Koksara: About 30 to 40 tribal families residing in Jhulenbar village of Barahadanga panchayat under this block in Kalahandi district are struggling hard to earn their livelihood from making and selling home need bamboo articles.
Their age old livelihood is in danger due to markets being glutted with similar articles made from plastic and fiver, moreover they come at a cheaper price.
The male in the families routinely go to the forest to collect bamboo. Women back home do the processing, like cutting and laying them in sun. Thereafter the articles are shaped from the fine scales of the cane.
They sell their products at the local markets once a week in Amapani and Pujhariguda. The average weekly income of all the families has come down to Rs 800 to Rs 1000 while it used to be triple that amount.
Though the income has come down, their tradition and their livelihood still remain. The young and elder members alike are seen busy at this job starting from morning to evening.
MGNREGS benefits are still elusive to these villagers. The villagers allege that whenever any relevant work comes to the village, they are not engaged at all. Machines are used instead, they complained.
When it comes to the families taking advantages of the available education facilities in their village, one cannot believe the condition until they see it for themselves.
There is a mini Anganwadi centre and a primary school in their village. But, the villagers do not set much store by these facilities. The lack of awareness is to be thanked for it.
Any given day the village children can be seen assisting the elder members of their families in weaving bamboo articles.
It has also been a common practice during lunch hour, that the children in their birthday suits throng the center and school to get their quota of mid day meal.
According to Barahadanga sarpanch Gokul Naik , even if work under MGNREGS is provided to the villagers of Jhulenbar, it generally takes some time to make their payment. This is why thes villagers are no longer interested at any work under MGNREGS.
When contacted, Koksara block development officer (BDO), Basant Kumar Sethy said plans are underway to get their traditional profession a new direction so that they can better their livelihood. Steps would soon be taken for adding some values to their products and market their products through self help groups, he added.
PNN