Elitist show shuns poor Adivasis

NASHIK, May 26: The two-day long sixth Adivasi Sahitya Sammelan (tribal literary conference) concluded here on Sunday, with educated tribal...

NASHIK, May 26: The two-day long sixth Adivasi Sahitya Sammelan (tribal literary conference) concluded here on Sunday, with educated tribals (mainly writers and government employees) making a mockery of issues concerning the plight of their less fortunate brethren.

The conference had been hosted by the Adivasi Sahitya Parishad and the staff union of the Tribal Development Department. Interestingly, the president of the Parishad was tribal writer Govind Gare, who, as an additional tribal commissioner in Thane, was one of the three officials accused of committing fraud to the tune of Rs 1.60 crore in purchase of articles for tribal ashram schools. The conference was mute on this issue.

The inaugural platform was shared with Lok Sabha speaker P A Sagma, by former Tribal Development Minister Madhukar Pichad, in whose tenure, Gowari tribals were killed agitating in front of the State Legislative Assembly in Nagpur. The incident was one of the poll plans of the BJP-Sena alliance, which wrested power from the Congress in Maharashtra, two years ago. The conference not only kept silent on the issues, but felicitated Gare and Pichad.

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The meet also ignored the much publicised `Navsanjivan Yojana’ of the Manohar Joshi Government, under which the first ever Grain Bank in the State had to be disbanded within 24 hrs of its inauguration in Bhawli in Igatpuri block of Nashik district, as officials of various government departments (including tribal officials) could not decide as to who would foot the bills for the 100 odd quintals of grain to be distributed to tribals of three villages in the region.

The conference overlooked the suggestions of Sangma, who, during the inauguration on Saturday, had suggested the opening up of schools in every tribal village, and the implementation of the provisions of the Sixth Schedule and Article 371 of the Constitution in all tribal areas to protect tribals from infiltration of `outsiders’, displacement and indiscriminate mining and exploitation of forest resources.

Instead, the conference chose to pass 23 resolutions to suit the elite and educated tribals like demanding a separate tribal university; translation of tribal research work from English to Marathi; inclusion of tribal dialects in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution; revision of the list of tribal communities action against `bogus’ tribals usurping benefits from quota reserved for tribals; memorials and celebration to honour tribal leaders.

The attack on the poet Gaddar was also condemned during the conference.