Neglect forces many tribals to migrate every year in Search of work.
Government officials in the Dangs discount the possibility of Naxalism taking root among the tribes of the area. “Dangis are peace-loving people,” said an official working on schemes for the uplift of the tribal people of the Dangs district. “They are unlikely to become Naxalites.”
The official may be correct to an extent but DNA found an undercurrent of discontent that may be lead to serious social unrest in the district. It is because of this discontent that Dangis have frequently been linked with Naxalism.
Nearly 50,000 tribal people migrate every year to nearby places such as Nasik, Shirdi, Bardoli and Surat to work at the sugar mills there. For almost eight months in a year, they work at these mills and live in ghettos in sub-human conditions.
This reporter spotted hundreds of locked houses in the Dangs as their occupants had gone away to work at other places. In Dholiaumber village, the hut of one of the nine nayaks of Bhil rulers, Umriya Rahirao Desmukh Palasvihir Nayak, was also found locked. Locals said he and his family were working at a sugar mill in Shirdi.
Migration is such a big problem that intelligence sources in the area say that the migrant labourers could one day become the torch-bearers of rebellion.
The apathy of government officials towards the Dangs tribals has only worsened their condition. Most officials posted in the district don’t bother to mingle with the local people. A Gandhian of the area, Ghelubhai Nayak, said, “If you don’t love the jungle and its people, you should not come to this place.” Government officials suspect some people — one Avinash Kulkarni is one such suspect — of trying to foment leftwing trouble in the area.
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