HVK Archives: Tribals are more civilised than all of us : Mahasveta Devi
Tribals are more civilised than all of us : Mahasveta Devi - The Afternoon
PTI
()
4 April 1997
Title : Tribals are more civilised than all of us : Mahasveta Devi
Author : PTI
Publication : The Afternoon
Date : April 4, 1997
The creation of a separate Jharkhand State would not solve the
manifold problems of the tribals people of the region so long as
'outsiders' remain in control of its land and natural resources,
Jnanpith laureate and social activist Smt Mahasveta Devi said here.
'Even if a separate State is created, the tribals will, remain mere
spectators, so long as outsider and contractors control the
region's resources', Mahasveta Devi, who was conferred with the
country's highest literary award by South African President Nelson
Mandela last week, told reporters.
Smt Mahasveta Devi has been closely associated with the tribals of
the Jharkhand region and is presently working with the Kheria Sabar
tribals in West Bengal.
The renowned authoress regretted that despite land reforms, no
Government projects had reached the poorest of the poor tribals in
West Bengal, for who she is working.
'The State Government is not also to do much, since the forest land
comes under the Centre', she said.
On bonded labour, which has been a lifelong concern for her and a
favourite subject of her writings, she said,, 'the evil will
continue until land reforms are brought about all over the
country'.
She said the tribals, who where looked down upon by the society at
large, 'were more civilised than all of us'.
'In tribal communities, widow remarriages are permissible, divorce
is acceptable, there is no dowry system, girl child is welcomed and
they hate to take interest on money,' said Smt Mahasveta Devi.
Smt Mahasveta Devi said while bonded labour had been officially
abolished, there were many areas in the country where many areas in
the country where the practice was flourishing under different
names.
For instance, she said, the 'Goti System' of bonded labour was
prevalent in many parts of Orissa.
Smt Mahasveta Devi, who came into limelight with her biographical
work on Rani Laxmibai of Jhansi, said she was not a revolutionary,
but only an activist.
'I am not a revolutionary', she said, adding 'My endeavour has
always been to get for the tribals their due rights. I do not take
foreign contributions for my work. Our work is done only with
Government money under their various schemes'.
In this address, trustee of Bharatiya Jnanpith Sri Ramesh Chandra
described Mahasveta Devi as 'one of the most towering writes of the
second half of this century'.
A documentary, 'The School That Karmi Soren Build', produced by TVI
and directed by Smt Ananya Chatterjee, was also screened on the
occasion.
The film depicts the long-drawn real life struggle of Mahasveta
Devi and a tribal woman, Karmi Soren, in establishing a school in a
backward village of West Bengal and getting it due recognition from
the authorities.
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