Villages in East Singhbhum seek ban on non-tribals, allege encroachments

Ahead of World Indigenous People Day on August 9, tribal people from over two dozen villages and tollahs in Haludbani and Purihasa gram sabhas in East Singhbhum district of Jharkhand have decided to ban the settlement of non-tribals in their villages. Two dozen villages in Haludbani and Purihasa gram sabhas in East Singhbhum district decided to ban the settlement of non-tribals A meeting of traditional village heads, under the Majhi-Pargana self-governance system, and villagers unanimously decided that non-tribal people would henceforth be disallowed to build houses, flat complexes, and settlements in villages, with a majority tribal population, as this has been adversely affecting their social, cultural, religious rituals, and worship system, people familiar with the developments said on Monday. Then many flat complexes have come up in the area without any knowledge of the gram sabha, despite it being the supreme decision-making body in tribal self-governance system areas like East Singhbhum district under the fifth schedule of the Constitution,” Mardi told HT. In a similar development, hundreds of villagers from Purihasa, Sundernagar, Nildungri, Jondragoda, and about 23 villages and tollahs under the Purihasa gram sabha also brought out a rally, led by Purihasa majhi baba Bhokta Hansda, in protest of mushrooming flat complexes in the rural areas of Purihasa under Sundernagar police station.