More than 82 dead bodies have
been found in the tragic incident occurred at Malin in Ambegaon taluka and the
many more people are expected to have died. The exact reasons of this incident
will come forward at appropriate time but there is scope to say that the basic
structure of the hill was disturbed because of leveling of the hill and this
tragedy took place.
Of course, this has not taken
place in a day or two. This process was going on for years.. Now many reasons
will be offered for the leveling of the land. It is a different matter whether
those reasons are justifiable, moral or immoral or how. However, it cannot be
denied that these same reasons caused this tragedy. Whether you play with nature knowingly or
unknowingly, it will have adverse effects without fail.
Tribal villages like Ambegaon,
Vachape, Kalambai, Phulwade, Borghar, Malin, Adivare, Panchale, Asane,
Kokanewadi, Koltawade, Bendharwadi, Patan, Mahalunge, Kushire Budruk, Kushire
Khurd, Sakeri, Pimpri etc. were submerged under the water of Dimbhe dam from the tribal belt of
Ambegaon taluka. Since the farmers' lands in these villages were submerged
under the dam water, thousands of families were left unemployed and became
unsupported permanently. The age-old occupation of these people was to collect
the medicinal plants and sell them. As it fails to support them, many families
work as laborers for some part of the year. Because of the displacement of
various types of the Dimbhe dam, the situation of these people became all the
more distressful. It is a custom to do physically demanding tasks in this
remote part collectively, which is called padkai. However, it would not be
inept to say that the administration dealt blow to this tradition and paved the
way for this accident.
The announcement was made in the
winter session of legislature in 2010 that a new head was created for the
implementation of padkai program in the Ambegaon taluka of Pune district and a
fund of Rs 38 crore was reserved for the same. It was proved later that this
decision was politically motivated and to garner tribal votes in a bunch. The
tribals never play with nature. Hence, had some works were carried through
padkai and collectively, then perhaps this tragedy would not have occurred. However,
the government yielded to the pocklane lobby's pressure and did not recommended
the padkai program as the pilot project of Maharashtra for the National Rural
Employment Guarantee Scheme. Hence, the road was paved to flatten the land with
pocklane machines rather than physical collective effort.
Pune district has seen the tragic
incidents because of cutting and leveling the hill top and hill slope in the
past few years. The government pretended to take some measures after many
people become victim in such incidents. In
2011 Flying squads were appointed to stop encroachments on the hills, to take
action against them and stop digging up of hills. However, what these squads
did, whether they stopped them or helped them remained shrouded in mystery.
It was never heard that any action was taken because of these squads. On the
contrary, such acts are seen to have increased after the creation of such squads.
Especially after 2004-05, the
incidents of playing with hills and hillocks, riverbed increased in the Pune
district. Thereafter, many builders made
up crores of square feet land by digging hills and hillocks. Blasts were made
literally day and night for this. Actually, the law does not allow
digging up the hills this way. However, many businesspersons created land
through such measures and even sold them. During the same time, Katraj hill was dug up; hills in Warje, Baner and Bavdhan were
encroached. Sahyadri hill was dug up at
Mugawade near Paud. Literally thousands of kilos of explosives were used for
this. Once even there was a landslide there but since there was no
loss of life, the villagers were made to shut up. But the illegal hill digging
did not stop. As a result, the risk persists for one or another time. The
nature perhaps would not allow raising voice of the citizens who were forced to
shut up once. Hence, the time has come for the people here to ponder whether to
remain muted and wait for the inevitable to happen or raise voice against it.
The experience in Pune district is such that the
administration does not abandon its poise howsoever the citizens complain
against such acts. The administration roared that tehsildar and divisional officer would be held
responsible for such acts after citizens complained. But nothing
happened next. For the record, the administration creates a “Kishan Rathod” of someone after such
an incident happens. This does not mean that Kishan Rathods have no blame to
share. They are guilty, but the officers and politicians who help such Rathods
in their crimes, guilt and illegal acts are even guiltier than them. They do
not face any punishment. Because they are the ones who commit crime,
investigate it and then decide on it. Taking stock of the illegal digging of
the hills and hillocks in Pune district and illegal constructions in the
riverbed, leaders from political parties and senior officers are found to have
maximum participation in it.
Sahdyadri hill near Mugawade was
intact in 2009. This area is included in the Madhav Gadgil report on Western
Ghats.
The same hill is in this
condition after it was dug up.
The officers do not even now see
the privately owned jetty in the riverbed at Ghotavade in Pune.
The place in the riverbed at
Ghotavade in Pune was like this in 2009
And the above place was like this
originally.
