Victory Against The State
A people’s movement against privatisation of water in Assam has led to the redrafting of the state water policy three times Teresa Rehman reports
Picture this. Jadu Pegu, a farmer in remote Dhemaji district of Assam installing a water metre in his small hut and having to pay taxes for the water his forefathers have been using for the past several years. Ethnic groups in Assam would have had to pay tax for water to which they had free access till date if the draft state water policy was passed in its original form.
But a pro-active people’s movement against ‘privatisation and commodification of water’ led to the redrafting of the state water policy three times in Assam. Succumbing to pressure from several NGOs, the leading one being Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS), the state government removed several clauses on the draft policy. The people’s groups submitted a people’s policy to the government.
And for the first time the farmers were directly involved in protesting and consultative meets on the draft policy. Akhil Gogoi of KMSS told Tehelka, “I think such a movement is unprecedented in any part of the country where the government was forced to change the draft policy three times. We reiterated the primacy of community rights over water. We are still awaiting the final draft.” The original draft aimed at ‘privatising water’ was rejected by the civil society.
“The draft turned water, a traditionally enjoyed natural resource into a commodity on which the people of the state will have to pay taxes. We feared that the draft water policy was an attempt to curb traditional rights of indigenous people and hand it over to the multinational corporations,” he adds.
It is a positive sign that the civil society recommendations were accepted by the government and even by senior bureaucrats. Amrit Kumar Goldsmith, a representative of the civil society in the Task Force to draft the water policy said that they wanted to contextualise the National Water Policy 2002 and give a voice to the people.
“We wanted to protect them from economically-hard decisions like water tax, In the consultation that followed there were different tone and tenor but we tried to bring about a policy that is acceptable to all,” adds Goldsmith.
The civil society groups were against privatisation and reiterated that the government should be the trustee and take people into consideration at all points of time when major decisions are made. They tried to ensure that the poor is not taxed and government will make provisions to ensure safe drinking water to the poorest of the poor. Emphasis was also laid on medium-sized dams instead of mega dams, which do not create problems in the areas downstream. Issues relating to privatization of water was also debated at the World Water Forum held in Istanbul, Turkey recently.
Interestingly, the civil society groups also ensured that enough space is created for women at the decision-making and implementation levels. “We tend to ignore the contribution of women inspite of the fact that women all around the world are responsible for getting water and feeding their families. When water is scarce, women and children struggle everyday to get water from a distant water source. Every woman knows the value of water,” says Bandita Acharya, one of the two women in the drafting committee of the policy.
Acharya claimed that they could incorporate few things like no charges on natural water, an exempted category like tax on farmers and small vendors and community participation in each and every aspect. The final draft of the policy would hopefully be more ‘pro-people’ and be geared towards protection of the traditional rights of the people over their natural resources. The policy may also specify the need and approach for coping with the possible impact of climate.
Posted on Apr 03, 2009
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Heart and Craft
A man makes it his mission to check erosion in tribal culture
By Teresa Rehman
India’s North-east is like your attic. Not a place you visit very often nor one that gets too much attention. The region is rarely in the news and is at best left to fend for itself, often with disastrous results. Progress here has actually meant the arrival of western detritus. But Mutua Bahadur thinks he can change all that.
What Bahadur has achieved is phenomenal. In a region where cultural erosion is rapid, he has singlehandedly managed to spawn institutions to check that. Manipuri bamboo and cane works, jewellery, pottery, ancient manuscripts, paintings and textiles adorning miniature tribal dolls—there are 6,000 specimens now in his collection. He claims to possess the largest private collection of coins in the North-east with around 4,000 gold, silver and bell-metal coins. He is also the first to collect facsimiles of ancient Manipuri stone inscriptions despite shoe-string finances.
Artist, author, social worker, numismatist and anthropologist all rolled into one, Bahadur is a living encyclopaedia on Manipuri culture. It all started in the 1960s when the cultural identity crisis among tribal groups of Manipur and Nagaland triggered Bahadur’s efforts to identify and restore the traditional customs of the 29 Manipuri tribes. Within five years he produced a five-volume treatise, Tales About the Art and Culture of Manipur—a much sought-after book. This was the take-off point. For in these five years, Bahadur also began collecting cultural icons.
Bahadur’s exotic collection was initially housed in his residence till he established a museum in 1978 on the first floor of a rented building at Imphal. Urged by Kapila Vatsyayan, the then Union additional education secretary who had come to see his collection, he christened it Mutua Museum.
Since its inception, around 20 illustrative books, 20 other projects, several educational charts and slides and video documentation have been undertaken by the Mutua Museum. It has taken part in the restoration of defaced monuments and court mural paintings of Manipur. A major exercise was the setting up of a cultural complex for preservation and promotion of the material heritage of north-east India in 1993 in the village of Andro, 26 km from Imphal, where a “sacred fire” from ancient days burns perpetually. Besides, a “living museum” was established at Purul village in Senapati district to preserve the traditionally carved houses of the tribals.
Trips to the back of beyond have fossilised the antiquarian’s personal life. Bahadur recalls an incident. On his return from a field trip to Tamenglong district for a few weeks he found himself fending objects thrown by his irate wife. He found out why: his house was flooded. Flying utensils aren’t the only threats. Once a tribal chief threatened to kill him for wanting to know the meaning of a tribal work of art.
The trek to the Imphal museum has been arduous. Born in a poor family, Bahadur started by making and selling recycled-paper toys. His father, a Burmese Army soldier who loved travelling, inculcated the spirit of adventure in his son. Though Bahadur never completed his graduation, he is now an examiner for awarding PhDs in Manipuri culture at Manipur University. Recognition has also come in the form of the Special Designer Award in 1972 and the state Kala Academy Award in Folk Arts in 1974.
Bahadur plans to set up a composite complex of the culture of South-East Asia at Andro. Th. Ravikanta Singh, an anthropologist and lecturer and a close associate, echoes his sentiments: “There are many facets of north-east India like pottery and basket making that are similar to those in south-east Asian culture.” Says Bahadur: “It’s an ongoing process and I am dedicating the year 2001 to collecting musical instruments and tribal head-gear ornaments.”
Truth, enthusiasm and discipline are the driving forces that motivate Bahadur. Inaocha Mangang, his companion since 1978 and a graduate from Visvabharati, Santiniketan, sums it all up: “Bahadur himself is a rare specimen who should be preserved in the museum for posterity.”
In a world of neglect and uncertainty it’s nice to believe someone’s still in charge of the past.
A man makes it his mission to check erosion in tribal culture
By Teresa Rehman
India’s North-east is like your attic. Not a place you visit very often nor one that gets too much attention. The region is rarely in the news and is at best left to fend for itself, often with disastrous results. Progress here has actually meant the arrival of western detritus. But Mutua Bahadur thinks he can change all that.
What Bahadur has achieved is phenomenal. In a region where cultural erosion is rapid, he has singlehandedly managed to spawn institutions to check that. Manipuri bamboo and cane works, jewellery, pottery, ancient manuscripts, paintings and textiles adorning miniature tribal dolls—there are 6,000 specimens now in his collection. He claims to possess the largest private collection of coins in the North-east with around 4,000 gold, silver and bell-metal coins. He is also the first to collect facsimiles of ancient Manipuri stone inscriptions despite shoe-string finances.
Artist, author, social worker, numismatist and anthropologist all rolled into one, Bahadur is a living encyclopaedia on Manipuri culture. It all started in the 1960s when the cultural identity crisis among tribal groups of Manipur and Nagaland triggered Bahadur’s efforts to identify and restore the traditional customs of the 29 Manipuri tribes. Within five years he produced a five-volume treatise, Tales About the Art and Culture of Manipur—a much sought-after book. This was the take-off point. For in these five years, Bahadur also began collecting cultural icons.
Bahadur’s exotic collection was initially housed in his residence till he established a museum in 1978 on the first floor of a rented building at Imphal. Urged by Kapila Vatsyayan, the then Union additional education secretary who had come to see his collection, he christened it Mutua Museum.
Since its inception, around 20 illustrative books, 20 other projects, several educational charts and slides and video documentation have been undertaken by the Mutua Museum. It has taken part in the restoration of defaced monuments and court mural paintings of Manipur. A major exercise was the setting up of a cultural complex for preservation and promotion of the material heritage of north-east India in 1993 in the village of Andro, 26 km from Imphal, where a “sacred fire” from ancient days burns perpetually. Besides, a “living museum” was established at Purul village in Senapati district to preserve the traditionally carved houses of the tribals.
Trips to the back of beyond have fossilised the antiquarian’s personal life. Bahadur recalls an incident. On his return from a field trip to Tamenglong district for a few weeks he found himself fending objects thrown by his irate wife. He found out why: his house was flooded. Flying utensils aren’t the only threats. Once a tribal chief threatened to kill him for wanting to know the meaning of a tribal work of art.
The trek to the Imphal museum has been arduous. Born in a poor family, Bahadur started by making and selling recycled-paper toys. His father, a Burmese Army soldier who loved travelling, inculcated the spirit of adventure in his son. Though Bahadur never completed his graduation, he is now an examiner for awarding PhDs in Manipuri culture at Manipur University. Recognition has also come in the form of the Special Designer Award in 1972 and the state Kala Academy Award in Folk Arts in 1974.
Bahadur plans to set up a composite complex of the culture of South-East Asia at Andro. Th. Ravikanta Singh, an anthropologist and lecturer and a close associate, echoes his sentiments: “There are many facets of north-east India like pottery and basket making that are similar to those in south-east Asian culture.” Says Bahadur: “It’s an ongoing process and I am dedicating the year 2001 to collecting musical instruments and tribal head-gear ornaments.”
Truth, enthusiasm and discipline are the driving forces that motivate Bahadur. Inaocha Mangang, his companion since 1978 and a graduate from Visvabharati, Santiniketan, sums it all up: “Bahadur himself is a rare specimen who should be preserved in the museum for posterity.”
In a world of neglect and uncertainty it’s nice to believe someone’s still in charge of the past.
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