Many gram sabhas in Gadchiroli district have decided to contest the upcoming zila parishad elections to oppose mining operations in parts of the district.
A joint press statement issued by the gram sabhas from Ettapalli, Korchi and Dhanora division of the district said, “The lives of the people of this district are dependent on the forest land and the PESA and FRA acts have given them the ownership of this land. But the government has proposed around 25 mining projects, including the Surajagad project, to destroy our forest.”
It added, “The government and the political parties have continuously neglected the opposition to these projects by the local villagers. The gram sabhas have now decided to put up ‘people’s candidate’ in this zila parishad election.”
The tribals in Surjagad area of the district have been opposing mining operations that were being done in the area until December by Lloyd Metals.
The tribals have alleged that the shrines of their gods, situated on top of the hills where the mining is proposed, will be destroyed do to it. More than 100 gram sabhas have already passed a resolution opposing mining activities.
The gram sabhas have declared 11 candidates for zila parishad and panchayat samiti elections, which will be held later this month.
The statement added, “One of the main reason to contest this election is the attempts by the BJP, the Congress, the NCP, and the Shiv Sena to fuel tribal versus non-tribal conflict in our district by opposing the PESA Act. The political representatives were also silent when the gram sabhas were opposing the mining activities.”
The candidates fielded for the elections include activist Ramdas Jarate, who recently led a protest against the Surjagad mining project and the alleged rape of two tribal girls from Chhattisgarh by local policemen in Gadchiroli. He was arrested later when the girls denied the rape.
The gram sabhas have also published an 11 point public proclamation demanding strict implementation of the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act, the PESA and the FRA Act, immediate suspension of the mining projects in the district and have asked the government to respect the rights of gram sabhas over the forest, land, and water.
