masse in Jalpaiguri court.

The state government, meanwhile, refused to let off the two adivasis arrested for rioting and arsoning and remained firm in its stand.

“We are keeping a vigil. Things are under control. But we will not release the arrested people,” said Raj Kanojia, Inspector General, Law and Order.

“We have exempted shops and markets from the bandh, since we do not want the people to suffer. We will continue our bandh till May 17 and on the same day lakhs of tribals will surrender and court arrest in Jalpaiguri court,” said Rajesh Lakra, senior leader of Adivasi Vikas Parishad.

Tribals gherao Dooars thana, force cops to withdraw FIR

Over 10,000 armed Adivasis held the Jalpaiguri district administration hostage all through Saturday. They outnumbered the force deployed to control them and relented only on their own terms.

For nine hours, Banerhat a small town about 70 km from Jalpaiguri along NH 31-C resembled Lalgarh in West Midnapore, where the writ of tribal leaders rule and police have been reduced to mere onlookers. Tribals from the entire belt converged at the police station and gheraoed it, demanding the release of two Adivasis arrested on Friday night. The gherao was lifted only around 5 pm, but the tribals have called a 24-hour Dooars bandh on Sunday. If the two are not released by Monday, the strike would be indefinite.

Once the blockade was lifted, relief was palpable on the faces of the 100-odd terror-stricken police and paramilitary personnel caught in the pressure-cooker situation. "It was the most frightening experience of my life. We could have been slaughtered any moment," a police officer later said.

Friday's police action followed a week-old complaint by seven persons from Telepara tea estate, accusing Alexander Minz and Sanjeev Oraon of arson on election day. According to the FIR, the duo, who also live in the tea estate, set fire to their homes after they defied the vote boycott call given by Akhil Bhartiya Adivasi Vikas Parshad (ABAVP). Minz and Oraon are allegedly ABAVP functionaries.

Though the duo has not been released yet, police sources said they would walk out free on Monday after police moves court, citing the FIR's withdrawal. All seven who had accused the duo retracted the accusation on Saturday.

Four of them were produced by tribals at the police station and made to publicly withdraw the FIR. Anthony Tirkey and Benedict Kujur are members of National Union of Plantation Workers affiliated to Congress-trade union wing Intuc. Kashi Oraon is a member of Chabagan Mazdoor Union affiliated to CPM trade union wing Citu and Raju Oraon is a member of Dooars Cha Bagan Workers Union, an RSP-affiliated trade union.

The political affiliation of the quartet is interesting, indicating a joint effort by all political parties to counter ABAVP that has emerged as a force in the belt. The vote-boycott call by the organization for the Lok Sabha elections elicited an overwhelming response from Adivasis. Those tribals who defied the diktat faced consequences. In Banerhat, violence was reported from tea estates like Palasbari and Telepara on the night of May 30. In Telepara, seven houses were set ablaze. No political party showed any resistance.

It was only the next day that parties urged the affected people in Telepara to lodge an FIR. Based on the complaint, police picked up Alexander and Sanjeev on Friday and produced them on Jalpaiguri town on Saturday morning.

When word of the arrests got around in the wee hours of Saturday, ABAVP leaders galvanised the community into action. Tribals began to assemble in front of Banerhat PS from 7.30 am. In the next 30 minutes, the number had swelled to 10,000. Carrying bows, arrows, spears, hatchets and crowbars, tribals had trekked down from Telepara, Gandrapara, Palasbari, Haldibari and several other gardens. They gheraoed the police station and demanded the duo's release.

"We deployed over 100 policemen, including Rapid Action Force, Indian Reserve Battalion and State Armed Police personnel, at Banerhat PS. But they were simply outnumbered by the turnout," an officer conceded later. The tribals blocked the train line from New Jalpaiguri to Alipurduar Junction at noon, forcing the diversion of a train from Ranchi to another parallel line. Blockades were set up on NH 31C at Moraghat, Telepara and other intersections. Raju Bara, chief advisor of ABAVP (Dooars-Terai Committee) accused the CPM of deliberately engineering the arrests to foil a meeting scheduled on Sunday.

Source: The Times Of India