After pension and BPL cards, ration cards elude tribals

MALDA, Nov. 28: After the pension amount it is the ration cards that the tribals allegedly are deprived of. “Many tribals in Malda district do not have ration cards. Those who have managed to get one have to keep them with the modified ration dealers,” stated a report submitted to the Malda district magistrate yesterday.

The report also stated that the tribals often have to do without the commodities. Its is the wish of the ration dealers on which they have to depend for acquiring items. It may be noted that the Malda district magistrate, Mr Sridhar Kumar Ghosh, had assigned district project officer (ICDS) Mr Pratyarpan Singha Roy to study the problem that the tribals put up with in the area. The move came in the wake of the chief minister recent visit in Malda. Mr Singh Roy has also pointed out that many of the tribals do not have Electoral Photo Identity Card (Epic). Many Epics in the name of tribal people are with the local political leaders.

After visiting some parts of the four blocks ~ Habibpur, Bamongola, Gazol and partly Old Malda ~ Mr Singha Roy said: “Though most of the tribal people are peeved with the dealers and local political leaders since they have not been able to benefit from the government sponsored schemes, they have also been careless about important documents like Epic, Ration Cards and BPL cards. This is how they are.”

Many of the tribals do not go to schools due to languages problem. They prefer to read in their mother tongue. The report also stated that due to poverty and lack of education most of the tribal population are deprived of basic facilities such as drinking water, and face crisis of water for irrigation. Good roads are a distant dream.

In the survey report, Mr Sigha Roy suggested the district magistrate Mr Ghosh to form a team comprising tribal employees of various government and semi-government sectors to organise awareness campaigning. Tribal population in Malda is a total of 2.27 lakh tribals are living, according to the census report made in 2001. n SNS