1. It is esay to exaggerate and give statistics of the tribals affected by various projects in the Country with a population exceeding 1.1 billion. 2. Where have these tribals gone? your posting gives the impression as if they have been exterminated or driven to wilderness? They have either been rehabilitated in the alternate sites in the forest areas or in case of dams, near the downstream irrigated lands where they could carry out agriculture and they are given funds to construct their own houses and free land. 100% of the affected tribals in Gujarat Narmada project have been rehabilitated in this manner and are settled in various parts of the State. It is the mischief makers like evangelists- Cedric- or Social activists Medha- who force these settled tribals to join agitation promising more benefits from Govt. as investigations revealed of the tribals joining her at the Dharna at Delhi. 3. Developments of large mineral based projects or harnessing water are naturally located in the unpopulated areas based on the project viabilities and availability of bulk inputs. One cannot put back development of the Country and its industries for the sake of preserving a few tribals living in stone age culture and it is the duty of any Govt. to bring these groups too to benefit the overall progress of the Country. 4. Indeed there are pessimists and vested interests like evangelists whose "raw material"- illiterate tribals for conversions, when they are provided alternative comforts and realise the folly of conversions once they are educated and live in a better society. This is another form of Communism where povery is encouraged and perpetualised for selfish interests though outwardly they pretend to work for the benefit of the poor and downtrodden 5. Development of an economy should ensure food, clothing, housing and working for all the individuals be it tribals or others. only by industrialisation and development of agricultural outputs so that infra-structure for education, health and recreation are available to these people. Traibals are also a part of the Society and they cannot be segregated and projects abandoned to allow them to live picking forest produce and live with hunger and penury. 6. Development is for everyone. If a project does not fulfil the promises of rehabilitation, provide promised jobs for the affected families or other preconditions, let the NGO-s take up the matter with concerned authorities rather that outright condemnation of the mining or other explorations and exploitations of natural resources for human development. Indeed there would be an inflow of skilled personnel from outside the area and you cannot insist such jobs for the locals.
--- On Tue, 8/12/08, Rajeev Pandey <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: From: Rajeev Pandey <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: Re: [ =>> Jharkhand <<= ] whose development??????? To: [email protected] Date: Tuesday, August 12, 2008, 1:05 PM Jharkhand Forum | Jharkhand Blog | Jharkhand Video | Jharkhand Network Dear friends In the name of development big player of business family and politicians are causing to vanish the indegineous people, their land rights, sacred places and identity. It should be banned. Why only indiginious people will pay the cost of for mega projects in the name of development? We should stop it/ really it is not development it is distruction regards Rajeev Pandey Social Upliftment Trust [EMAIL PROTECTED] com charhi, Hazaribag, Jharkhand On 8/11/08, Ajay <[EMAIL PROTECTED] com> wrote: Jharkhand Forum | Jharkhand Blog | Jharkhand Video | Jharkhand Network IMAGINE THE entire population of the continent of Australia turned out of their homes- eighteen million people losing their lands, evicted from their houses. Deprived of livelihood and income, yhey face penury. As their families split up and spread out , their community bond crumble. cut off from their most vital resources, those uprooted are then robbed of their history, traditions and culture May be even forced to adopt an alien diet. Higher rate of disease and mortality pursue the dispossessed So do lower rate of earning and education. Also growing joblessness, discrimination and inferior social status. oddly, it all happens in the name of DEVELOPMENT. and Victims are described as beneficiaries. sound Too far-fetched even as fiction? Its happened in INDIA, where in the period of 1951-90, over 21.6 million people suffered precisely that fate -displaced by just dams and canals alone. Add mining that has dispossessed 2.1 million and you have the population of Canada.Further, industries, thermal plants, sanctuaries and defense installations have thrown at least 2.4 million other human beings out of their homes. that's around 26 million INDIANS these are bottom line figures. the government accepts national figure of over 15 million (up to 1985) arising from 'development related displacement' thats the jargon for people losing their homes and lands....... ... the draft of the governments national policy for rehabilitations admit that almost 75% of those displaced since 1951 were still awaiting rehabilitation ( after forty five years 'awaiting' seems a cruel term to use) Tribals make up just 8% of our population yet as walater Fernades of Indian Social institute points out they account for more than 40% of the displaced persons of all projects and as the former vice chancellor of Utkal university, Prof. L K Mahapatra, says, there would be and equally big number of dalits and other land less among the displaced ....... ....... if the costs they bear are the price of development, then the rest of the 'nation' is having one endless free lunch...... this text is extracted from: Everybody Loves a good Drought - P. Sainath ~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~ "Ours is a battle not for wealth or for power. It is a battle for freedom. It is a battle for the reclamation of human personality." - Dr BR Ambedkar ~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~
