23 September 2013, 05:37 PM IST
It was a green carpet welcome, at least that's what we would like to call it. The green moss on the footpath outside the gates served as a natural carpet. A road inside the gates led to immaculately-manicured lawns and a leviathan colonial relic –the Raj Bhavan of Madhya Pradesh. But for the villagers of Mahan forests, Singrauli, the road led to hope. They may finally get an answer to the letter that Union tribal minister, V Kishore Chandra Deo wrote to the governor about violations of Forest Rights Act in forests of Mahan in Singrauli.
It is the day before Independence Day. We are outside the governor's mansion – a building that stands pompously in the heart of Bhopal. Sultan Shah Jahan, the Begum of Bhopal had constructed it in 1880 to pacify/ entertain/ appease British officers. Now it is the abode of the governor of Madhya Pradesh.
The villagers from Amelia and Budher, visibly awed by the sheer magnificence of the mansion, had travelled 24 hours, across 700 kilometers from Singrauli to meet the governor, with a request – 'save our homes'. A chunk of 1182.351 hectares of land in the forest has been earmarked for mining coal. Allocated to Mahan Coal Ltd the mine would result in the loss of livelihoods for 62 villages, out of which 14 are completely dependent on the forests for their survival.
The wait
Not more than eight people were allowed inside the heavily-guarded gates. About ten minutes ago, the gates had opened to accommodate members of Mahan Sangharsh Samiti inside the Raj Bhavan compound. I along with a few other colleagues and four villagers from Amelia and Budher found solace in sitting outside, on the moss-covered footpath.
"I don't like the city life. We are much better off in our villages. The forests, clean air and abundant water –you won't get such luxuries in the city," declares Haridayal Singh Gond. At 21, he is one of the few graduates in Amelia. He completed his BCA from Raj Narayan Singh Smriti College Waidhan. "I am the only person in my family to go to college. My two other older siblings could not go to school," he says. However, his younger brother, following in his footsteps, is studying in Class VIII in a school in Waidhan.
Haridayal has the same old mundane aspirations – try for a master's degree, get a job, get married and have kids. But somewhere sandwiched in the humdrum of these aspirations, is a dream – a dream to keep his forests intact. "The dream has now turned into a mission and given me a new direction in life."
"I may eventually go out to work. But the forest is and will remain my home. I grew up here. Just like the trees and animals, we too have deep roots in the forests that have strengthened over several decades," says Haridayal.
Owing to his attachment to the forest, he has no plans to succumb to the temptation of a job offered by Mahan Coal Ltd. "I would consider it a sin. I am a graduate. I might get a job. But what about others? There is no guarantee of jobs for people without a degree or any other academic qualification. So the question of allowing the company to mine in the forests does not arise," asserts Hridayal and adds, "The promises being made in the name of development seem hollow."
The gates open
The conversation continues. It has been over an hour. The exit gates open and let out the delegation of villagers, who went to meet the governor. Their faces were long and tired. The governor had completely dismissed all their pleas.
A day before members of the civil society in Bhopal had come together to demand an answer from chief minister Madhya Pradesh regarding the forest rights violation in Mahan forests.
The governor's reaction after the overwhelming support from civil society groups proved to be a dampener for the villagers who had been optimistic about the meeting till this morning. "It appeared as if mahamahim did not want to listen to us at all. He found faults with everything we did. He even refused to look at the memorandum we presented to him and hear us out about how our signatures were forged during the special Gram Sabha on Forest Rights Act (on March 6 this year)," Jag Narayan Shah tells me, on our way back to Gandhi Dham, where they were lodged.
Twenty-eight-year-old Jag Narayan is another graduate from Amelia, who joined the Mahan Sangharsh Samiti after a public meeting on August 4. The meeting saw the participation of 11 villages – Amelia, Budher, Bandhaura, Piderwah, Bandha, Barwantola, Berdaha, Jamgadhi, Khanuakhas, Pedtali and Badalmada. Before the meeting members of MSS undertook a five-day Yatra on foot across these 11 villages to garner support.
Jag Narayan used to work on contract basis at Essar's thermal plant (which will get the coal from Mahan coal block) as a Supervisor. "I quit two months back. I realized something was amiss. I was on contract with the company," he says. The job fetched him Rs 10,500 a month, including cell phone and fuel reimbursements.
Jag Narayan may take up another job in some other place. He has kept his options open. But like Haridayal, he has no plans to give away the forests. "My work now is to save our homes and the forests along with farming," says Jag Narayan, who has 3.20 acres of land in his name. Armed with a Master's degree in political science and post graduate diploma in computer applications, Jag Narayan's education has been punctuated. "I completed my education from four different schools as there aren't any good schools here. The government should open better schools instead of cutting open up the Earth for mining."
He grew up playing in the forests popping tendu fruits at regular intervals. "The forest is just half a kilometer from my place. As a child, I would take our cattle to the forest for grazing. I left them there in the custody of the village herdsman and collected them in the evening. My 10-year-old son does that now. But I make sure he has completed his homework before going off to the forest."
Jag Narayan has two more children – his daughter is nine years old, while his youngest child is a six-year-old boy. "Sometimes my daughter also accompanies my father, when he goes into the forest during the mahua picking season."
Picking mahua flowers in the months of March and April fetches them between Rs 30,000 to Rs 35,000 on an average. Jag Narayan's grandfather came to Amelia in 1958 from Situl Khurd village as mahua collection from the forests was considered a more profitable option.
"My grandfather turned 102 this year. Over the decades, the forest has been a pillar of support for my grandfather." But now that pillar quakes with every passing day. The forest has lost its charm, ever since power plant appeared in the horizon. "We can no longer hear the tiger's roar. We can't see too many stars now. The smoke billowing from the chimneys clouds the sky. The mosquitoes too have found the courage to encroach our villages," complains Jag Narayan.
His grandfather, with his failing eyesight, thankfully, is not able to witness this gradual decay. Now would he be able to see Jag Narayan's sad, dejected face when he reaches Amelia. Thank you, anyway Mahamahim for the green carpet welcome.
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