An ‘Adivasi Adhikar Padyatra’ is being organised by the Ekta Parishad and other organisations from November 20 to December 10 against the alleged injustice being meted out to tribal folks.
While talking to mediapersons here on Monday, Ekta Parishad president P Rajgopal said that the ‘padyatra’ (foot march) would commence from Chada village in Madhya Pradesh’s Dindori district and traverse through Mandla and Balaghat districts before concluding at Kawardha in Chhattisgarh’s Kabirdham district.
He said that injustice was being meted out to tribal people despite several legislations being enacted assuring more rights and dignity to them. “The Forest Rights Act’s implementation in Madhya Pradesh is a mere 20 per cent. This figure would have been 60 per cent if the rate of implementation had been 10 per cent every year,” Rajgopal said.
“Tribal people continue to face false cases with about 2 lakh such cases being registered against them even though nearly 1.5 lakh false cases have been removed,” he said.
Pointing out that obtaining permission from those who would be displaced was necessary before securing land, Rajgopal said that nearly 600 km area would go in the development of heritage corridor in Mandla and Dindori area. However, the scheme has been prepared without those would be affected knowing about it.
The Parishad is demanding that an independent committee be formed to inquire into matters related with the tribal community. Notably, with demands of amendments in land rights Act, the Parishad had taken out a similar march towards Delhi. However, it was called off at Agra, after the then Rural Development minister Jairam Ramesh had signed an agreement.