Many families in Goa have refused to leave their native place
When Mahatma Gandhi stated that “The soul of India lives in its villages” it only reflected the fact that approximately 75 per cent of the country’s population lived in rural areas during the Independence of India. This also indicated that India was predominantly an agrarian society, with the majority of its people relying on agriculture for their livelihood. Furthermore, highlighting his belief in the importance of rural life and its contribution to the nation’s identity, Gandhiji also emphasised that “The future of India lies in its villages.” He perceived villages as self-sufficient units, the foundation of Indian culture, and the key to genuine Swaraj.
Goa was no different from the rest of the country and at the time of Liberation, approximately 70 per cent of its population was involved in agriculture as the primary occupation. Today, most of the agricultural land in the state has already gone out of cultivation and it is progressively put to non-agricultural use. If one tries to find out the reason behind this occurrence, it all started a decade after Liberation when people residing in Goan villages began to migrate to towns and cities, for better education to their children. This also resulted in shifting of the occupations for many families. The dawn of the new century witnessed more and more people from other states, opting to purchase land in Goa, and as a result there were rampant land conversions in the state, with agricultural land being the casualty.
Fortunately, there are many families in Goa, especially belonging to tribal communities, who have refused to leave their native place. They are also involved in their traditional occupations, namely agriculture, dairy and so on. These original settlers of Goa are hard working, honest people, who need external support to upgrade their life. The government has come out with several schemes for this tribal population. However, it is another matter how they are implemented.
The government has recently announced that it has identified 25 tribal villages under the Dharti Aaba Janbhagidari Abhiyan so as to provide network connectivity and other essential services to the Scheduled Tribe families in Goa. The initiative, which is a part of the larger Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan, aims to improve living conditions in tribal communities by ensuring access to various government schemes and basic infrastructure. Altogether seventeen departments of the state government will coordinate efforts for reaching out to these villages and creating awareness about welfare schemes and initiatives, with the goal of ensuring that every household receives basic necessities and entitlements. The programme will focus on critical areas such as housing, drinking water, sanitation, healthcare, education, energy, and sustainable livelihoods.
The formal launch of this initiative would be on July 3 and it will continue for five years. A comprehensive tribal outreach initiative designed to directly deliver benefits to tribal households, will include benefit saturation camps at the village and habitation levels to ensure that no eligible household is left out. Furthermore, it is aligned with the Viksit Bharat Vision 2047 and includes Aadhaar Card enrolments, issuance of Ayushman Bharat health cards, and the opening of Jan Dhan bank accounts. The government officials will also assist landless tribal farmers in obtaining Krishi Cards and work towards resolving forest rights claims.
The Abhiyan is a welcome step, which can work effectively towards strengthening the rural region of Goa and its main inhabitants. The initiative should however be supported with many such campaigns, so that they encourage people who have migrated to urban areas, to return to their roots.
