A “ground-level investigation” by members of the Odisha unit of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) has suggested that hundreds of tribal families in the remote Swabhiman Anchal of Odisha’s Malkangiri district have been left out of food security and other pro-poor government schemes.
They are among the worst hit by the continuing lockdown to contain COVID-19. CPI(M) members living in Swabhiman Anchal said they adhered to social distancing protocol to survey eight villages in the Gajalmamudi, Badapada and Deoguda panchayats.
‘An indicator’
Their located 136 extremely needy poor tribal families that have been left out of food security and pro-poor schemes of the government. “This small investigation in eight villages is an indicator hinting at hundreds of similar tribal families left out from food security projects and other pro-poor schemes in Swabhiman Anchal,” said State secretary of CPI(M), Ali Kishor Patnaik.
Mr. Patnaik has written to Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik with the request for immediate relief measures for affected tribals in Swabhiman Anchal. “We will also provide the list of left-out poor tribal families identified by our party members to the Malkangiri district administration for necessary action,” Mr. Patnaik said.
Most deprived
‘Swabhiman Anchal’ is the previously cut-off region near the Balimela reservoir, with over 150 villages that were connected by road to mainland Odisha in 2018 by the Gurupriya bridge. Even now several interior villages in the area not connected by roads. Swabhiman Anchal is most deprived region of the underdeveloped and Maoist-infested Malkangiri district.
The hilly terrain of Swabhiman Anchal reduces the scope for paddy cultivation. Due to Maoist threats, panchayat elections could not be held in Swabhiman Anchal. The lack of elected panchayat bodies became a stumbling block in the identification and inclusion of all poor tribal families of the region in the lists of beneficiaries of government schemes, including those for food security. Administrative officials have also neglected this region because of the Maoist threat and the lack of a proper communication network.
Collateral damage
The tribals are also victims of collateral damage in the continuing fight between Maoists and security forces. Most inhabitants of Swabhiman Anchal are collectors of forest produce and menial workers. “But they do not get minimum daily wages as prescribed by the State government, and proper prices for their forest produce is a dream,” alleged Mr. Patnaik.
The Odisha CPI(M) has alleged that families of Swabhiman Anchal are so poor, they are unable to help each other out even at a time of extreme need. The party urged the State government to immediately reach out to every poor tribal family in Swabhiman Anchal and save them from starvation.
