The tribal people of the Agency area of Visakhapatnam district staged a protest demanding roads, electricity and safe drinking water even as the world celebrated International Day of the World’s Indigenous People, at Jeelugulova village of Ravikamatham mandal in the district on Monday.
The participants, covered themselves with leaves and cried out aloud “Yennallu maaku ee doli mothalu (how long do we have to carry dolis?)?” In the absence of roads to the interior hamlets, the tribal people are forced to carry pregnant women and sick persons in dolis to the nearest road point, which could be sometimes several kilometres away.
With placards in their hands, they asked: “How long do we have to live in the dark at night without electricity”? Our traditions and culture should be protected but mining is being permitted in the forests and this would result in contamination of drinking water sources and ultimately tribal people would be driven out of their habitat, the protesters said. They opposed the proposed inclusion of five panchayats with more than 50% tribal population, located in non-scheduled areas of Visakhapatnam district under the Visakhapatnam Metropolitan Development Authority (VMRDA), and felt that it could pose a threat to their existence. They should be included in the 5th Schedule, so that the tribal people living there could avail of various benefits provided to STs in scheduled areas.
“We live on a hill and have to trek 5 km to reach our home in the absence of a road. There is no electricity in our hamlet,” says Appa Rao, a Girijana Sangham member. “More than 75 years after India attained Independence, many of our villages have no roads, no electricity and safe drinking water. Due to non-availability of birth certificates, our children are not being given Aadhaar and there are no anganwadi centre or community health workers in our hamlets,” says AP Girijana Sangham district honorary president K. Govinda Rao.
Narsipatnam Primitive Tribal Groups(PTG) Sangham division president D. Appa Rao and leaders Korra Mahesh and Killo Patidora were among those who participated in the protest.