Tag: jharkhand

Mob lynching in Jharkhand: Mubarak becomes latest victims of lynchings.

Source – enewsroom.in

Ranchi: Mubarak Ansari, 48, becomes 22nd mob lynching victims in Jharkhand. While Akhtar Ansari, 26, has managed to live on, despite receiving serious injuries from a mob thrashing. He  is undergoing treatment in a hospital in Bokaro district of Jharkhand.

Mubarak and Akhtar were accused of stealing a battery from a truck in Govindpur colony of Bokaro. The two accused hail from a village closeby. On Nov 5, the duo was intercepted by the owners, in Govindpur, when the they were allegedly whisking away a truck battery. Following which the owners invited many more resident, who tied Mubarak to a pole and began to mercilessly beat the two.

“We were mercilessly beaten from midnight to early morning of Nov 6. Only when some villagers of my village crossed by and identified us, that they called our village Sadar (local committee president), who informed the police,” said Akhtar in written complaint to the police.  Akhtar, is at present undergoing treatment,  also mentioned in the FIR that Mubarak succumbed to the injuries that he sustained due to mob lynching.

Like other lynching case, in this case too, the entire episode of Mubarak and Akhtar being lynched was recorded on camera. Female voices could also be heard inciting the mob and also demanding for a compensation.

Bokaro police has arrested four accused in this lynching case. Interestingly, in this case one of the arrested accused is a woman, who has been named in the FIR lodged by Akhtar.

The lynching of Mubarak is the latest one in the long list of at least 22 victims of lynching cases that has taken place in Jharkhand under Raghubar Das led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government. People have been lynched sometimes on the basis of alleged stealing charges, sometimes for transporting beef and cows and sometimes for child lifting or theft. And mostly Muslims or members from the scheduled tribe (tribals) and scheduled caste (dalits) have been victims of these heinous crimes that have been taking place in Jharkhand, over these three years.

A recent case of Tabrez Ansari was highlighted across the world and the issue was even raised in United States and in its Security Council.

However, only in two cases (Alimuddin Ansari of Ramgarh and Mazloom Ansari of Latehar), conviction of the accused took place at the lower courts.

While it is well known to every that killers of Alimuddin are on bail now and have even been felicitated by the Hazaribagh MP Jayant Sinha.

Jharkhand Assembly polls: Congress-JMM seat-sharing talks in final stages; announcement likely today in Ranchi.

Source – firstpost.com

Seat-sharing talks between the Congress and the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) for the Assembly election are in final stages and an announcement is likely on Friday, sources said.

The Congress, JMM and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) are attempting to form an alliance to defeat the ruling BJP in the five-phase election in November-December in the eastern state.

According to sources, deliberations are on between senior leaders of the Congress and the JMM for finalising the seat-sharing agreement and an announcement is likely to be made in Ranchi on Friday.

Jharkhand Pradesh Congress Committee president Rameshwar Oraon and Congress Legislature Party leader Alamgir Alam met JMM chief Hemant Soren.

Sources said the JMM is likely to be the leading partner in the alliance and will contest on more than 50 percent of the seats.

The Congress may settle with 25-30 seats in the 81-member Assembly, leaving the rest for smaller allies.

The Congress had contested on all seats in the last Assembly election in 2014, it may settle for 25-30 seats as part of the alliance.

The Congress has already held preliminary discussions on its possible candidates for the election at a meeting of the party’s screening committee.

Another meeting of the screening panel will be held on 9 November. On the same day, a meeting of the central election committee chaired by Sonia Gandhi will be held to finalise the list of candidates.

Sources said the Congress is unlikely to succeed in its efforts to form a grand alliance with the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM) of Babulal Marandi deciding to go it alone in the election.

The Left parties are also unlikely to be a part of the alliance as their demand for seats are unlikely to be met, sources said.

The Left has two members in the current Assembly, while the Congress has six.

Sources add that the RJD is likely to settle for around 6-7 seats as part of the alliance, even though Lalu Prasad Yadav’s outfit has been demanding 14-15 seats.

“Our aim is to remove the Raghubar Das-led BJP government… The Congress and its partners will try to fulfil the dreams of people of the state that have not been fulfilled so far,” RPN Singh, the Congress party in-charge of Jharkhand affairs, told PTI.

Asked if the Congress was willing to play second fiddle to JMM in the state, he said that when there is a coalition, all allies contest as a family to accomplish the dreams of the people of Jharkhand.

Singh said the Congress would soon come out with a manifesto of its own, besides having a common minimum programme with the JMM.

How fish farming transformed lives of dam displaced people in Jharkhand.

Source – downtoearth.org.in

Around 12,000 families lost their livelihood due when the Chandil dam came up in Jharkhand’s Saraikela Kharsawan district in the 1980s. Its reservoir on the Subarnarekha river submerged more than 100 villages.

The people affected struggled for decades with the Jharkhand government for better rehabilitation and employment.

Now they have found an alternative source of income — pisciculture.

Some of those displaced because of the dam formed a cooperative society in ’05 to rear fish in the reservoir. The right to fish in the waterbody that came up on their land was one of the demands of those affected by the project.

In the late 2000s, the Jharkhand government focused on developing fisheries as an alternative income source for the state’s farmers. The cooperative took the opportunity to benefit from the government’s push for commercial fishing in water bodies.

After testing some success the Jharkhand government introduced the cage culture in the state’s dam reservoirs to scale up commercial fish production in 2012-13.

Cage culture is an intensive fish farming technique in which fish are kept in cubicle-shaped net enclosures. It is ideal for controlled fishing in large waterbodies in which it is otherwise difficult to restrict fish movement.

Jharkhand’s catch of fish doubled to 208,450 tonnes in 2018-19 from 104,820 tonnes in 2013-14 because of cage culture. There is an annual demand for 200,000 tonnes in the state itself.

The state government trains farmers from across the state on various aspects of fish-rearing. To maximise profits, farmers prefer commercial fish such as Pangasius (Basa) for cage culture.

The fish take around nine months to reach a weight of around a kilogramme. At times the cultivators sell them even at six months. 

The Jharkhand government has presented fish farming as a success story, calling it the ‘Blue Revolution’. 

Some 128,000 fish farmers now rear fish in the state’s tanks, reservoirs, check dams, and coal pits across two lakh hectares.

Jharkhand polls: Leaders in Delhi to finalise lists.

Source – indiatoday.in

As polling day nears in Jharkhand, all the political parties are engrossed in finalising their candidates for the 81-seat Assembly.

Marathon meetings and hectic discussions are being conducted by the parties.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Congress and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) have been the heavyweights in the elections here while regional parties like the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and All Jharkhand Students’ Union Party (AJSUP) also have stakes here.

For national parties like the BJP and the Congress, the scene has shifted to Delhi where state leaders are camping to finalise their lists.

A BJP leader said Chief Minister Raghubar Das, state party chief Lakshman Gilua, and other leaders are in Delhi as they were asked to reach the national capital. Before leaving for Delhi, the BJP’s state election committee met on Wednesday under Gilua’s chairmanship and a list of candidates was readied.

Sources in the BJP said the party’s central election committee would be meeting on November 8 where the names of the candidates will be finalised.

Sources also said that Suresh Mahato, chief of BJP ally All Jharkhand Student Union, has also reached Delhi to discuss the seat-sharing arrangement.

Congress state leaders, including state party chief Rameshwar Oraon and senior leaders like Aalamgir and Subodhkant Sahay have also moved to Delhi. Party spokesperson Kishore Shahdeo told IANS that the party’s screening committee had met on Wednesday. But, sources said that candidates could not be finalised as the seat-sharing arrangement with the JMM is yet to be finalised.

Congress sources said that the central election committee is likely to meet this week to finalise their candidates.

As the political parties are readying their lists, most of the aspirants are keeping a watch on the happenings in Delhi.

The Assembly polls in Jharkhand will be conducted in five phases from November 30 to December 20, an exercise spread over 21 days because of the Naxal problem that poses a security challenge.

Counting of votes will be taken up on December 23.

Of the 81 Assembly seats in Jharkhand, nine are reserved for the Scheduled Castes (SC) and 28 for the Scheduled Tribes (ST).

Dhoni and Ranchi: An unadulterated love story.

Source – sportstar.thehindu.com

If you find yourself near the Jharkhand State Cricket Association International Cricket Stadium in Ranchi early in the morning on match day, just follow the home crowd and police personnel. They will lead you from the South Gate towards a makeshift stall dishing out hot singhadas (as samosas are called in this part of the country), litti chokha, other tidbits and hot chai.

Chai is served in clay cups — or bhars, as the vendor says in Hindi with an inimitable Bengali accent. It’s day one of the third Test between India and South Africa. The home team has already won the series 2-0, but captain Virat Kohli is eyeing a 3-0 sweep. Waiting for the day’s play to start, a grim, muscular man browses through a newspaper as someone points to a headline: ‘Dhoni to watch the third Test.’

The ice is broken and the chat begins. Ranchi Hindi has its own style, and soon people involved in the conversation give me a taste of it. One refers to Dhoni as ‘Mahendra,’ another calls him ‘Mahender,’ some go with ‘Maahi,’ and a few throw ‘Mahi’ and ‘Mahiya’ into the conversation.

Dhoni is ‘Captain Cool,’ ‘Thala’ to the legion of adoring Chennai Super Kings fans, and more for the outside world, but to the vendor, the local policemen and the more than 1.1 million people living in the capital of Jharkhand, he is one of them. He is the shy student who knew cricket was his calling. He is the friend with a big heart, a humble family man.

“Aap Dhoni pe likh rahe hain? Fir chai ke paise nahi lenge (You are writing on Dhoni? Then we won’t charge you for tea),” says Ramesh, the owner of the stall.

Dhoni has not featured in any limited-overs series since the World Cup, and talk of his international retirement drives revealing conversations, some curious even.

“Dhoni le liya sanyas ODIs se bhi. Aapko nahin na pata…padho akhbar (Dhoni has retired even from ODIs. You didn’t know… read the newspapers),” Ramesh says with a smile. When someone points out that his information is wrong and Dhoni has not quit One-Day International cricket, Ramesh sticks to his guns. “Woh dabav mein nahi aaega…koi boley uske pehle hi nikal liya. Just IPL (Indian Premier League) khelega. Hum Ranchi-waale pressure mein nahi aate (Dhoni will not come under pressure…he quit before anyone could tell him. He will play just the IPL. We Ranchiites cannot be pressured).”

In Ranchi, it is almost as if Dhoni is separate from the game. His roots in the city are celebrated just as fondly as his name and what he has achieved. Dhoni’s father had arrived in Ranchi in 1964 to work as a pump operator with MECON Ltd, a public-sector engineering firm.

Dhoni, who was born on July 7, 1981, grew up in a one-bedroom apartment adjacent to the city’s MECON Stadium. Ramesh provides some perspective. “Ranchi itna chota shehar hai, ghum fir ke aap ko koi na koi Dhoni ka pehchaan wala mil hi jaega (Ranchi is such a small town, it is likely that you will bump into someone or the other who knows Dhoni).”

Maybe that’s what Dhoni meant when, at a promotional event of his biopic M. S. Dhoni: The Untold Story, he said he was “more of a small-city boy” who “loves” Ranchi.

“It’s near Kolkata, near Jamshedpur, where Tata originated. It [Jharkhand] is India’s richest state in terms of minerals,” is how an up-and-coming Dhoni used to explain where he hails from, particularly during overseas tours.

He doesn’t have to any more. Ranchi has the feel of an old-world, small city that’s fast trying to outgrow its roots. It took a giant leap when Dhoni led India to the inaugural World Twenty20 title in 2007.

The fans still hope for the flashy stroke-play of yore, when the Dhoni of long locks carted bowlers for fun. But what they get now is a 38-year-old star who seems to be batting with the weight of the world on his shoulders.

But Dhoni has always paced himself, insists Adil Hussain, the former Bihar and Central Coalfields Ltd captain who played alongside Dhoni at the club for five years.

“Even when he played for CCL, he would start cautiously… Sometimes after two or four overs, his score would be five or six. But as the innings progressed, he invariably accelerated and made up for the dot balls.

“And what’s surprising is… people generally talk about a batsman if he scores a 50 or 100… Mahendra was someone people talked about even when he was making scores of 20, 30 or 40-odd. They would recall a long six. So, irrespective of his score, he was always the talk of the town,” says Hussain. Dhoni was in Class XI when Hussain spotted him hammering bowlers in a school tournament, and got him on board at CCL in 1997.

“I heard of Dhoni for the first time when he smashed a double hundred (213) in the inter-school final against Kendriya Vidyalaya from Hinoo (in Ranchi). After that, he was picked to play for the Ranchi senior district team. I was the captain… He wasn’t part of the XI but travelled with us,” Hussain recollects. “He later joined CCL as a stipend player… He was still in school at the time, mind you.”

Hussain speaks adoringly about Dhoni’s focus and discipline. “I’m not saying this because he is a big star now. He has always been dedicated… Be it an important game or an inconsequential match, he never took things lightly.”

What about his famed calmness? Dhoni admitted during a public appearance that he too gets angry and disappointed, but said he had learned how to handle those emotions.

Hussain shares an insider’s view. “He had come home and we were talking cricket when the subject of India’s tour of South Africa (in 2018) came up. If you remember, in one of the matches, Dhoni was visibly upset with his batting partner Manish Pandey. So I asked: ‘We don’t see you shouting at players like that. What happened there, Mahendar?’ He replied: ‘Arey bhaiya, tense situation tha toh thoda gussa aa gaya (Brother, the situation was tense, so I got a bit annoyed).’”

Hussain isn’t paying attention to how he refers to Dhoni. He flits between Dhoni, Mahendra and Mahendar with ease.

It’s the same ease, love and affection that you can note in Jaykumar Sinha’s voice when he speaks about Dhoni. Sinha, convenor of the Jharkhand State Cricket Association and a former Ranchi University coach, has seen Dhoni evolve from a young boy to a world champion, and shares how the player is sorted and never far from his roots.

“Even today when he comes to the stadium and if I’m at the gate to receive him, even before I can greet him, he comes and hugs me: ‘Jay da, namaste. Kaise hain? (Namaste, how have you been?)’ He is friendly with everyone who works in this complex.”

When Dhoni is in town, he drops by at the JSCA Stadium to play billiards or tennis and he sometimes uses the gym. “He does some or the other activity every day… His approach is like any other player. Say, if a Ranji or under-16 campaign is going on, and we request him to speak to the boys for a few minutes, he does so willingly. He never says no… So as far as Ranchi and Jharkhand are concerned, he means the world to us,” says Sinha.

Retirement chatter

Talk veers to Dhoni’s retirement. “He will never play a sport just for the sake of it. Even today, whenever he plays tennis or billiards here, you can tell from his approach that he has taken an hour out just to engage in that particular sport. And cricket is in his blood,” says Sinha.

The ‘retirement’ word quickly stirs up emotions on the street. “It’s time Dhoni retired… He’s taking up a youngster’s place in the team,” says Dharam, a cab driver. “That player Ambati Rayudu is very good and also a wicketkeeper. Maybe if Dhoni had retired, he could’ve got another chance (sic).” Abruptly, Dharam changes his mind. “Virat (Kohli) needs Dhoni by his side. His exit will cause an imbalance, so I’m not too sure now (about Dhoni retiring),” he says with a sheepish grin.

Mohan, a college student, says Dhoni should “practise what he preached” when he was named India captain. “Didn’t he ask (Sourav) Ganguly and Sachin (Tendulkar) to leave when he was the captain? He said he wanted a young team and eventually had his way with the selectors.”

Opinions vary and Dhoni marches on unfazed. He finally drops in at the JSCA Stadium on day four of the Test after India won the match. The match is over, the post-match presentation is done, but many Ranchiites are yet to troop out. It’s unadulterated love for Dhoni that keeps them hanging on.

Long after Dhoni is done doing what he does best, he can come back to the place he calls home: one place in whose heart he lives as Mahi, rent free.

Doorstep voting facility for senior citizens, disabled this election in Jharkhand.

Source – hindustantimes.com

Nearly 498,000 senior citizens and disabled people in Jharkhand will be able to exercise their franchise from their homes through postal ballot for the first time during this assembly elections, beginning from November 30, officials said.

Jharkhand’s chief electoral officer (CEO), Vinay Kumar Choubey, said the Election Commission of India (ECI) has made provision for voting through postal ballot for senior citizens above the age of 80 years and persons with disability (PWD).

“The voters of these categories who want to cast their votes through the postal ballot will have to fill form-12 D. Once they filled the form, they will not be able to participate in the normal process of voting at polling stations,” Choubey said.

There are nearly 218,000 senior citizen voters above 80 years of age and the number for PWD is around 280,000.

Booth level officers (BLOs) will visit houses of such persons and get these voters to fill the required form. The forms should reach the returning officer within five days following the date of notification of election, officials said.

“Polling teams will be constituted in this regard soon. The number of teams will depend on the number of voters wanting to cast their votes through postal ballot,” Choubey said.

“The team will visit house to house for the election process. Each team will be provided with adequate security and vehicles. Video-recording of the voting will also be done,” he said.

He said these voters would also be informed in advance about the date when the polling team would reach to them.

“The process of postal voting will be completed three days before the polling. For example, Jharkhand will go to the first phase polls on November 30. So, the process of the postal ballot will be completed by November 27,” he said.

Due to old-age complications or disability, many people face trouble to make it to polling stations to cast their votes during elections. The ECI felt their problems and made changes accordingly, officials said.

“After the Lok Sabha polls, the Election Commission felt that an amendment in the election rules was needed so that persons with disability can also exercise their rights through postal ballot or e-voting,” chief election commissioner (CEC), Sunil Arora, said this while announcing the election dates for Jharkhand on November 1 in New Delhi.

“So, commission made a recommendation to the union government (ministry of law and justice), which was accepted by the Centre. The new initiative is being introduced for the first time in Jharkhand elections,” he had said.

The poll body has also directed state official to arrange proper access to the disabled, who want to exercise their franchise at polling stations.

Poll Graphics

Total voters: 2.27 crore

Male voters: 11.18 crore

Female voters: 1.09 crore

Third gender voters: 248

Young voters (Age 18-19): 4.21 lakh

Persons with disability: 2.8 lakh

Senior citizens above 80 years: 2.18 lakh

JD (U) banking on Jharkhand, Delhi assembly polls for national party status.

Source – hindustantimes.com

The Janata Dal (United) led by Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has set its eyes on the upcoming Jharkhand and Delhi assembly polls which could be critical to its efforts of being declared a national party.

The elections to the 81-member Jharkhand assembly will be held in five phases beginning November 30; Delhi will go to polls early next year.

After assuming charge for the second consecutive term as the party’s national president in Delhi, Kumar, on Wednesday made a strong pitch towards realizing the target at the earliest.

“My priority as the party president is to expand its base in other states including Jharkhand, Delhi and the north-east to get national party status for the JD-U,” he said.

According to the criteria set by the Election Commission of India (ECI), a national party needs to get at least 6% of the votes across a minimum of four states, or 2% of the total seats in the Lok Sabha from at least three states, or it should be recognised as a state party in at least four states.

At present, there are six recognized national parties in India — the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Congress, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), the Communist Party of India (CPI) and the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M).

JD(U)’s ambition to expand its national footprints received a boost after it won 8 out of 60 assembly seats in Arunachal Pradesh , next only to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party which won 41 seats and secured a majority, in elections in May this year.

However, it performed badly in assembly polls in Chhattisgarh (2018), Rajasthan (2018), Karnataka (2018), and Gujarat (2017). In Nagaland, the party won one seat. In Assam, JD (U) contested four seats in collaboration with AlI India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) led by Badruddin Ajmal, but could not win a single seat.

In Kerala, JD (U) contested seven seats under the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF), but failed to open its account.

“The JD (U) has the requisite share from two states, Bihar (70 seats) and Arunachal Pradesh, and we narrowly missed the target in Nagaland,” said the party’s principal general secretary, K C Tyagi.

In Delhi, the party is eyeing Poorvanchalis, the migrant population from Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh who dominate certain pockets of the city. In 2015, over a dozen members of the 70-member Delhi assembly were from Purvanchal.

The JD (U) has contested Delhi assembly elections in the past too. In 2013, it contested 27 seats and won 1. In 2015, the party contested 12 seats but failed win any.

“In Delhi, we might be contesting close to 35 seats where the voters from Purvanchal have a say in deciding the fate of the candidate,” said a senior JD (U) leader who spoke on condition of anonymity.

In Jharkhand, some party leaders say that the JD(U), which is part of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance, will go solo and contest all the 81 seats in the November-December polls. In 2005-06 ,JD (U) had seven legislators in Jharkhand.

However, the party lost its sheen after the 2009 polls and has failed to win a single seat in any election thereafter.

“Our strategy for Jharkhand and Delhi is clear. We want to contest independently and with full strength. The number of seats to be contested will be decided later,” said Afaque Ahmed Khan, the party’s national general secretary.

DM Diwakar, professor, AN Sinha Institute for Social Studies, Patna, said that vying for national status is the ambition of every party.

“Nitish Kumar’s party wants to send a message that it is expanding its base, thereby projecting him as a national leader. On the other hand, wherever the JD (U) contests, it indirectly helps the BJP as it erodes the votes of the party opposed to the BJP.”

TMH first Jharkhand hospital to get Bone Marrow Transplant facility.

Source – avenuemail.in

TV Narendran, CEO and MD, Tata Steel today inaugurated the recently established 2 bed Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT) facility at the JGMH Block of Tata Main Hospital (TMH) in the presence of R Ravi Prasad, President Tata Workers’ Union. Chanakya Chaudhary, Vice President, Corporate Services, Tata Steel and Air Marshal (Dr) Rajan Chaudhry, AVSM, VSM (Retd.), General Manager (Medical Services) were also present on the occasion.

The BMT facility – the only one its kind in Jharkhand and one of the few in the Eastern region – is a standalone dedicated facility which would bring international level care to patients from Jharkhand and adjoining areas at reasonably affordable rates. A team led by eminent Medical Oncologist Dr (Brig) Anil Kumar Dhar, ably supported by the departments of Medical Oncology, Pathology, Critical Care and Nursing under the guidance of Dr. Rajan Chaudhry has already conducted a successful transplant for a complicated case of Lymphoma. The transplant has given new lease of life to the patient.

Narendran said, “TMH has been selflessly serving the community in and around Jamshedpur for more than a hundred years. The addition of the Bone Marrow Treatment facility is a testament to the continuous effort to bring in advanced treatment for cancer care. The new facility addresses the complete ecosystem involving the entire ecosystem involving infrastructure, medical resources and research with the objective to offer state-of-the-art treatment to patients.”

R Ravi Prasad said, “With advanced treatment such as Bone Marrow Transplant now available in Jamshedpur, patients from this region will no longer need to travel across the country for such facilities. It is indeed a matter of great satisfaction that a successful transplant has already taken place. I congratulate the entire TMH team on this momentous occasion and wish them all the best in their efforts to alleviate the pain and suffering of cancer patients.”

Bone Marrow Transplant is a therapeutic treatment modality which is a boon for patients of leukemia (blood cancer), lymphomas (malignancies of the lymph nodes) and multiple myeloma (cancer of the bone marrow itself). It is also the only curative therapy for non-malignant disorders like Thalassemia and Sickle cell anemia which are endemic in this part of the country. BMT is a procedure in which the diseased bone marrow is destroyed and replaced by healthy bone marrow or stem cells transplanted from healthy cells of the patient or a matched donor.

Raghubar Das: ‘Mob lynchings not just in Jharkhand should not be made political agenda’.

source – indianexpress.com

Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das speaks to Abhishek Angad on incidents of lynching and the upcoming state polls. Excerpts:

During our reportage, we found out that the most vulnerable sections of the society are not getting the benefit of central schemes.

All such schemes have been implemented as per the 2011 Census. I am aware of what you have mentioned. I frequently speak to people and it will be addressed. By 2022, nobody will be left homeless, but this will not happen quickly. It will take time.

You have said the government has focused on roads, electricity and water. At Maspera, Sundarpahari, in Godda, ill people are being carried to hospitals on cots because there is no road. Water scarcity has been the biggest problem of the state capital during summer. You once said you will provide 24×7 electricity, that has not happened.

A government needs at least 10 years to complete its work. I am not saying Ram Rajya has come. At Sundarpahari, the local MLA is from JMM. What did they do? On electricity, I was misquoted. I had said electricity will reach every village….it has reached 30 lakh more houses in the last five years — compared to 39 lakh in the last 14 years…It will take time. Regarding water, we have started conservation. There is no scarcity of water, but it has to be managed well…

The government put thrust on Momentum Jharkhand. What is the total investment that came in?

Work worth Rs 72,000 crore is going on in sectors like power, food processing and textiles. In the coming years, Jharkhand will become a textile hub. Garments are being exported to European countries over the past two years. Now footwear will be manufactured in Jharkhand.

But how much is the business it is generating worth?

You think only if it is big business. My focus is on MSMEs because I have to end poverty and MSMEs are the spine of the economy.

Recently, Jharkhand Federation of Chamber of Commerce and Industries put up several hoardings in parts of Ranchi targeted at the state government’s “insensitivity” towards the businesses. They complained they were facing issues in starting businesses and much- touted single window clearance was not implemented.

I have not been monitoring it since last six months, but in every district a nodal officer has been appointed for this purpose. There may be one or two stray incidents and I am not rejecting the claim entirely.

You have created land banks where the government acquired uncultivated and common land to attract investment. Many have criticised this and said the tribals or villagers were not spoken to.

These are people who are anti-development and do not want growth of the poor. When I conduct choupals, I ask people did the government take the land? The answer is in negative. It is the government’s land. So, land mafia and anti-development people are having a stomach ache. People who took away land are now talking about land rights now. Look at the violation of Chotanagpur Tenancy Act and Santhal Pargana Tenancy Act by the Soren family.

You have initiated an inquiry against them…

Soren family are residents of Gola. How come they have properties in Dumka, Pakur which are clear violation of SPT Act? They also have properties in Ranchi.

So what is happening in the case…

A showcause notice has been issued to them after we received complaint.

Mob violence has become a nuisance in Jharkhand. Recently, a Christian tribal in Khunti and Tabrez Ansari in Saraikela, who was made to chant Jai Shri Ram, died. In the last three years, 21 deaths happened due to child-lifting rumours and on the suspicion of cow slaughter or beef possession. Also, more than 90 people have died after being suspected of witch-hunting. Why is this happening?

Mob lynchings are not just happening in Jharkhand. Is it not happening in Delhi, Bihar or Congress-ruled states? First of all, this is wrong . Nobody has the right to take law in their hands. As for the 20-21 deaths, the dead were deranged people who were lynched on the suspicion that they were thieves. If you leave one or two incidents, maximum people who died were deranged. I am keeping a tab and have directed police and the administration to handle it effectively, but it should not be made a political agenda.

What about incidents where mob violence is driven by religious polarisation, such as the Tabrez Ansari case.

This should not happen and this is wrong. People should not see Hindus and Muslims in cases of lynching. This is being done by parties indulging in vote bank politics. If a Muslim dies, it becomes an issue…AAP came from Delhi to Saraikela to give Rs 5 lakh (in the Ansari case), how many other lynching victims’ families have they reached out to? They are not pained by the lynching, they have to play vote bank politics. This is wrong.

What directions have been given?

Police are meeting a lot of people in the villages to make them aware. But social media is a problem. Something happens somewhere and people want to spoil the environment

But the witchcraft killings…

This is mostly specific to Gumla, Khunti and Lohardaga areas. People need to be more aware. We have made a law, but the tribals in the villages are still uneducated and uninformed. The society needs to sort this issue and take responsibility. The government makes announcements in various villages against the practices. The civil society should also come forward.

Regarding implementation of MGNREGA, some people told us that getting money for work done takes time. Some people don’t opt for it. Recently, in Chanho block, a person allegedly committed suicide because he incurred debts after he got a well constructed under NREGA and did not receive money. The state’s liability under NREGA’s components is high.

There is corruption at the lower levels and we are trying to make it more transparent. There is corruption at the block level and in times to come we will it make it corruption-free. There has been a lot of improvement. Yes, liability it there, and I have asked to create a special fund for the payments under NREGA because the fund comes from the Centre. So that we don’t have to wait for the central fund and we clear the payments and later adjust it. Why should a poor person wait?

But the PESA Act has not been implemented in the state?

Any development work conducted in the state is done after talking to the Gram Sabha. How can one say it is not being implemented?

During the Pathalgadi agitation, a lot of people were arrested and sedition cases were invoked. The same was done against a few activists who supported Pathalgadi on social media? Recently, Arjun Munda said in an interview that the state government should review this?

Whatever has happened is under the law and I dont want to comment. But yes, no innocent should be implicated. There are different views, but I don’t interfere.

In Jamshedpur and Saraikela, a lot of labourers were laid off during a recent slowdown in automobile sector. What is the status now and has the state government done anything?

Measures were taken by the Central government and things will normalise soon.

Migration has been an issue in Jharkhand?

It is no longer the case. The situation is reversing after we set up various companies. People are getting jobs here.

The Aadhaar-based biometric authentication in PDS led to exclusion of many beneficiaries.

Now everyone has Aadhaar. We have also given directions that ration be given even if there is no biometric authentication.

What is your stand on NRC?

People who are Bangladeshis have to go. We will implement NRC.

What is your understanding of the political climate in Jharkhand after the results in Maharashtra and Haryana where the BJP could not achieve its target?

One cannot compare one state with the other. These states do not have 26 per cent tribals. We will aim high. We will definitely win 65 plus seats in the Assembly polls.

A strong opposition is important for democracy. What would you say about the opposition in Jharkhand?

A critic is very important so that gaps in governance is known. But I am sad that here the opposition is very weak. There is infighting in the Congress. Within JMM, brothers were fighting. In RJD, there was a split. The opposition should work hard, but it is sad that the opposition does not want any Raajhit. They want Swahit. The people have started understanding that and they will be shown the doors.

Thanks to better farm practices, Jharkhand women farmers reap more money.

Sourec – outlookindia.com

Till last year, female farmers in the tribal belt of Khunti district in Jharkhand sold tomatoes at throw-away prices. This year, they have reasons to smile.

These farmers are earning at least 75 per cent more for tomatoes, thanks to better farm practices and sale of their produce through farmer producer body.

Various training programmes on how to control pest and disease attack on tomato crop during the rainy season have worked wonders for them.

Like the proof of the pudding is in eating, these farmers are now selling tomatoes for up to Rs 35 per kilogram as against Rs 15-20 per kg last year. Extension services provided by Tata Trusts and its corporate social responsibility (CSR) partners, including like E&Y Foundation, have helped in increasing overall production.

The setting up of Murhunari Shakti Farmers Producers” Company (MSFPC) in March 2018 in the Murhu block, with a population of 5,000 people, has helped immensely in better marketing of tomatoes and in turn fetching higher prices.

“Earlier, women growers here used to sell their produce at throw-away prices in a local market, but now they are selling their tomatoes to the farmer producers” organisation MSFPC, which in turn sells in bulk to traders,” Dayamani Nag, Chairperson of MSFPC, said.

In this Kharif season so far, the MSFPC has procured over 104 tonnes of tomatoes from member farmers and aims to purchase about 1,000 tonnes by the end of December. After purchasing from farmers, the farmer producer organisation has already sold about Rs 10 lakh worth tomatoes to traders, she added.

“Earlier, women farmers used to sell tomatoes in the range of Rs 15-20 per kg. Now, they are getting better rates as we are sorting and grading the produce and dealing in bulk quantity,” Muktanag, a board member of MSFPC, said.

Now, traders come to the farmer producer organisation and negotiate the price and this change has empowered women a lot, she added.

The transformation in the lives of tribal women growers of Murhu block was made possible mainly on account of the ”Lakhpati Kisan” initiative of the Tata Trusts, implemented by a nodal agency Collectives for Integrated Livelihood Initiatives (CInI).

Lakhpati Kisan 2020 mission aims to bring about irreversible change in the tribal growers lives through economic empowerment and improving the quality of life of tribal communities, Sirshendu Paul, Tata Trusts-CInI Regional Manager (Jharkhand), said.

“The major challenge before tribal growers of Murhu was pest and disease attack on tomato crop during the rainy season. We trained them about best farm practices and raising nursery. As a result, they are able to harvest good crop,” he said.

As many as 2,100 farmers have been trained in the Murhu block who have sown tomatoes in total 440 acres during the kharif season this year.

Sharing her experience, Teresa Nag, a farmer from Saparum village, said, “I have sown 3,000 samplings of tomatoes. So far, I have sold tomatoes worth Rs 13,000. I am associated with the farmer producer organisation and I hope to get better returns”.

Nag is also board member of the MSFPC.

Tata Trusts-CInI has replicated the model from Murhu block of Khunti district to four districts in Jharkhand and are scaling up similar approach in another three states.

Besides training individual farmers, Tata Trusts-CInI has encouraged entrepreneurs by helping farmers set up polyhouses.

“Our learning from Jharkhand is that encouraging entrepreneurship opportunities for critical service delivery especially for women, in agriculture and allied livelihood areas and training them can be instrumental in increasing rural incomes on a sustainable and scalable manner,” Sridhar Iyer, EY Foundation National Director (CSR), told PTI.

The EY Foundation is one of the agencies working with the Tata Trusts-CInI on the ambitious ”Lakhpati kisan 2020 programe” being implemented at present in seven blocks in five districts of Jharkhand (Khunti, Hazaribagh, Singhbhum, Deoghar and Dhanbad).

According to Tata Trusts-CInI, the EY Foundation has contributed Rs 2.66 crore for the ”Lakpati Kisan programme”, out of which Rs 89 lakh has been spend in Murhu block alone for creating water structures, polyhouses, capacity building and to bear the promotion cost of farmer producers” organisation.

CInI Executive Director Ganesh Neelam said the partnership between EY Foundation and CInI focuses on meeting the aspirations of the small and marginal farmers in Jharkhand.

While the core focus is making tribal farmers ”Lakhpati” in an irreversible and sustainable manner, the institutional structure of community will be driving their growth in long term, he said.

“Agriculture is the prime livelihood activity for the families and the emphasis is towards promoting high value agriculture especially crops such as tomato with scientific cultivation practices to provide good yields and maximum returns. These integration of livelihoods with stress on vegetables will meet the goal of Lakhpati families with better quality of life,” Neelam said.

He further said that livelihood layering through agriculture, animal husbandry, non-timber forest produce for the families is helping farmers achieve their aspirations.

Before harvesting tomatoes, tribal women growers of Murhu block sold their watermelon at a much higher rate of Rs 6-9 per kg to companies like Reliance Fresh and Big Basket.

“This is just the beginning and there is a lot to do as the company aims a turner of Rs 5 crore in the 2019-20 fiscal,” MSFPC Treasurer Almatiru said.

She said procuring crop from member farmers is a challenging task and sought assistance for buying a small lorry or cart which will help a lot in procurement process.