All the participants of the first Palli Sabha held at Serkapadi village under Muniguda block in Rayagada district to decide the fate of Vedanta’s mining project unanimously rejected the proposal on the ground of religious and cultural rights. The Dongria Kondhs chanting ‘Niyamraja Zindabaad’, participated in the meeting and discarded the project outright.
Out of the total 46 eligible voters, 38 voters, including eligible female voters, took part in the Palli Sabha. The proceedings were overseen by Rayagada district judge Sarat Chandra Mishra in accordance with the Supreme Court’s direction. The proceedings were initiated by Serkapadi forest rights committee president Indra Sikaka at the behest of the district judge.
The tribal villagers said that Niyamgiri is their god and they have been worshipping it since ages. They cannot live without its blessing as they eke out a living by selling forest produces, they asserted. “We can’t hand over our Niyamraja to the company or the Government as it gives us livelihood; satiates our thirsts by providing water from fountains and wood for making our house,” said a tribal.
The whole proceedings, including verbal statements of the participants in the Palli Sabha, were duly recorded and written with an interpreter assisting in translation from the Kui dialect of the Kondhs to Odia language. The proceedings were also video recorded as per the guidelines framed by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA).
Gobind Sikaka, a Kondh youth, said that his community worships the trees and every part of the hills. “If anybody takes away the Niyamgiri hills from us, it will be treated as sacrilegious,” he maintained.
A few tribals alleged that the forest officials along with the district administration have collected fake signatures to dilute the Palli Sabha proceedings and vowed not to part with the Niyamraja’s abode.
The tribals were free to air their voice. NGOs like Amnesty International and members of the Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti (NSS) stood outside the barricaded space and observed the proceedings. “The Palli Sabha was a success,” said NSS activist Kumuti Majhi.
"The villagers opposed the bauxite mining at Niyamgiri Hills. They fear adverse impact of mining on their cultural and religious rights," Rayagada District Judge Mishra said after the Sabha at Serkapadi village.
Asked whether any of the 36 members present at the Sabha supported bauxite mining at the hills, the district judge said, "All are opposed to mining as tribals worship the hills as their presiding deity."
The Serkapadi Gram Sabha was the first of the 12 to be held in Rayagada and Kalahandi districts, official sources said. The next Gram Sabha would be held at Kesarpadi on July 22. The State Government had earlier identified 12 hill villages where the Gram Sabhas would be held within three months of the Supreme Court’s order.