On June 30, 2021, 35 families or around 200 individuals, majority of whom belonged to tribal communities and few were Dalits, were forcibly evicted from Bhatapani and Dumerpani hamlets in Sahajkhol Reserve Forest under Ampani police station area of Koksara block in Kalahandi district of Odisha. The eviction was said to have been initiated by the members of Vana Surakshya Samiti (VSS) or forest protection committee from neighbouring Gotomunda village with alleged tacit support from the forest officials.[i] The VSS are constituted at the village level by the Government of Odisha for the protection of “Reserved Forests, Protected forests, Village forests, Revenue forests etc. not covered under Protected Areas” under Joint Forest Management system.[ii]
The tribal communities and Dalits have been living at Dumerpani and Bhatapani hamlets in Kalahandi district for the last 25 years. They had originally migrated from neighbouring Nabarangpur district of Odisha. They eked out a living by cultivating maize in the forest land and as daily wage earners. They have already enrolled themselves as voters of Kalahandi district, have Aadhaar cards as residents of Kalahandi district and getting government scheme benefits.[iii] But the state government has not yet recognized their rights over the forest land under the Forest Rights Act, 2006.
The evicted families fled to neighbouring Nabarangur district. Fifteen families were housed in a primary school building in Kuhudi under Chandahandi block while the rest are taking shelter in polythene tents in a jungle near Dahimal village of Jharigam block. According to social activist, Humeswar Hanse who has visited the families sheltered in Chandahandi block, there were 11 kids under five years of age, 17 between 5-10 years and 7 women who needed immediate medical attention due to deteriorating health conditions.[iv] In a report dated August 9, 2021, the District Magistrate, Kalahandi informed the NHRC that all the evicted families have been provided ration cards and 22 families have already been provided with homes under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY)/ Biju Pucca Ghar Yojana (BPGY) housing schemes. The remaining families will also soon be under the housing schemes.[v]
Collusion between Forest Department and VSS
District Forest Officer (DFO) South Division T Ashok Kumar in a media interview has denied the involvement of the forest department in the eviction.[vi] However, according to Dilip Kumar Das, a human rights activist from Kalahandi, the local forest department officials were secretly involved in this particular eviction of the tribals and the Dalits on June 30.[vii] He claims that the incidents of evictions have been going on for several years and alleged that the forest officials of Kalahandi had demolished and burned down houses of tribals and forest dwellers in the past. He cited a case wherein the forests officials had burnt down the houses of the tribals in neighbouring Birimuhan village in 2015 or 2016.
In that attack at Birimuhan, all their houses of tribals were burnt, household belongings were damaged and tribals were assaulted. At that time, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) declared the Birimuhan village “as revenue village and no evictions were to be carried out without rehabilitation.” Das noted that, after Birimuhan case, forest department personnel are not coming to the forefront but are instead instigating the local people (non-tribals) to do the mischief (of evicting tribals).
For the eviction on June 30, Das submitted a complaint to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC). His complaint alleged that “the said miscreants are the members of VSS promoted by the Forest Department officials of Kalahandi who were threatening the tribals and Scheduled Castes [i.e. Dalit] families of Dumerpani and Bhatapani hamlets for the last few years.”[viii] He also noted that one of the methods adopted to harass the tribals was forcible collection of donations by the non-tribals of the neighbouring villages. He said, “Non-tribals have been collecting ‘donations’ to the tune of Rs. 15,000-20,000 in the name of various ‘pujas’ (festivals), but this year the tribals failed to contribute due to the economic hardships brought by Covid-19 lockdown.” He asserted that “it was the immediate cause of the conflict and eviction.”
Subsequently, after the attack, the victims filed a case (FIR No. 56/21)[1]at the Ampani police station in Kalahandi district in connection with the eviction. However, Das alleged that the forest officials and the attackers (non-tribals) have been using the “peace meeting”[2] to pressurize the victims to withdraw the police case.
Actions from the National Human Rights Commission
On July 12, 2021 the NHRC said, “The allegations made by the complainant are grave as the State cannot adopt such illegal tactics against the poor villagers belonging to the lower strata of the society.” They issued notices to the Additional Chief Secretary/ Principal Secretary, Department of Forest, Government of Odisha, the District Magistrate, Kalahandi and the Superintendent of Police, Kalahandi to “take the needful actions in the matter and submit an action taken report to the Commission within six weeks.”[ix]
In response to the NHRC’s notice, the District Magistrate, Kalahandi in a communication dated August 9, 2021 submitted the enquiry reports of District Magistrate, Nabarangpur; Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM), Dharamgarh; and Divisional Forest Officer (South). The report of the SDM, Dharamgarh stated that “during enquiry it was found that 15 families of Dumerpani hemlet and 20 families of Bhatapani hamlet of revenue families have encroached about 80 hectare of land inside the Sahajkhol Reserve Forest and cases were registered against encroachers in the year of 2013-14.” At the same time, the 35 displaced families of Bhatapani and Dumerpani hamlets informed the enquiry team that “they were forcibly vacated from their houses by the villagers of revenue village Gotamunda who have vandalized their houses, damaged their stored grain and butchered their domestic animals. Subsequently a FIR in Ampani PS on 02.07.2021 was registered against the villagers of Gotamunda.” The SDM stated that “displaced families could not be settled in the suit land as the disputed encroached land is located inside the Reserve Forest and settlement through FRA is not legally tenable as lands are occupied after 2006.” However, the report stated that all the displaced families have been provided with ration cards and those having no housing land will be covered under Basundhara Scheme for provisioning of house sites. 22 families have already been provided with homes under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY)/ Biju Pucca Ghar Yojana (BPGY) housing schemes and the remaining families will also be under the housing schemes.[x]
On September 24, 2021, the NHRC after considering the official report stated that the tribal families have been evicted by the villagers of Gotamunda Revenue village who also vandalised the houses of the victims. An FIR has been registered but the details of FIR were not mentioned in the official report. It is also not clear whether Scheduled Castes/ Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989 was invoked or not as the victim families belong to ST/SC Community. Therefore, the Commission issued further notice to the District Magistrate, Kalahandi and the Superintendent of Police, Kalahandi, Odisha to submit details of FIR registered in this matter including compensation paid to the victims under SC/ST (POA) Act. The Commission also directed that a copy of the report dated 9 August 2021 be sent to the complainant for comments, if any, within four weeks.[xi]
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[1] First Information Report (FIR) is a written document prepared by the police when they receive information about the commission of a cognizable offence. It is a report of information that reaches the police first in point of time. (see: https://www.humanrightsinitiative.org/publications/police/fir.pdf)
[2] Meeting organised by the administration to purportedly broker ‘peace’ between groups
[i] Interview with human rights activist Mr Dilip Kumar Das, Kalahandi, Odisha, July 17, 2021
[ii]. See, the Resolution dated 9th September, 2011 of the Forest and Environment Department of the Government of Odisha, http://govtpress.odisha.gov.in/pdf/2011/2176.pdf
[iii] Interview with human rights activist Mr Dilip Kumar Das, Kalahandi, Odisha, July 17, 2021
[iv]. Express News Service, “Malaria, malnutrition plague evicted families”, The New Indian Express, July 14, 2021, https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/odisha/2021/jul/14/malaria-malnutrition-plague-evicted-families-2329892.html
[v]. Proceedings of the NHRC India dated 24 September 2021 in Case No. 1493/18/6/2021
[vi]. Bikash Khemka, “Forest Dept In Dock: NHRC Notice On ‘Forceful Eviction’ Of 34 Families In Odisha’s Kalahandi”, Odisha Bytes, July 13, 2021, https://www.odishabytes.com/forest-dept-in-dock-nhrc-notice-on-forceful-eviction-of-34-families-in-odishas-kalahandi/
[vii] Interview with human rights activist Mr Dilip Kumar Das, Kalahandi, Odisha, July 17, 2021
[viii]. NHRC Case No. 1493/18/6/2021 filed by Mr Dilip Kumar Das
[ix]. Proceedings of the NHRC India dated 12.7.2021 in Case No. 1493/18/6/2021
[x]. Proceedings of the NHRC India dated 24 September 2021 in Case No. 1493/18/6/2021
[xi]. Proceedings of the NHRC India dated 24 September 2021 in Case No. 1493/18/6/2021
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