RAIPUR: The inhabitants of remotely-located Koleng, a Maoist stronghold in Bastar in south Chhattisgarh, found among themselves the collector who spent not just a few hours of the day but had a night halt in the tribal hamlet.
Rajat Bansal, a 2012-batch IAS officer, traveled on a bike and trekked through the hostile terrain for a few kilometre to reach Koleng village in Darbha --the block which drew a great deal of nationwide attention after the top Congress leadership got eliminated in an audacious Maoist attack targeting the party convoy on 25 May 2013.
The intent of the collector was to understand the local populace and the pressing needs of the region which is symptomatic of three-decades of violence unleashed by the outlawed CPI (Maoist).
Bansal relished the tribal cuisine, performed on their traditional musical instruments, engaged in local sports, participated in awareness rally and interacted with them during his 24 hours stay with the tribal community.
Koleng, having a population of over 300, is located adjoining the Odisha border and about 45 km away from the Jagdalpur -- the district headquarters of Bastar.
As Maoist violence still remains a potential threat, the security forces had advised Bansal not to venture into Koleng during late evening hours but he had his own plans and reached the village at around 3 pm with his small team.
“We also wished to understand the liberty and the choices the local tribals make as the situation is returning to normalcy away from the purported ideological leaning to the banned organisation in the area”, the collector said.
“Villagers told us that the collector inquired about their requirements and whether they are able to access the welfare schemes launched by the government. Instead of the mediators, he was more inclined to personally get the first-hand information from the ground regarding the reach of the district administration”, said Bastar-based journalist Dharmendra Mahapatra.
It was only RP Noronha, Indian Civil Service (ICS) officer, who was much fond of working for the tribal communities after consciously investing time with them to get to know about their lifestyle and culture. Noronha later became the chief secretary of Madhya Pradesh in 1963.