CHENNAI: Two naked kids play on a rusted see-saw in an abandoned playground in Meesanallur, near Vandavasi. Startled by outsiders, they run to their homes tucked behind a dilapidated playground. Six mud huts with thatched roofs scattered next to a dried-up lake constitute the Irula hamlet of Meesanallur.
A kilometre away, workers are adding final touches to the colony being built for these tribals who have lived on the fringes of society for three generations.
After living on the bare minimum for so long, this hamlet along with four others from nearby villages — Thellar, Eripattu, Emballam, Nadukuppam — will move into Abdul Kalam Puram, a smart colony for Irulas by the end of August.
The colony will feature 43 houses, an anganwadi, and sheds for a milch cow for each Irula family. The entire colony will be electrified by a solar-powered grid. “This smart colony is a rural rendition of urban gated communities,” says Dr Prabhu Shankar, IAS, the former sub collector of Cheyyar, whose brainchild this ambitious project is.
Dr Shankar noticed that the Irulas of his village had lost their homes to flooding after incessant rain in 2015. The territorial Irulas, who refuse to mingle with the other clans despite sharing a similar identity came forward and asked for pukka homes to live in. Little did they know that coming together for the first time would evoke a reaction like Abdul Kalam Puram from the newly-appointed sub collector of Tindivanam.
“It started off as a pet project but then I approached the Ministry of Tribal Affairs for funding after a preparing a proposal. I didn’t think things would fall in place so soon,” admits Dr Shankar. “With the colony nearing completion. I’ve realised building houses is easier than building homes.”
Irula clans are subject to an unspoken discrimination from the villagers and have been forced to subsist as daily wagers involved in wood cutting, construction and agricultural labour. The common identity and profession have, however, not unified the five Irula clans in Cheyyar sub collectorate.
Illiteracy, a common denominator, is a major obstacle halting any progress among these tribal clans from one generation to another.
Only one of the 185 beneficiaries has undergone higher secondary education. “An Anganwadi within the colony is the best way to get the kids to school and give them considerably better lives than their parents,” says Prince Solomon, assistant professor from Department of Social Work, Madras Christian College, who has been involved in integrating the five clans over the last year.
Post the allocation of funds, it was realised the viability of this precedent setting project for Irulas would greatly depend on the inter-clan relationship that would transcend the clan mentality by the time of occupancy. “Bringing these 185 Irulas together was the first step towards breaking existing barriers,” says Sam Jebadurai, a social worker at the International Justice Mission.
The International Justice Mission and students from the Department of Social Work were roped in to engage with these clans. In June, social workers and students from MCC lived with these hamlets for two days and observed their problems and conducted a workshop about an integrated sustainable future.
“We got Irulas from different clans to perform in a street play for the valedictory function,” says Solomon.
“Through art, dance and music the all the beneficiaries were brought under one roof for the first time. However post-occupancy, community engagement will be just as important to cement these Irulas together,” he says.
Unlike other schemes under which each tribal family gets different benefits, these are uniform in this scheme. Benefits are usually converted to cash which is then given to the head of the family. “We are putting all our eggs in one basket in the Abdul Kalam Puram project,” says Dr Shankar.
An Irula family won’t be able to sell off their property and cash in for obvious reasons. Discrimination from the other villagers is actually an advantage. Abdul Kalam Puram is just the beginning for Dr Prabhu Shankar. Another community for 100 families released bonded labourers is set to come up next to the smart colony. “This is a project on a bigger scale and Abdul Kalam Puram has helped us fine tune requirements,” says Dr Shankar.