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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Potable Water a Luxury for Tribespeople -George Poikayil

Potable Water a Luxury for Tribespeople -George Poikayil

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published Published on Nov 14, 2015   modified Modified on Nov 14, 2015
-The New Indian Express

KASARGOD: A good number of the tribespeople in the district still depend on springs, streams, ponds and rivulets for drinking water. But a ‘live-in’ study of their lives reveals they are the relatively luckier ones. For those who depend on wells, borewells, and public taps often struggle for water, especially during the harsh months.

Volunteers of Kudumbashree Mission, as part of a poverty alleviation initiative, visited and lived in each of the 573 ‘ooru’ or colony of the six tribes in the district -- Mavilan, Malavetuva, Malaraya, Malekudia and Koraga  (a particularly vulnerable tribal group) -- for two weeks to prepare the comprehensive report.

The study, conducted as part of the government’s micro-level planning, found that 10,771 of the 12,260 tribal families in the district depended on own wells, or neighbours’ wells, public tap, or borewells for drinking water.

Another 1,489 families depend on streams and ponds for drinking water.

But the same survey reveals chilling truths under the seemingly comforting facts.

“Most of the tribespeople live in hilly and rocky terrain, making drinking water a scarce commodity,” says the report of the study. During the months of April and May, drinking water projects in many oorus go dry. Rising number of borewells (2,240) is also bringing the water-levels down in ponds and wells.

Everything pales when compared to the condition in Urulala colony of Badiadka, where there is no source for drinking water. In the same panchayat, residents of Chuli Ooru trek 3km to bring water from Kotodi river. “They carry back the water pots on their heads and they do it daily,” said an official involved in the ‘participatory census’.

Residents of Nandarkuzhi colony in Madikai panchayat also walk 3km for drinking water.

In Balal panchayat, residents of Vazhakolla colony drink water from a pond, which neighbours use for bathing.

However, the government invests a lot to make their lives better.

Public tanks built at Aiyankavu colony in Kodom-Bellur panchayat and at Kallangadi colony in East Eleri panchayat have no water. The three borewells at Kuttapunna colony at Bangalam in Kinanur-Karinthalam are dry.

In Manjeshwaram panchayat, 71 of the 156 families do not have access to drinking water. So is the situation of 100 of the 175 families in Paivalige panchayat.

Health

The lack of basic facilities, such as house, drinking water and toilets is having an adverse impact on the health of the populace, found the study. The colonies do not have adequate number of toilets, forcing the community members to defecate and urinate in the open. “That poses a serious threat to healthy living among the tribespeople,” it said.

The addiction to alcohol and tobacco adds another dimension to their health issues. “Addiction, cutting across the age, is prevalent among all the tribespeople,” the report said.

According to the study, 3,785 persons have physical disabilities and mental illnesses, of which 2,456 have incurable illnesses.

Single Moms

The tribal community is also battling sexual exploitation, mostly in the hilly areas. Of the 184 unwed mothers in the district, 127 of them are from the hill block panchayat of Parappa, comprising Balal, Panathady, Kallar, Kodom-Bellur, Kinanur-Karinthalam, West Eleri and East Eleri gram panchayats.


The New Indian Express, 13 November, 2015, http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/kerala/Potable-Water-a-Luxury-for-Tribespeople/2015/11/13/article3125488.ece


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