Report by Badal Tah, Rayagada : An outfit claiming itself to be Sachetan Dangaria Yuba Parishad(Conscious Dangaria Youth Council) under the aegis of Niyamagiri Surakhya Samiti(NSS) has alleged against the Maoists and a section of NSS activists branding them to be the supporters of the left wing extremists(LWEs). Several colourful posters mentioning several allegations have surfaced on the walls of Anganwadi Centre at Parsali village under Parsali GP under K Singhpur block.
Allegations go like this: Though NSS under local leadership has been constituted to contain the plundering of mineral resources from the hills, but in reality, some self-declared natural resource protection activists, human rights defenders, tribal activists, etc have taken charge of development this area. They have been termed as white elephants. NSS is under contol of the Maoists taking the opportunity of our simplicity. Our organisation is getting weakened by these people. Not only the Maoists are managing our organisation, but also playing with the honour of our girls & women. Last few years, these LWEs have taken away minor tribal girls as their new cadres/recruits and sexually harassed them in different ways. To terminate their pregnancies, several drugs & unnatural methods are being used, which are detrimental to their health.
After impregnating a lady named Laxmi from Chhattisgarh, the LWEs abandoned her, whose thirteen years old daughter is staying at Lakhpadar village as a destitute child. Paro Sikaka & Minjali Sikaka from Lakhpadar village have got pregnant. Padma Sikaka, who is in carrying stage since last six months, is begging from village to village after being thrown away from Maoist party. After recruiting minor girls and playing with their modesty, they abandon these girls untimely. Is it humanity ?
Why is no male person recruited in the party for this great service to the nation ? Why civil society members like Lingaraj Azad & others are supporting the Maoists activities in the area ? While Lada Sikaka, Drinju Kursika and Sambara Sikaka are claiming that they do not have any kind of link with Maoists, then how did several minor girls get recruited in the party ? Can those Dangaria leaders tell the Maoists not to stay in Niyamagiri ? We are also appealing the human rights organisation to save the Dangaria tribe. They must deny the entry of the destructive forces like Maoists and those white elephants in this area.
The authenticity of the poster is yet to be established. Interestingly enough, recently the present Collector Ms Swadha Dev Singh alongwith SP Sri Vivekananda Sharma visited Lakhpadar village with a carcade of motorbikes and interacted with villagers including Lada and Drinja, who are leaders of NSS. Reliable sources say that the visit of Collector and SP was resented by the villagers as they were not informed prior to the visit. It seems they did not even accept some gifts taken by the Collector.
It is a pity that the condition of Dangaria tribes has not visibly changed in spite of pumping in hundreds of crores of rupees through special packages. In the absence of markets, their products face distress sale. For example Dangaria Kandha Development Agency(DKDA), Chatikona & Parsali have been sanctioned approximately Rs.11.11 crores & Rs.5.73 crores for 2022-23 through a special Govt project named Odisha PVTG Empowerment & Livelihood Improvement Programme(OPELIP) being funded by International Fund for Agricultural Development(IFAD). This project is running for last several years. And this is not only the project. There are several other projects from DRDA, ITDA, Horticulture, Agriculture and several other deptts. “Thousands crores of rupees have really gone to drains as it has not met the felt needs of the Dangarias. May be, this has created an opportunity for the LWEs and Andolan jibis to instigate the tribe against the state. In stead of reacting, the administration must pro-act”, said Sri Rashmiranjan Dora, a senior scribe of the district.
It may be noted that NSS is spearheading a movement against Vedanta company’s mining from Niyamagiri, which is mainly inhabited by Dangaria tribe, a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group(PVTG). Due to their intense struggle, Supreme Court of India has put a stay on mining after several hearings by local judiciary.
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