You may find heartbreaking a visit to the Ambumala Tribal Colony in Kakkadampoyil that borders Kozhikode and Malappuram districts. Because you will definitely meet Chakki, who is more than 90 years old, begging for alms from the visitors.
She was the wife of a former tribal chief, Velutha. She lived in a thatched mud house till 2010 just like the other 24 families in the colony. But in 2010, Chaliyar panchayat authorities demolished their houses, apparently to build new homes for them, following a High Court order.
Six years have now passed. The construction of houses under the Integrated Tribal Development Programme (ITDP) is not yet over. The families are now living in temporary shelters that may collapse at any time.
Chakki leaves in a shelter along with six other families. The structure covered in plastic sheets and leaves is supported by bamboo poles. Chakki, probably the oldest woman in the colony, is the only surviving member of Paniya tribes group, who had migrated to Kakkadampoyil from Wayanad decades ago in search of better livelihood. Her husband died years ago and she has no children.
Mother India, an NGO based at Mukkam, had raised the issue before the Kerala State Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes seven times but in vain. Petitions filed with the Kerala State Human Rights Commission and the National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Tribes are also gathering dust. The ITDP has already spent Rs.55 lakh for the 22 houses that are in various stages of construction. Around Rs.1 crore had been spent for the development of the colony in the past five years. But the tribespeople didn’t get any benefit.
The NGO has now forwarded the petitions to the Prime Minister, according to its director Varughese Mathew.
