TRIBALS – 2007 - Indian Social Institute

the panic-stricken camp inmates have started migrating to safer places. The youth, shoulderingthe task of fortifying the camp, were engaged in the last few days in putting up wooden barricadesto block the free passage of intruders. (The Hindu 29/3/07)Tension prevails in Kalinga Nagar industrial complex (6)BHUBANESWAR: Tension prevailed in Kalinga Nagar Industrial Complex in Jajpur district onMonday following the death of a tribal youth who was injured in police firing on January 2 lastyear. The victim Kisan Buliuli, aged about 25 years, breathed his last at the Shriram ChandraBhanja Medical College at Cuttack late on Sunday evening. As many as 13 tribal men andwomen had been killed when police opened fire on the agitating tribals, who were opposingconstruction of a boundary wall for he proposed steel plant project of Tata Steel. As the body ofthe victim reached Kalinga Nagar, hundreds of tribal men and women blocked the Daitari-Paradiphighway alleging that Buliuli died due to negligence on the part of the authorities who failed toprovide him necessary medical help. The office-bearers of the Visthapan Virodhi Janmanch, theorganisation that is spearheading the anti-displacement agitation in the locality, alleged that thevictim was got not given adequate medical attention when he was admitted to a local governmenthospital on Saturday. Buliuli, who was treated at the SCB Medical College after he received bulletinjuries last year, was ailing and continued to suffer from fever most of the time, Janmanchsecretary Rabindra Jarika said. The victim, who hailed from Chandia village of Kalinga Nagararea, was married and is survived by his pregnant wife. As the tribals continued to block the roadfrom around 1 p.m. demanding adequate compensation for the family of the deceased, the districtadministration officials assured that Buliuli will be treated as a firing victim and his wife would begiven necessary governmental support, Mr Jarika said. The authorities also assured to providemedical care to 38 other tribals, who had been injured in the police firing. Of the 38 persons, 18had received serious injuries in the incident, Mr. Jarika said. The tribals lifted the road blockadearound 7 p.m. after the body of Buliuli was cremated and assurances were given by theauthorities to fulfill their demands. The road blockade agitation by the tribals of Kalinga Nagar,which started on the day of the firing incident last year, was lifted on the night of March 8. TheJanmanch lifted the road blockade showing respect to a High Court order on the issue. (TheHindu 3/4/07)Tribal-friendly, eco-unfriendly (6)With the popularity of the Raman Singh government at its lowest, over the past few monthsBharatiya Janata Party leaders have been busy finding innovative ways to appease andconsolidate the party vote bank. In a step that is being widely viewed as an attempt to maintain itsdominance among the tribal population of Chhattisgarh, the government has decided to dropcriminal charges against 2,20,613 people, registered under various forest and wildlife protectionlaws. Of these, 1,08,890 are Scheduled Tribes, while 36,298 belong to the Scheduled Castecommunity. With this move, the government is set to lose Rs 12.76 crore in terms of finesimposed on the suspects booked under the various forest and wildlife protection laws. While theentire nation is protesting loss of tree cover and illegal poaching, this step taken by the RamanSingh government has only been successful in shielding criminals involved in destruction of forestresources. However, the chief minister defends his decision to drop the charges by saying that “amajority of these cases had been pending for many years and as most of these offenders wereinvolved in minor crimes, we decided to let them off with a warning.” BJP sources said the recentlosses in Rajnandgaon Lok Sabha and Kota Assembly bypolls led to this step to shield the tribalpopulation. “While the Congress has maintained a stronghold in the non-tribal districts, the BJPdoesn’t want to lose its hold over tribal constituencies, which have been our supporters,” thesources added. They pointed out that the Bharatiya Janata Party was brought to power in the lastAssembly polls due to the votes it received from Scheduled Tribes constituencies. It won 26 STseats, while the Congress could only secure eight seats. Surprisingly, the state Congress hasbeen silent over the issue. No senior leader is willing to go on record to criticise the governmentsince the Scheduled Tribes enjoy an overwhelming majority in the state with about 35 per cent ofthe total population being classified under the category. However, animal lovers andconservationists have been crying foul in what is being termed as government’s “political standover the issue”. Though the Raman Singh government repeatedly claims that the state has one of