Generally, the Dangaria Kandhs, one of the most underdeveloped PVTGs (Primarily Vulnerable Tribal Groups) of Odisha, are shy to interact with the outsiders, including Government personnel, because of the history of injustices meted out to them.
Last Saturday, however, hundreds of Dangaria Kandhs assembled in Sanadenginali village of Niyamagiri hills range under the leadership of Niyamagiri Surakhya Samiti’s (NSS) Lada Sikaka to resist Odisha PVTG Empowerment and Livelihood Improvement Programme (OPELIP) , which is a flagship programme under the Tribal Welfare Department of the State Government.
The OPELIP is funded by the International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD), Rome, as a part of UN agencies.
“Around a month back, some of us from NSS came to meet district Collector Saroj Mishra to appraise him about how OPELIP is disrupting harmony amongst the communities living in Niyamagiri hills; but unfortunately the Collector said he was busy and could not discuss with them. We felt ashamed and returned back,” said the president of the tribal forum.
The predecessors of Mishra used to call the leaders of the tribal group to the collectorate and interact with them on their issues. Even a Collector went to one of the most interior tribal villages called Manda to conduct a public hearing. They were even called to events like Independence Day, Rath Yatra, etc to integrate them into the mainstream. Once, these tribal youths also had got the opportunity to meet a former SP as the Collector was non-responsive, he added.
“It is a matter of regret that Mishra did not give the tribals time to listen to our grievances. He could have told them to meet after the meetings, if they were so important. Let’s not use the PVTG members as show pieces,” rued State convenor of Odisha Suchana Adhikar Mancha Rabindra Patakhandal.
The members of NSS are anguished over the implementation of OPELIP, which boasts of spending crores of rupees for their development. A miniscule amount actually reaches to the tribals. As it exclusively works for the PVTG, no assistance is provided to the underprivileged communities like SCs and OBCs. According to the leaders, the Government is consciously creating a cultural divide and disharmony among the communities inhabiting on 112 villages of Niyamagiri hills for centuries.
Meanwhile, they have decided to call the Collector, Sub-Collector and other senior Government officials to their village to resolve the issue or otherwise they will lock the OPELIP office. The development of Dangaria Kandha is really an eye-wash. During the eighties, same IFAD supported the Tribal Welfare Department of Odisha to take up a multi-crore project in Kashipur block of Odisha.
But, hardly have they done any upliftment of local people which is presently reflected through impoverished condition of poor people. Hundreds of villages still have no roads and the people are using animals to transport goods availed through PDS systems. Drinking water and healthcare are a burning issue. People still eat mango kernels and wild greens, roots and tubers. And the land is open for plundering resources like mines, forest and water. Similar providence is in the process to be written of Niyamagiri hills,” lamented Sibaram Nayak of Jana Jagarana Manch, Kashipur. Sibaram comes from Maikanch village where three tribals resisting a mining company got massacred through police bullets.
It is high time that Collector Mishra and his senior colleagues paid a patient hearing to the still shy Dangaria Kandhs and other communities of Niyamagiri to avoid a law and order situation in the area, sources suggested.