Footprints: Starvation to stave off

Published November 4, 2014
HARSH conditions have forced Tharis to undertake large-scale migration in search of access to food and fodder for the livestock.—Photo by Yusuf Nagori
HARSH conditions have forced Tharis to undertake large-scale migration in search of access to food and fodder for the livestock.—Photo by Yusuf Nagori

THAR has been in the limelight since early this year, but for all the wrong reasons. Its people, mostly the underprivileged communities of the Meghwars, Bheels and Kohlis, are enduring harsh conditions that are prompting large-scale migration in search of access to food and fodder for their livestock.

By Oct 30, the journey of Nanji Bheel, in his late 70s, had entered the fourth day as he led the caravan of his family and other residents of his village towards Sanghar. “It will take us another eight to 10 days to reach Sanghar in Sindh where we should be able to find some work as cane harvesting is about to begin,” says Bheel, looking tired but still resilient.

Know more: Prime Minister takes notice of drought in Thar

His grandchildren ride a camel that carries grain and other food to be consumed during the journey. Bheel’s guileless reference to Sindh as an alien area reflects the isolation people like him feel.

“There have been no rains for the past two years,” explains Bheel. “We are left with no food and our animals don’t find grass or fodder any more.”

The sun is going to set and he plans for an overnight stay somewhere in the sprawling desert. “We have lost four cows during the journey. Two of our men are looking for them in the area where they disappeared,” adds the old man. “One of us will sleep and the other will take care of the cattle.” He talks in Dhatki, the commonly spoken language of Thar, Sindhi blended in the Rajasthani dialect.

Thar is facing its second consecutive drought since 2013 and of its six talukas, Chhachhro and Dahali are entirely affected by drought while Nagarparkar and Islamkot have been partially affected. The areas surrounding Mithi and Diplo talukas face similar conditions. The people fear that by early next year, the situation will turn even worse: the monsoons are over, they say, and the underground water levels in wells are dropping fast in areas such as Nagarparkar. Barring any unusual climatic change, it is not going to rain now, they calculate.

“Apparently the government’s only concern is to deny the deaths of children,” says one resident here. “It isn’t bothered about addressing malnutrition among children and expectant mothers or how to ensure the availability of drinking water.”

Malnutrition-induced deaths of newborns and children are being reported from Mithi and some 400 children have died since early this year. To overcome water scarcity, the government has launched a scheme for the establishment of reverse osmosis plants but the pace remains slow. Wheat is being distributed among the famine-hit population but the government’s claim that the distribution process is transparent is quite hard to believe. Poverty-stricken Tharis still pay Rs100 towards transportation charges and for many it is impossible to pay even this meagre amount as they are almost on the verge of starvation.

“Water resources will deplete by March 2015,” points out noted development activist and resident of Thar Dr Sonu Khangarani. Nagarparkar, he continues, had some rains and crop last year but it is the only part of Thar which had some rainfall. “The rest of Thar didn’t get any. We believe that the severity of the drought is increasing,” he says.

When it comes to migration, it is the Bheels and Kohlis who leave their abodes first. They work as farm labour in the barrage areas to get some cash and grain. Since most of Meghwars are not totally dependent on agriculture and livestock, they don’t opt for migration that easily. But their liquidity prospects do haunt them.

“I sold two of my goats for Rs8,000 to clear my liabilities for grocery items and get more stock. They were weak, otherwise they would have fetched me Rs10,000 each. The price trend in the market was not encouraging either,” says Moti Meghwar, a tailor in village Chaho Charen, Chhachhro taluka. Since drought has gripped the area, he explains, people didn’t celebrate Diwali the way they used to, with the result that he couldn’t earn much out of tailoring. “People are not finding two square meals a day. Instead of migrating, I stayed home to fetch water daily as my wife can’t do it. She is weak. We have to travel for around three kilometres,” he tells me.

Stretched over 19,638 square kilometres, the desert of Thar has not seen much development work. Lacking facilities of health care and education, the area got some road networks in the recent past. These days, again, it is witnessing some roads construction but that is in line with the investment-friendly approach in the backdrop of the much-awaited Thar Coal Project. One of the major road networks here was laid during the Musharraf regime through Poverty Alleviation Programme and Drought Emergency Relief Assistance projects when the desert witnessed a similar drought in 2000.

A doctor and social activist, who prefers to remain anonymous because of his government job, sees migration in a different way, though. “It is the road that broke the myth that we can’t step out of our homes,” he says. “But it doesn’t mean that currently people are migrating for a ride or fun. The economy of this area is fast switching over to a wage-based one instead of agriculture and livestock. So Tharis need to diversify their resources of income. We have the Meghwars as a case in point who are engaged in different jobs. An institute where Tharis are given training for various skills can be set up to make a beginning.”

Published in Dawn, November 4th , 2014

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