MP tribals build dam without govt aid

BHOPAL: The rains are always welcome, but these tribals from drought-hit Betul district in Madhya Pradesh have another reason to breathlessly await the onset of

Published on: May 28, 2016, 07:46:40 IST

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BHOPAL: The rains are always welcome, but these tribals from drought-hit Betul district in Madhya Pradesh have another reason to breathlessly await the onset of the monsoon this year.

For the past five months, 30 to 35 Korku tribals from Markhandhana village have been toiling tirelessly every day to construct a check dam over the Mandu Kheda stream. The structure – measuring 40 metres in length and 16 feet in height – is almost ready, and the ‘builders’ cannot wait to see it fill up with water once the rains start.

The tribals planned, designed and constructed the dam without any aid from the government. “For Korku tribals, life means jal, jungle aur zameen (water, forests and land)… We have been battling drought and water shortage for many years now, and the government didn’t seem keen on helping. So we decided to construct the check dam on our own,” said Sumar Lal Korku, a tribal from Markadhana village who was in the forefront of the project.

The Korkus are a scheduled tribe found primarily in the Betul, Harda, Khandwa, Burhanpur and Chhindwara districts of Madhya Pradesh.

According to Sumar Lal, the project will resolve many problems faced by tribals in the area. “The check dam will provide water for our cattle as well as bathing and washing activities. It will also be used to water fruit trees in the region and make our forests richer,” he said.

Activist Anurag Modi, who has been working in Betul for over a decade now, praised the tribals for taking the initiative to improve the water situation in the area. “The tribals will use the water not only for their personal needs but also to grow trees in the nearby forest, where they have planted more than 9,000 trees over the years,” he said.

Sumar Lal and his friends are also digging a 40-foot-deep well in the village. “They have dug five to six feet till now, and are going strong. The well will provide drinking water to the residents of Markhandhana,” said Betul-based tribal activist Rajendra Gadwal.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neeraj Santoshi
Neeraj Santoshi is the Chief of Bureau for Hindustan Times in Uttarakhand, where he leads the state reporting team while covering government, politics, environment, wildlife, Uttarakhand High Court, and issues shaping the Himalayan region. With more than two decades in journalism across conflict zones, he has covered politically sensitive regions and environmentally fragile landscapes, and focused on stories that combine public interest with in-depth storytelling. An alumnus of Pune University with a Master’s in Communication Studies, he has reported extensively from Jammu & Kashmir (2003-2010), Madhya Pradesh (2010 to 2018 ) and Uttarakhand (Since 2018), covering subjects ranging from insurgency, elections and governance to wildlife conservation, mining, climate change, agriculture, human rights and social justice. He has covered politics and legislative assemblies of both Jammu & Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh over more than a decade. Before taking over as Chief of Bureau in Uttarakhand, he served as Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times in Madhya Pradesh and earlier reported for both Hindustan Times and The Indian Express in Jammu & Kashmir, where he covered state politics, environment and insurgency-related developments. Over the years, his stories have focused on environmental degradation, wildlife, illegal mining, governance and the changing social fabric of Himalayan states and Central India. He is particularly interested in long-form explanatory journalism, and stories that explore the intersection of ecology, conservation, governance and society. Outside the newsroom, Neeraj enjoys reading widely on neuroscience, consciousness studies, Artificial Intelligence and quantum physics, with a special interest in Kashmiri Tantric Shaivist traditions. He is also passionate about wildlife, mountaineering and the Himalayas, interests that continue to inform his reporting and deepen his understanding of the region he covers.Read More

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