Will clouds spell disaster this monsoon?

Sporadic action by non-government agencies (NGOs), determined court battle by social workers, the fanfare with which a Rajya Sabha member, Dr Shrikant Jichkar, launched a project to spread wireless communication in the inaccessible hilly region, have all had little impact. The malnutrition deaths continue. The statistics on malnutrition deaths in the tribal region read like a horror story.

Despite the State Government’s ambitious Nav Sanjivini scheme, specially worked out for the tribal children of Melghat, and the efforts of several NGOs, as many as 720 children died of malnutrition and other ailments in 1997-98. Around 40 children died in April thisyear.

The malnutrition deaths were reduced to 30 per cent last year, thanks to scanty rainfall. As many as 1,050 children died of malnutrition in 1996-97.The government refuses to accept malnutrition as the cause of the deaths and attributes it to `other causes’, like water-related diseases as most of the villages in Melghat forests are inaccessible and lack safe drinking water. Whatever be the cause, the fact that on an average 1,000 children, up to the age of six, die every year in Melghat cannot be denied.

Ironically, those who led the agitation in 1993 against the then Sharad Pawar government’s apathy to the tragedy are in power now, but little has changed. The deaths continue.

Though the government had been pouring funds to ensure medical aid and civil supplies during the rainy days in the hilly belt, the plight of the Melghat tribal people has not improved.

The Melghat belt comprises Chikhaldara and Dharni tehsils. Dharni is the worst hit. For, the tribal villages in Dharni are located ininaccessible parts of the Satpura range which cuts-off these villages from nearby towns during monsoon. It is during these months that malnutrition takes its toll and deaths have become an annual occurrence during the period. The average annual rainfall is 1905.60 mm and almost all of it is received between June and September.

The malnutrition deaths were first highlighted when 12 children of Berkheda village died about a decade back.

In 1993, 919 children died of malnutrition after supply of Sukhadi, a nutritious food supplement distributed by the State Government, was stopped for some queer administrative reasons.

The issue was taken up by the then Opposition leader and now deputy chief minister, Gopinath Munde, who promptly visited the affected areas and sought resignation of the then Pawar government, pointing its failure to prevent such massive deaths.

The recent deaths have shocked the entire State as the government had adopted numerous special plans, including creation of a project officer(tribal), assigning an IAS officer for over-all development of the tribals, appointment of an additional district health officer for the neglected region, setting up of more primary health centres, engagement of flying health squads, appointment of two village assistants in each village, provision of birth-attendants in all villages, an ICU unit at Chilkhaldara, a special allowance of Rs 8,00 to pregnant women for better health care.K Narasimhulu, additional commissioner (Tribal development), however, said that deaths in the hilly region have been reduced due to adoption of various measures by the government.

He pointed out that through the Nav Sanjivini scheme, the government has ensured that the tribals of the region get permanent employment and proper health care through Primary Health Centres (PHC) and 22 mobile clinics with doctors and nurses.

Besides, all the PHCs, sub-centres, and important government officials were linked to the wireless network for better co-ordination and promptservices.

“These have given dividends as the birth rate has increased during the period. The infant mortality rate has decreased by 3 per cent in 1997-98 as compared to the previous year,” he claimed. He said that district authorities have geared up to face the challenge.