Tribals hardest hit by India’s economic ‘boom’: Study

19 December, New Delhi: Over 1.4 million have been displaced by industrial projects over the last decade in just four states – Andhra Pradesh, Chhatisgarh, Jharkhand and Orissa – says new research by ActionAid, Indian Social Institute and LAYA.

Scheduled tribes make up over 79 per cent of those displaced in areas surveyed while tribals constitute a mere 8.2 per cent of India’s total population.

“Large-scale displacement induced by India’s dogged pursuit of economic growth is ousting adivasis from land, livelihood, ancestral homes and places of worship,” says Bratindi Jena who leads ActionAid’s work on tribal rights.

“Tribal communities are increasingly under attack from projects in the name of development,” she adds.

In the four resource rich states a whopping 10.2 million acres (28 times the size of the capital territory of Delhi) has been acquired for projects including mines, dams and industrial plants.

Worst offenders on the human cost yardstick according to the study are Vedanta refinery project (Orissa), Pollavaram dam (Andhra Pradesh), TATA iron-ore project (Chhattisgarh) and Subarnrekha multi-purpose project (Jharkhand).

Gobindha Marin of Bandhaguda village near the bauxite refinery built by Vedanta says “They took our farming land. They left some houses. They took the cremation ground, temple, well, pond. How will we survive?”

The study points to a strong correlation between attempts to exploit minerals, forest and rivers on an industrial scale and growing impoverishment and human rights violations of local people.

“Tight-knit indigenous communities driven off their land are now dispersed and destitute. They have lost their social safety net and access to forests and streams they once depended on,” Jena adds. “Rightly they are asking “development for whom?”

Sukli Majhi, a 45-year-old widow, from Narengdani village in Lanjigarh shares some of the concerns of tribal women living near to industrial projects:

“We normally bathe outside in rivers and streams. But now with the company, many strange men are coming. We feel very uncomfortable. The way they stare at us and the way they behave make us fearful to walk around on our own. Now the women move around in groups.”

Of more than 1700 displaced people surveyed, 66 per cent say they have not been resettled and had to find a new place to live on their own. Work is not available to the majority of people after displacement and resettlement sites lack basic civic amenities which the communities enjoyed before displacement.

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Eighty six per cent of respondents say they are actively resisting projects through people’s movements. Fear and anger are the most common feelings expressed.

All states have seen a rise in both peaceful and violent protest. This is increasingly being met by aggressive state response.

“We won’t leave. We are mountain people if we go somewhere else we will die. We will live here and die here,” says Kumthadi Vadaka a woman living in Rayagada, Orissa.

The study questions the model of development adopted by India which is alienating vulnerable sections of society.

Babu Mathew, Country Director of ActionAid India says: "Economic growth must not be at the cost of India’s tribal communities. The challenge is not just to talk about making growth inclusive, but to make inclusive growth a reality. One step in this direction is to ensure a safety net for the poorest groups and that welfare schemes reach the people for whom they are intended. Rights enshrined in the Constitution must be made good for all citizens, not just the fortunate few."

ENDS.

For information and to arrange interviews contact: ActionAid media team: Alice +91 9810 92 3904, Pragya +91 9868 42 4692, Anjali +91 9899 37 0715

Notes to editor:

Researchers reviewed 22,755 gazette notifications (for land acquisition) and 3630 official documents on projects involving displacement to establish figures on numbers affected.

The study conducted by Indian Social Institute, and ActionAid can be seen as a continuation of research by Walter Fernandes and his team on development-induced displacement and rehabilitation.

Special protection for tribals accorded in Indian Constitution and legislations include:

The V and VI Schedule; PESA (Panchayat Extension of Schedule Areas) Act, 1996; Schedule Tribes and Other Forest Dwellers Act 2006

The International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention No. 169  is an international  legal instrument that broadly sets forth binding provisions for the protection of indigenous people’s rights, inspired by respect for their cultures, ways of life and traditional forms of organisations. India

LAYA an NGO based in Vishakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh) has been working on indigenous rights for 25 years.

The Indian Social Institute (New Delhi) is a research organisation which works towards strengthening people's movements, particularly among the scheduled castes/dalits, tribals/indigenous peoples and other marginalised communities.

ActionAid is an international anti-poverty agency working in over 40 countries, taking sides with poor people to end poverty and injustice together. In India ActionAid works with some 300 civil society organisations and over 12 million poor and excluded people in 24 states. www.actionaidindia.org

Download Executive Summary of the Report Exe_Summary.pdf