Echoes of Maoist Surge Rumble in Silent Valley Buffer Zone

PALAKKAD: The finding of ballistic expert that Benny, 35, the photographer, was shot from a sophisticated revolver reinforced the fact that the Maoists are not only armed with weapons but are active in the forests which constitute the buffer zone of the Silent Valley.

Benny was killed when some people fired at him at midnight while he was fishing in Bhavani river near Chindakki ooru. Though the Maoists are trying to rake up the land alienation issue and the harassment by forest personnel,  in meetings convened in various oorus, they are yet to get any ground support from the tribals or the ooru moopans, said Thampu (Centre for Tribal Education, Development and Research) president Rajendra Prasad.Another grave fallout is that both the forest personnel and the watchers are now afraid to venture into the forests, for fear of the Maoists, which has given bootleggers and the ganja mafia to have a field day.Police sources said the Home department has been asked to send one more company of rapid action force numbering 100 members to Attappadi soon.ADGP (North zone) N Shankar Reddy when contacted said the operational details cannot be disclosed.

Already there are 100 members of Thunderbolt force in Attappadi. The police intelligence put the number of Maoists at 41 in Attappadi.Thampu secretary K A Ramu said the Maoists were actually seen in the oorus bordering the forests of Moolagangal, Gonjiyur, Vellakulam, Puliyara, Kallamala and Mukkali.Thampu president Rajendra Prasad said the activities of the Maoists are not only against democracy but also against the Constitution. “Though we have only 11 volunteers, we are reviving the Jagratha Samithis in various oorus in association with the Moopan Councils, Moopan Assembly and the Girijan Sevak Samithi (GSS)”, he said.

Moopan Assembly president Choriya Moopan, said that the Jagrata Samithis question strangers coming to various oorus and collect their telephone numbers.

Integrated Tribal Development Project (ITDP) tribal promoter P C Pazhaniswamy said the main issue of tribals is the alienation of land, which in turn has left the adivasis with no land to cultivate, and not Maoist threat.

“The main festival of the tribals is Sivarathri which they celebrate by trekking to Malleswaram hill. As per tradition, the tribals carry grain and exchange them with other fellow tribals so that all of them can cultivate crops for the next season. But now since the lands have been alienated, the tribals have no grains to exchange,” he said.He said another problem was the looming drought in the region. Tamil Nadu has constructed two checkdams both in the upper Bhavani and the lower Bhavani. Similarly, at Mulli, on the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border under the Kundah project also a checkdam has been constructed. If there was a natural flow of water to Attappadi, drinking water would have been available for at least 70 oorus.

The proposed dam at Chittur is also hanging fire. Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Eco Development and Tribal Welfare) Varghese K J said that of the 3,60,000 adivasis in the state, only 80,000 live in the forests. Under the ‘Oorinu unarvu, kadinu unarvu’ programme, all the 725 tribal settlements in the state located inside the forests will be given `1 lakh each within the next two years for connecting the ‘missing links’ between various departments. For example while drinking water pipes may have been laid, it would not have been commissioned due to lack of power. “Similarly, `214 lakh has been received from the National Medicinal Plant Board for setting up central processing units and storage yard  in 10 centres through which tribals will benefit. More than pumping resources, adivasis are in need of personal intervention,” said Varghese.

Source: http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/kerala/Echoes-of-Maoist-Surge-Rumble-in-Silent-Valley-Buffer-Zone/2015/02/16/article2671195.ece