They reek of liquor and live in squalor. They are landless and have no roof over their heads and their children, especially girls, beg for food and are exploited as child labourers and even forced into flesh trade.
This is the story of about 20 utterly poor families of the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG), the Kolam, who live in abandoned and dilapidated government residential quarters in the Kadem mandal headquarter village in Adilabad district. Their condition warrants urgent remedial measures.
Kolam is an extremely disadvantaged minority tribe with a population of about 35,000, existing only in Adilabad district. The authorities’ lack of understanding of the psychology of PVTGs makes them even more vulnerable, the Kolams being a relevant example.
Having migrated to Kadem, famous for its major irrigation project by the same name, from a habitation close to Mancherial town about three decades ago, the Kolam families in question failed to settle down like some others of their group.
The females collect firewood early in the morning, the income from which is spent by the males to consume the illicitly distilled liquor ‘gudumba’ and the families eat stale food collected by way of making their children seek alms.
“We did make an effort to rehabilitate the poor souls. The then Collector, Babu A., and the Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA), Utnoor, Project Officer Janardhan Nivas, accommodated the girls in the ashram school, Lakhampet, in Neredigonda mandal, and gave contract jobs to their parents,” recall Chityala Chinnaiah, the sarpanch of Kadem and Mandula Chinnaiah, a tribal social activist.
“Though the ITDA made special arrangements for the girls to get integrated into the mainstream, they were viewed as ‘outsiders’ by the school and ITDA functionaries. Unable to bear the ‘neglect’ after the transfer of the top officials, the hapless inmates returned to their old way of lifeand now there is nobody willing to hear our plea,” adds the concerned social activist.
“In order to restore the educational and other rights of this Adivasi group, the government needs to curb their exploitation by implementing the Act against child labour and forced prostitution,” suggests Chityala Chinnaiah. “They should be given ration cards, included in the voters list to become eligible for governmental benefits like a piece of land or financial assistance for fishing and a house,” he adds.
