On
November 14, 2018 the Ananda Bazar Patrika carried a report of 7 alleged
starvation deaths amongst the Lodha Sabar Community (declared as Particularly
Vulnerable Tribal Group or PVTGs by the Government) at a village called Jangal
Khas in Binpur 1 block of Jhargram district. A team from the Right to Food and Work
Campaign West Bengal visited the area on 19th November 2018 to
investigate the incidents.
While
in the area, we got reports that another four people from the same community
had been hospitalised, and one of them had died on the way to the hospital. So
we visited their villages, Jhitka and Bhumi Dhansol, also under Binpur 2.
The
names of team members and the people we spoke to are given in Annexure 1. Our
main findings are given below
It Is A Crime to Be Hungry
The
most striking thing about the investigation was the persistent, overwhelming
presence of the police. The entry to Jangal Khas village was guarded by two
uniformed police men with rifles. They were assisted by two sub inspectors,
along with three or four policemen in civil dress. They were accompanied by
several well-dressed young men from the Mahato and Santhal community, who
explained that they were there to “help” the Lodha Sabars, who are unable to
talk properly. Despite having given them explanations about the reason of our
visit, they insisted in following us and eavesdropping whenever we spoke to
anyone in the village.
The
village was fear-ridden. Some adults ran and hid in a nearby forest as soon as
the police entered the village. No one was willing to talk openly and freely,
and our investigation had to be carried out furtively.
In
Bhumi Dhansol and Jhitka , we heard that on 17th November 2018, a
police force had descended on the village to “capture” 4 unwell Lodha Sabars.
Sub Inspector Somen Sinha Mahapatra , who was in charge of this “operation”, told
us that this has been an exclusive police action, with no involvement of the
health officials. The police had used its civic police volunteers to find out
who was unwell in the village and then had forcibly picked them up. The BMOH,
who should normally be in charge of health issues had no idea about police
action or about the patients.
 |
| Lt Janata Shabar of Bhumidhanshol |
No information had been provided to the families about the whereabouts and health of the 4. One of the older women (about 60) Janata Sabar, had died on the way to the hospital. Her dead body was brought back by the police while we were in the village.
Lalita
Sabar, wife of Subhas Sabar, was very anxious, but too frightened to make
enquiries about her husband. She had three children and an old mother in law,
so it was not possible for her to visit him in the hospital. She also did not
know where he was admitted.
The
general opinion that we got from the administration and other non- Sabars was
that Sabars as a community were afraid of going to hospital and relied more on
their own herbs for treatment. Their reluctance to go to hospital had led to
their deaths according to the administration, which was now following the senseless
policy of using police to forcibly admit ill people to the hospital. This we
felt would only increase their fear and reluctance.
Alcoholism and Other Social Stigma
The
general picture given by the administration at the block, the BMOH and the police,
along with local muscle men of the Mahato or Santhal communities was that Lodha
Sabars were heavy drinkers. According to them, all the deaths had been caused
by liver diseases, induced by excessive drinking or by old age.
All
the people (other than Sabars) we spoke to give us anecdotes to show that Lodha
Sabars were very honest- they would take money to buy liquor, drink and then
work the next day to return the money.
The
BDO informed us that he had found out after the deaths that liquor was being
supplied to the entire area by an illicit den in Chandabila village of
Purnapani Panchayat. This has since been destroyed.
When
we raised the issue of TB, this was also blamed on excessive drinking. It was
agreed that TB was highly prevalent in the community. Yet its relationship with
poor nutritional status was not acknowledged by the administration.
We
found that the DOT program of ASHA workers coming to administer the drug at
home every day was not followed. This was very apparent in the case of Mangal
Sabar (who had TB and died of alleged starvation). According to his father, no
one came to administer the TB medicine. They had to collect it themselves.
Sometimes they would get confused with the timing and Mangal would miss the
dose.
In
case of Mangal Sabar, we were also told by the BMOH that he was allergic to the
TB medicines, but by the time they sent him to remedy the situation, he died.
According to the MDMS Nodal Officer, there was also an amount of Rs.500 per
month available for TB patients as a nutritional supplement but no one had
received this money in the past.
A
general stigma seemed to exist about the community. All of them were painted
with the same black brush and referred to as “they’- as a subhuman race that
understood very little, was uneducated, frightened of going to hospitals,
preferred to live in the jungle and was afraid of modern society. Historically,
the Lodha Sabars are a community that was declared a criminal tribe by the
British and this stigma has stuck to them till very recently. They were
arrested whenever there was a robbery, even when there was no proof of their
involvement. Surprisingly, we heard from Sub Inspector Somen Sinha Mahapatra
that at Lalgarh police station, there were no records of crimes where Sabars
were involved for the past 10 years.
Cause of Death and Nutritional Status
It
is possible by the verbal autopsy procedure submitted to the Supreme Court[1] by
Supreme Court Commissioners to determine cause of death of people alleged to
have died of starvation. However, in this case, it was very difficult to gather
detailed information with the police on constant vigil.
A
Government health team had gone in for a verbal autopsy to determine cause of
death, but the BMOH and the Public Health Nurse were certain that questions on
nutritional history did not form a part of their enquiry. As the questions seem
to avoid nutritional history, the conclusions that they came to were that
people died of liver diseases due to excessive drinking or due to old age.
The
information we could gather is given below.
By
observation, we found almost all people from the Lodha Sabar community (adults
as well as children) to be stunted in growth and suffering from anaemia. There
is however no information available with the BMOH on the health status of the
Lodha Sabars, except for information with the ICDS staff on health and
nutritional status of children and pregnant mothers. There too, we were told by
the Public Health Nurse, separate information on Lodha Sabars would not be
available.
Cooking
is done generally once a day. Most families eat twice a day- early in the
morning before leaving for work and in
the evening after cooking a meal. This information was given to us by Rebati
Sabar (Daughter-in-law of Sudhir Sabar, one of the people who has died in
Jungal Khas); Lalita Sabar (wife of Subhas Sabar from Bhumi Dhansol who has
been forcibly admitted in the hospital by the police); Basanti and Sisir Sabar
of Bhumi Dhansol, whose neighbours have been forcibly taken to hospital;
Judishter and Gopen Sabar (sons of Suchi Sabar from Jhitika, who has been
forcibly admitted in the hospital
The
BMOH confirmed that Sabar families ate only twice a day. Kripasindhu Sabar , the Block president of
the Lodha Sabar Kalyan Samity, informed us that diets are generally very poor
with food grains being the main item consumed. There is very little or no
consumption of milk, fruits, vegetables, fish, meat and eggs.
Tunu
Sabar (Father of Mongol Sabar, 28 years old who has also died in Jungal Khas)
stated that they have food only twice a day and, besides rice, have only
spinach collected from forests and field even in the time when his son was
suffering from TB.
Many
who are old or single or disabled eat once a day and only a few eat three meals
a day.
Anjan
Mahato and Sunil Murmu (young men who were “overseeing” the enquiry in Jungal
Khas) said people had sufficient to eat, but were unable to give an explanation
for the community kitchen being run by the Government at the moment, if hunger
was not a problem. When the team asked them why government had arranged to feed
people if they don’t have any problem with food and what is the reason of TB, he
started chuckling and said “this is one kind of ritual that if anything bad
happens then Sabars get cooked food like this for some days.”
Economic Condition
All
the families in Jangal Khas we spoke to were landless. However Anjan Mahato,
who claimed to be the owner of 10-12 bighas of land claimed that all the Sabars
had 10 kottahs of land.
The Sabars we spoke to claimed to receive
Rs.100 – Rs.130 for a day’s work in agriculture. The work hours varied from 5
hours of work to 7 hours of work. In some cases, they were given a small amount
of Muri (puffed rice) to eat in the afternoon. The statutory minimum wage for
agricultural workers in West Bengal is Rs.244 from July 2018. There is obviously
no attempt to enforce this wage.
There
is, however, the prevalence of “dadan “or advances, leading to even lower wages
. Anjan Mahato who owns land claimed to help the Sabars by providing them with
small loans in the off season which they drank away (he claimed). He took back
his loan by making them work on his land during the agricultural season at low
wages.
Work
in agriculture is available only during the sowing and harvesting season, as
the area in mono-cropped. At other times, the people of Jangal Khas depend on
the forest for their livelihood. They collect sal leaves and make bowls with
the same. 1000 such bowls sell for Rs.60-50. It takes 8 days to collect make
and dry such bowls.
In
addition, they also collect and sell firewood, one load selling for Rs.70-80. This
would be one person’s earning for a day’s work.
Housing
Destitution
was clearly visible in the condition of the houses of three of the people who
had died whom we were able to talk to.
The
late Sudhir Sabar’s house is a small hut with a roof somehow covered with
straw. After the death of Sudhir Sabar, the family received a tarpaulin to
cover the roof from the State Government.
The
late Krishan Sabar lived in a small,
broken hut, with a straw roof which is too ragged to cover the entire hut. Their
assets consist of a few utensils (a sauce pan and a small pot to cook rice). The
walls of the hut were almost all broken.
Late
Mangal Sabar’s hut is dilapidated. One side of the house is completely broken,
and the other wall is made of dried palm leaves. After Mangal’s death, the
family got a tarpaulin from the Government. Mangal's father has used this to
cover one broken side of the hut, but the other side is still semi-open. A
house under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana has now been sanctioned and bricks were
being delivered the day we were there.
 |
House of Late Mangal Sabar |
There
is no electricity and the only source of drinking water is an open well.
Source of
drinking Water
Relief Measures
After
news of the deaths has emerged, the Government has started a community kitchen
at Jangal Khas. According to Anjan Mahato, this is a standard intervention that
the Government starts every time there is any problem in the area, including
trouble during the Lalgarh movement.
Gratuitous
relief (GR) of food grains has also been provided to the families in Jangal
Khas. A health team to investigate deaths first and later to provide treatment
has also visited the village. In addition, according to the BMOH, a homeopathic
doctor is visiting the village and another Sabar Village (Dahijuri) regularly.
There are also plans to send a Mobile Medical Unit under NHRM run by an NGO,
MANT.
We
also found bricks being unloaded to build a house for Mangal Sabar’s family.
Government Schemes and Entitlements
Forest Rights Act: - Despite
being largely forest dependent in their life style and for their livelihoods,
no one in Jangal Khas (including the Mahatos and Santhals) have heard of the
Forest Rights Act. So none of them have community or individual pattas, and
instead face harassment from the Forest Department when foraging and gathering
in the forest.
MGNREGA:-While
all the people we talked to have heard about the MGNREGA, we did not meet a
single person who had received work under this Act. We were informed that no
work had been done in this financial year. Many of those we spoke to had no job
cards ( e.g. Tunu Sabar ,father of late Mongol Sabar of Jangal Khas ; Ratan
Sabar in Jangal Khas; Lalita Sabar , wife of Subhas Sabar , who is in hospital;
Sisir and Basanti Sabar, their neighbours; the family members of Rani Sabar ,
who has also been forcibly admitted to hospital ).
Anjan
Mahato, a land owner in Jangal Khas said job cards had not been “renewed” by
the Sabar families, so they did not get work.
Members
of the Sabar community also informed us that people do not want to do MGNREGA
work, even though the wages are higher, because they get paid after a long
time, while Sabar families actually need daily payment to be able to buy food
the same day for survival. The BDO and the Nodal Officer for MDMS confirmed
this. In fact the BDO has already sent a report to the DM on this matter and
agreed to send a second letter asking for special provision of daily payment.
Food grains: -
We managed, despite police presence, to get detailed information on the food
grains received in rations by four families, which is given below. All the
families are getting less than their entitlement as PVTG families of Antodaya
Yojana (AAY) rations of 35 kgs per family per month or 8.75 kgs per week:-
1.
Khukumoni Sabar (Wife of Lt. Krishan
Sabar)
6
kgs of rice and 2 packets of atta per week or 7.5 kgs per week, which amounts
to 30 kgs of food grains per month. This is less than AAY entitlement of 35 kgs
per month per family.
2.
Tunu Sabar (Father of Lt. Mongol Sabar
28 years)
7
kgs of rice and atta per week or 28 kgs per month. This is less than AAY
entitlement of 35 kgs per month per family.
3.
Sisir Sabar and Basanati Sabar
(neighbours in Bhumi Dhansol)
1.5
kg per person for a week (adult) and 1 kg for per week children , amounting to
6 kgs per week for a 5 member family (2 adults and three children ) or 24 kgs
per month, which is less than AAY entitlement of 35 kgs per month per family.
4.
Lalita Sabar (wife of Subhas Sabar , who
is forcibly admitted to hospital)
Family
with 3 adults and 3 children. They get 6 kg rice per week and 2 packets of Atta
or 7.5 kgs per week. This amounts to 30 kgs per month, which is less than AAY
entitlement of 35 kgs per month per family.
There
were general complaints about the quality of the food grains, especially the
atta, which had insects in it. Also, rations generally lasted for 3-4 days in a
week for a family after which they have to buy rice.
Even
if families were to get their full entitlement of 35 kgs under AAY (7 kgs per
head for family of 5) or 8 kgs of food grains per month from the special Khadya
Saathi program of the State Government for LWE (Left Wing Extremists) affected
areas, this is half of the monthly requirement per adult of 14 kgs per month or
467 gms per day.
MDMS and ICDS:- While a detailed survey of these schemes was
not possible, we found that the general impression was that they were running
properly, at least in terms of providing children and pregnant mothers with an
additional snack or meal (Mamoni Sabar in Jangal Khas). However, the problem
seemed to be that most Sabar children do not go to school. So, while they are
covered by ICDS till they are 6 years old, if they do not go to school after
that they remain uncovered.
As
all the families do not cook or eat in the afternoon, having just two meals a
day, the MDMS or ICDS meal was very important for children. The difference the MDMS made was quite
visible, for example amongst Lalita Sabar’s daughters. The eldest one is going
to school (Class 5) and looked clean and healthier, while her younger daughter
and son do not go to school and are too
old for the ICDS centre.
Old Age, Widow and Disability Pensions: - None
of the people we met, or the people who died (supposedly of old age, as per the
Government’s report) received old age, widow or disability pensions.
Aadhar and Bank Accounts: - A
serious problem seems to be that most people do not have Aadhar cards or bank
accounts, excluding them from many schemes.
PMMVY: - The
mandatory maternity benefit scheme for mothers has not been started in the
block as yet, due to computer related problems, according to the BMOH.
Conclusion
In
conclusion, did the 7 Lodha Sabars die of starvation? This is a question which
has even rocked the Assembly and forced the Chief Minister to make a statement,
denying starvation as a cause of death.
Is
it an important question, we in turn would like to ask? Or is it important that
we have a community of about 1 lakh (87 thousand in the 2001 Census) that
suffers from endemic poverty and that is in need of urgent welfare
intervention?
We
would urge enforcement of minimum wages, implementation of MGNREGA,
distribution of pulses and cooking oil along with food grains through the
rationing system, distribution of forest land pattas, extension of the midday
meal programme to all children and destitute, regular health check-ups.
These
would be better steps, rather than policing with guns and forcibly admitting
the dying to hospitals.
Comments
Post a Comment