Strata of Development in Mawala Village
Arriving at this village only the first day of field observations, the socio-economic breach between the Baigas and the other tribal castes already became evident. Mawala, a uniquely diverse community of new migrants, old settlers, of many housing styles and occupations, layed the foundation of history and of understanding of the dynamic between communities in Baihar.
The first family house that we came to was relatively large compared to the houses around it and had a solid wood and clay structure, whitewashed and painted, with a sprawling verandha that reached around two sides. At least 11 kids sat calmly under the cooling protection from the scolding sun. Kumar Singh Durway, Basantiby, Arjun Singh and Daughter-in-law Itwartnway sat along with them wearing cautious but inquisitive expressions.
The first family house that we came to was relatively large compared to the houses around it and had a solid wood and clay structure, whitewashed and painted, with a sprawling verandha that reached around two sides. At least 11 kids sat calmly under the cooling protection from the scolding sun. Kumar Singh Durway, Basantiby, Arjun Singh and Daughter-in-law Itwartnway sat along with them wearing cautious but inquisitive expressions.
Kumar says that he and his wife had migrated here 35 years from the deep forest where they were once living. The land is now part of Kanha Village which has since been designated as a tiger preserve. It took him 20 years to acquire a small sum of money, with which he bought one acre of land. He began farming on this small plot of land and since then he has managed to double his income. When he first moved here he was completely unequipped to live and work on the plains, having not once dug a ditch or planted a seed, yet a man from a Gond family, who were natives to Mawala, had taught him how to plow and plant and harvest. Main crop is Maize, but he has untill only recently been growing only enough for subsistence of his family and some of the poorest neighbors. For making an income the Baiga in this area will mainly go for manual labor. Most of the children that stay at their house during the day are from other families and Kumar Singh and his wife will watch the children while their neighbors go in search of work. It was dry season at this time of year, so he was not doing any farming, yet they are living off the reserves they have stored in the house. It is very rare that a Baiga will me farming on his own property, since many can not offord land, let alone having enought for safe keeping during the summer.
After taking a tour of the house, we came to the front to be greeted by a man by the name of Baishakhi, meaning Peak of Summer, who spoke about unemployment and the governments preference for animals over people. He says that for him and most of the village, there is no permanent work and so whatever comes to them, they take out of desperation. They would collect herbs and other produce from the forest while they were living still in Kanha Village but now they are not even allowed to cross the river that is only 2 kilometers deep. He says that they even live in fear of tigers coming into the village, and not so much for fear of the animal, but more for the repercussions that the government hits them with if they defend themselves against one.
A trekk walk across to the other side of the tola brought sight of two dramatically distinct dwellings that stood not 100 meters from one another. The first was the house and yard of a newly settled Baiga family. The yard was covered in building material and there stood a half finished clay and dung structure next to short house not more than 5 feet high, that was made of straw and bamboo. The latter house being a typical baiga structure, and the former beggining to resemble that of the usually more developed Gond. When asked what he does for a living, Sambaru Maracam, said that lately he has only stayed around to build the house. His hut had become too small for his growing family, and he moved here for the purpose of creating a stable existence. After some more questioning he opened up to say that he earns some income by making and selling umbrellas for the rainy season, and will also go for labor when he needs to.
The second house of comparison was owned by that of a Gond woman. Rampati Sayam's grandparents are originally from Kanna Tiger Park, and were uprooted along with the Baiga. She came under the advantage of being married to a man who's ancestors had been settled in this area for many generations. 20 years ago, relatives of the husband gave land to them, and although he has since perished, she is able to survive because her son was old enough to start work on their farm land. The house is very well built, being in equal quality with the Brahman caste family I had stayed at for the duration of my study. The house had four rooms that were each decorated, and the backyard gave way to two acres of farm land. A small but certain indicator of their culture and economic superiority, they were the only families to offer me tea out of all the adiwasi families, .
As night fell on the village we stopped at the local leaders house to get an understanding of his views on the growth in his jurisdiction. Ram Singh Tokam, leader of local panchayat, is unsuprisingly a Gond Adiwasi. Ram Singh was the petitioner for many of the changes in the area being the elected head of the local panchayat. Before he was the head, he was a member, and because of this experience he became well aware that no development was taking place. He is in charge of development of whole village, roads, and founder of the first school in area to go to tenth standard. Before his changes, the school which was opened in 1983 and only went up to fifth and then eighth standard.
His family is of the Thacur caste meaning 'dynasty of kings' and the surname Singh has always been connection to this caste. Well after our meeting that first day in Baihar, something clicked when I reflected on his name. Singh, usually denoted tthe caste of Rajputs (Kshatrias) or ruling caste, and in this rural area, it seems that the traditional leaders have remained as such. With his caste name to carry around as a resume of history, ontuning to yeild power economically and politically would not be difficult.
His family is of the Thacur caste meaning 'dynasty of kings' and the surname Singh has always been connection to this caste. Well after our meeting that first day in Baihar, something clicked when I reflected on his name. Singh, usually denoted tthe caste of Rajputs (Kshatrias) or ruling caste, and in this rural area, it seems that the traditional leaders have remained as such. With his caste name to carry around as a resume of history, ontuning to yeild power economically and politically would not be difficult.