The tribes people of the hamlets off the Government Seed Garden Complex at Munderi in Nilambur forest appear to have been disenchanted with the Government, especially the police.
The recent visit by a group of Maoists belonging to the Nadugani Dalam to the Vaniyampuzha tribal colony has been viewed as testimony to the distancing of the tribes people from the authorities.
The police reportedly learned about the Maoists visit two days later. None in the tribal hamlet bothered to inform the police, in spite of the best efforts made by the authorities in recent years by planting informers among the tribal people and by wooing the youngsters.
The attitude of the authorities concerned, including the police, forest, revenue and tribal departments, to the suffering of the families in the marooned hamlets of Vaniyampuzha, Iruttukuthi, Thandankallu, Tharippapotti and Kumbalappara has been the main reason for the disenchantment.
Many families in Vaniyampuzha hamlet have been homeless since the floods of 2019 devastated their houses. They still sleep on tree tops in fear of elephant attack at night. The Government has not rehabilitated them. Neither the Government bothered to reconstruct the bridges to connect the tribes people with the mainland.
Six Maoists who visited the hamlet on Saturday were learned to have spent that night with the tribes people. The tribes people offered them food. None informed the police even after the Maoists stayed in the hamlet the whole night. A tribal youth, on assurance of anonymity, told The Hindu that they did not feel like informing anyone because of the lack of attention from the authorities to their basic needs.
All youngsters in the hamlets off Munderi have mobile phones. Yet none gave the police a buzz, prompting the officers for a rethink about the strategies they follow in wooing the Adivasis to get rid of the Maoists.
The Maoists were learned to have told the Adivasis about the necessity of getting jobs in government plantations. Although the Government Seed Garden Complex, popularly known as Munderi Farm, is close to them, very few of them have been employed there.
The police have reportedly enhanced their vigil following the visit of the Maoists.
