Members of the Karnataka Aadivasi Hakkugala Samanvaya Samiti on Friday staged a protest near the office of the Deputy Commissioner demanding, among other things, better road connectivity to tribal areas in the district.
They said that several Malekudiya families living in Kudremukh Wildlife Sanctuary still do not have a proper road and power supply. These tribal families do not enjoy the rights given under the Forest Rights Act. Instead of spending crores of rupees on rehabilitation packages, the government should focus on improving the living conditions of forest-dwellers, the members said.
Expressing concern over the reported efforts of government to acquire land of the Malekudiya tribe in Banjarumale in Belthangady, the members alleged that private landowners were issuing threats to the tribal members against fighting the government’s move.
The members wanted government to expedite the process of issuing title deeds to tribal community members. They demanded invoking the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act in the case related to the attack on Sundara Malekudiya in July 2015. They also demanded dropping the case under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act booked against Vittal Malekudiya and his father in March 2012.