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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Odisha tribals lose food source as teak plantations deluge their ‘forest farms’ -Jayashree Nandi

Odisha tribals lose food source as teak plantations deluge their ‘forest farms’ -Jayashree Nandi

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published Published on Sep 22, 2015   modified Modified on Sep 22, 2015
-The Times of India

BURLUBARU, KANDHAMAL: Kanigalaru Majhi's food stocks are running out.

A middle aged woman from the Kutia Kondh tribe in Kandhamal's Burlubaru village in Odisha's Kandhamal district, Majhi is worried there will be a time soon when they will no longer be able to depend on the hills for their food because teak plantations have supplanted entire patches of forest where Kanigalaru and her tribespeople sourced millets, pulses, tubers and vegetables.

There was no dearth of food in the dense forests surrounding her hamlet, until the forest department started planting teak and other non-edible varieties in the tiny shifting cultivation plots of the kutia kondhs in many parts of Kandhamal. It's been about three years since teak plantations have taken over on podu or subsistence farms, while the Kutia Kondhs protested, often struggled to make space in their own land, allotted under the forest rights act, to plant indigenous food crops

Kutia Kondhs are one of the 13 "particularly vulnerable" or "primitive" tribal groups in Odisha who mainly live in the hills and have an indigenous diet but now efforts to afforest Kandhamal could snatch away their only source of nutrition. They also depend on the forest for healing, by growing wood apple, turmeric and wild flowers with medicinal value. The primary health centre in Belghar several kilometers away often doesn't have a doctor.


The situation is no different in other Kutia Kondh villages in the region. According to an assessment by Vasundhara, an environmental organization in Odisha, massive plantations have been carried out without settlement of forest rights in several other parts like Rangaparu, Pandamaska, Kusumunda, Madalkuna, Deogada, Guchuka, Tidipadar, Kadapana and many others. "We eat what we grow. We are not used to eating so much rice but since our podu land is shrinking we are eating more rice," said Kanigalaru while displaying the maize and millets she had grown.

"We can't eat teak. Why should we accept these plantations? We have been taking care of the forests for ages. It's our protector," added Tumna Majhi, Kanigalaru's son.

Alarmed by the crisis, independent activists as well as environmental organisations have recently written to the ministry of tribal affairs and the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) that under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) the Centre is obliged to sustain the rights of the tribal and indigenous people to traditional subsistence activities for livelihood, food and nutritional security.

The forest department however claims that Burlabaru is a successful "Vana Samrakshana Samiti" project where forests are taken care of by communities. "We had taken villagers views and a resolution of joint forest management was passed. We have that resolution as proof for tribals' consent. But forest rights titles were settled after we started plantations which is causing the problem. There are always two to three people in a village who are against every government scheme," said a forest official responsible for the range. All the tribals in the hamlet TOI spoke to however said plantations were severely affecting food resources.

"Tell me why the forest cover in Kandhamal has been reducing as per the forest survey reports? It's the forest department's job to improve the forest cover. There are also concerns like soil erosion if forest is lost. The money from the teak will anyway go to the tribals in future," he said adding that some bamboo was being also planted in these areas.

Balakrishna Jani, a ward member said about 25 ha of plantations have been done near the village. "The department offered Rs 70 per day to villagers interested in implementing the plantation programme but no one will do it. We need food. What will people do with money if forests are taken away from us?" he said showing the petition and letters that were sent to the divisional forest officer (DFO), collector and others in the administration.

Kutia Kondhs worship an earth goddess and their prayers revolve around protection against natural calamity and blessings for abundance in the forests. Mindharu Majhi (80+) one of the eldest in the hamlet didn't speak but shook her head rejecting the plantations.

Traditional shifting cultivation may not be detrimental to forests either. As the name suggests, tribals abandon a plot of after cultivating for a few years. "It's a sustainable practice if it's done for three to five years in a patch and then natural forests are allowed to regrow. I don't understand why they are planting teak when it takes 40 to 50 years to grow and will affect the biodiversity of the region. Local trees and shrubs will grow naturally in abandoned plots," said NH Ravindranath of Centre for Ecological Sciences of Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and noted forestry expert.

(The tour was supported by Centre for Science and Environment (CSE's) media fellowship on Good Food).

The Times of India, 21 September, 2015, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Odisha-tribals-lose-food-source-as-teak-plantations-deluge-their-forest-farms/articleshow/49038995.cms


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