The Hindu : National / Elections 2004 : Congress thriving on poverty

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Apr 17, 2004

National

National - Elections 2004

Congress thriving on poverty

Lyla Bavadam

Nandurbar

Of the four reserved parliamentary seats for the Scheduled Tribes in the State, Nandurbar in North Maharashtra has been traditionally a Congress seat, except in 1957, when the Praja Socialist Party candidate won. Manikrao Gavit, the sitting MP from the seat, has won every election since 1984; he is now seeking re-election for the seventh time.

Poverty has been the theme song of the Congress in Nandurbar, one that has proved so successful for the ruling Congress that the party seems loath to make any alterations. The theme has its well-worn motifs of roti, kapda aur makan and its rousing anthem of Garibi Hatao.

However, development in the real sense seems to have passed Nandurbar by. The district, with a population of five lakh, 62 per cent of whom are Adivasis, however shows evidence of a less desirable kind of growth: shopping centres, seedy hotels, beer bars, young men speeding on brand new motorcycles, and a 4x4 vehicles with darkened windows.

The Government has failed to capitalise on the district's natural advantages, including a low population density. Its wealth lies in its natural resources. The Tapi and Narmada rivers flow through the district; it has plenty of good agricultural land and vast tracts of forest. Yet Nandurbar remains a poverty-stricken district, with widespread malnutrition, high unemployment and a history of forced migration.

With 2, 53,413 ha of the total 5,03,423 ha under cultivation, agriculture is the mainstay here. However, no irrigation projects have been implemented here, though the area is known for its poor rainfall. Furthermore, since more than 800 villages depend on the kharif, or post-monsoon crop, the rains are especially crucial to farmers here. But the area lacks even a well-structured Employment Guarantee Scheme (EGS). With few EGS works operational in Nandurbar, those seeking work, primarily the Adivasis, are at the mercy of contractors. A bad monsoon means high profits for the contractors who hire tribal labour at lower than daily wage rates. These workers are then transported either to private construction sites or to Employment Guarantee schemes in Gujarat with the promise of higher wages, which are mostly pocketed by the contractors.

Industry has a negligible presence in the region. The 346 registered and running factories, two sugar factories and two cotton spinning mills have proved to be more profitable to the ruling elite than to the local population since there is minimal employment of local labour.

The 2,18,700 ha of forest are a boon only to the illegal timber mafia and to a growing number of organised wildlife poachers while the people who live in the forests lead a marginalised existence.

The Congress has not only played down the special economic needs of the Adivasi population but has also ignored another important subject — Adivasi education. On paper, Nandurbar boasts of 1,354 primary schools, 257 secondary schools, 17 higher education institutes and 19 technical and vocational training institutes. But a closer look at the statistics shows that more than half the local population is illiterate.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National