It has develop into almost a routine around this time of the year to look back at the events of May 2011 and find out what has changed for the tribal communities of Goa since that day. And after merely scratching the surface, what is found, year after year, is that the government has paid mere lip service to the tribals – their conditions and their demands – and left it at that, with promises to ‘deliver justice’.
May 25, 2011 started out like any other, but soon news trickled in of traffic on the highway at Balli being blocked and rail services halted by the tribal communities protesting government inaction on their pending demands. For some time it was the traffic jam that was the main focus. As the day progressed there came news of stone pelting, some violence and then the horror of two young tribal leaders having been burnt. The death toll could have been higher, but many managed to escape. The ghastly killing shocked Goa and much was expected of the government after this, but in the days that followed, as the situation slowly returned to normal, decisions on the demands of the tribal communities were pushed forward, and as tribal leaders themselves told Herald six years later, nothing much has changed for many of them.
Tribal leaders, who had led the agitation at that time and who are now on the government side, admit that most of the demands are still under consideration, but are hopeful that they will be met. Six years is, however, a long period to wait, especially when some of the demands include the living conditions of some of the tribal communities. There has been enough time and ample opportunity to meet the demands of the tribals, or at least to improve their living conditions, if it’s not been done then it reflects on the government and its empathy with the tribals.
A graphic example of just how neglected are some tribal community areas is the living conditions at Endrem and Keri which fall within the Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary. The two settlements have no electricity, no water supply, no motorable access, no school and no communication facilities. The children from these settlements have to walk 10 kilometres to school through the forest and wade through streams and a river to reach there. Their living conditions are terrible, and yet the State that takes pride in being developed and winning awards for its development, is unable to reach out and provide them with the basics.
The government too agrees that there are many demands made by the tribals that are pending, including the reservation of seats in the Legislative Assembly, but more importantly is the tribal forest land rights that depends on the implementation of the Forest Rights Act. The current Minister for Tribal Welfare, himself a tribal leader, assures that forgetting the past, the government is aiming at the future and will deliver justice to the tribals at the earliest. But these are promises that the tribal communities in Goa have heard very often in the past. Procrastination on this will only test the patience of the tribal communities some more.
Promises need to be converted into deeds. That is what the tribal communities in Goa are waiting for. It is only when this happens that justice will truly have been delivered to the tribal communities of Goa.
