An unending struggle

Bhaktabatsal Mohanty, Orissa

I was born on 15th August 1959 in a small village called Goudapada in Cuttack district of Orissa in a poor middle class family having faith in Gandhian ideology. In my village 80% families are dalit and 20% are Brahmin and Karana (General Caste). During my school days, I saw the discrimination towards untouchables in our class as well as in my society. My grandfather and grandmother spin the charka every day and at the end of the month my grandfather goes to the weaver’s house for weaving of khadi. Most of the family members are engaged in weaving khaki. In my childhood I was attracted towards khadi. I asked my grandfather, why the schoolteacher discriminated against the dalit students in class and in school functions. In our family we respected all people as humans.
After the completion of my studies I came to Utkal Sarvodaya Mandal and worked with Rama Devi, a great Gandhian Sarvodaya Leader of Orissa. I was involved in the JP movement in 1978. In 1982, in the month of June, Rama Devi sent me to Batighane near Paradeep for cyclone relief work. When I started the community kitchen, I again saw untouchability and discrimination in the village.

1982 August 30th a devastating high flood came to Jagatsinpur area due to breaking of the Dalai Ghei. Maa Rama Devi sent me with a team for emergency relief programme. As the water level came down I saw most of mud houses of the poor dalit community totally collapsed. They lost almost everything they had. The General Caste people had good houses, where dalit people could take shelter, but the poor dalit had to spend the night under temporary shelters made of polythene sheets donated by us.

I took up a challenge for the dalit people. I conducted a survey of how many houses had collapsed in the flood-affected village. Out of the total collapsed houses, how many houses were of the dalit people. I saw that 90% of the houses collapsed. I took the challenge to build these houses within one year for the dalit community. I faced many obstacles from other caste people in the period of house construction. I organized work camps, invited youth from different districts and built the houses before the monsoons.

1984 June 5th I got married to a committed dalit lady called Bhagabati arranged by Maa Rama Devi and Sarvodaya people. We declared each other as life partner and took oath in the presence of NGO leaders, Gandhian people, journalists, youth leaders, etc. It was a great personal challenge in my life. I struggled for survival in our so-called civil society and among blood relatives.

1985 after flood rehabilitation we formed an organization for dalit and poor people called “Antyodaya Seva Kendra” and started rural development programmes. Different donor agencies came forward to support us. I have a clear vision of my development work. With some like minded friends like Biranchi Upadhya, Sanjaya Khatua, Chakradhar Mishra, Mab Mishra and Rabi Jena (Sanvodaya worker), we published a magazine named ‘Upakala’ with bi-monthly issues. We started a people’s movement in the name of “Green Coast” for protection of the coastal environment and mangrove forests.

In that time in Rajnagar block, Orissa Government was providing land to refugee Bengalis. In name of providing land to refugees, the government and mafia planned to cut 1200 acres of Sonei-Rupei dense mangrove forests in 1990. The Tehsildar, B.DO and contractors set fire with petrol in the mangrove forest. Our Sabuj Bahini of the Green Coast movement and workers of Antyodaya Seva Kendra protected the forests and stopped the cutting. The Tehsildar of Rajnagar booked our leaders and myself under different charges. I took anticipatory bail but five of our friends stayed in jail for two months. We distributed leaflets – The cry of Sunei Rupei - where we argued that there was no need of land for migrated Bengali people. This was only a political game. This is a great challenge to the Orissa Govt. and political leaders of Kendrapada district. Finally the cutting stopped in Sunie Rupei mangrove forest. At that time we were all ready for any storm in the coastal belt, when waters of the Bay of Bengal comes into villages with high speed cyclonic storms.

We organized an interface workshop on the costal environment and invited senior scientists, social activists, educationalists, NGO friends, environmentalists, etc, but after workshop nobody bothered. In 1999 November a devastating cyclonic storm came affecting 14 districts along the coast, drowning thousands of people, cows, goats into the Bay of Bengal.

When I was involved in issue based people’s movement, some funder disagreed with our work and threatened to stop the support. Internal conflict star ted in the organization and I left voluntarily to take responsibility of local youth.

In 1992 my working partner Srimati Bhagavati started some welfare work among primitive tribes Junga and Bhuyan. She registered that organization in 1994. I was wandering, searching, analyzing evaluating my work - where am I and what direction should I go? I was conflicted and roaming like a mad man for two years within forests, staying with indigenous people, trying to live like and learn their language and understand their problems. I learnt many things which I have not read in books. Day by day, I became friends of the tribal people of Kendujhar. Another eye opened in my heart and I committed myself to work for the tribal people. I saw the land problems and different issues in mining pockets.

1995, Reo Tinto Zinc (RTZ) Limited, a London based company came to Gandamardan OMC iron mines. Cleverly they formed a new company “Orissa Reo Tinto Zinc Mining Company (OMC) Limited”. Very soon an MOU was signed between OMC and RTZ. In the prospective period RTZ would provide technical help, guidelines, testing etc. OMC would bear all expenditure of RTZ person and provide office support. They stared testing by digging a tunnel and taking the iron ore to Australia. They planned for 60 km of Malantolly and Gandhamardan (full of iron ore) to be transported to London over 15 years. RTZ planned to raise the iron one in a mechanized manner. In the prospective period Uparjagan natural stream dried and indigenous people suffered. We organized the tribals and organized a meli (convention). “Adivasi Milita Kriyanusthan Committee” was formed and we are demonstrated against RTZ in the district and block headquarters. We started no cooperation with RTZ people in the village level. The villagers did not allow them to access the mining area. We gave a memorandum to the President, Prime Minister, Governor and against Reo Tinto’s activities. We blocked NH5 and NH215 day after day long demonstration at Sukati and Kendihar town. RTZ was forced to leave Gandhamardan area.

This was the impact of collective leadership and peoples movement where tribals took leadership and faced the Government and RTZ in a non violent struggle. I try to visualize the mining situation of Kendujhar and what is going to happen in 10 to 15 years. I take leaders (men and women) to Badamapara area, where Tata has already completed mining. They see the real situation after mining. The natural streams have dried, forests are destroyed, tribal people have left their native land and migrated to Paradeep and Bhubaneswar to work as daily labour. There are dry destroyed naked hills all around. A good road was built, train line built, good houses constructed by the company, but after taking out all the iron ore, the company left this place, just like an anti-social person after his physical satisfaction, gives some token money to the tribal girl and leaves, not bothered about her future and self-respect.

Currently one hundred and thirty different iron ore mines are operational in Suakati, Baripal and Joda Badabil blocks. We suffer the impacts of increasing air pollution, degraded natural forests, a close-knit mafia has cut down all the sal trees. The natural streams have dried, the ground water is degraded. Agriculture lands and paddy fields are destroyed. There is cultural erosion in the name of civilization. There are unwed mothers and unwanted children, and increasing cases of HIV/STD/AIDS.

17,000 trucks are plying on NH 213 and everyday an accident happens. According the laws for rehabilitation laid down in the mining laws, the peripheral work is not satisfactory and affected people are not getting the benefits.

One RTZ went back, but other companies like RTZ have come in with mining leases. And the tribals have lost all they had – their forests, lands, and their homes.