BHUBANESWAR: The Dongria Kondhs who once fended off a powerful international corporate Vedanta’s plan to mine bauxites in the Niyamgiri hills - sacred to them - are fighting a Covid surge. Thirteen more cases have come up in Pakeri village under Rayagada’s Kalyansinghpur block.
Test hesitancy among the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) has emerged a major hurdle in curbing the spread of Covid-19 in the community which is spread across 98 villages scattered along the Niyamgiri hills of Rayagada. There are around 10,000 Dongria Kondhs residing in seven gram panchayats under Bissamcuttack, Kalyansinghpur and Muniguda blocks of the district. Last week, five Dongria tribals had tested positive in Kalyansinghpur block with reports of more showing Covid symptoms.
Amidst resistance by Dongrias, the community resource persons and field officials of the SC & ST Development department and Rayagada administration managed to test 16 residents of Pakeri on Sunday. Thirteen of them were positive, including the sarpanch Bama Kadraka. The rest refused to undergo test fearing cotton buds being inserted into their noses and hospitalisation if found positive.
The indigenous group members believe fever and cold are a normal summer phenomenon which do not require medical attention, officials say. But with more infection throwing up, there is fear of faster transmission among Dongrias who live in close-knit groups. Forget home isolation, most houses are single-roomed and without ventilation.
“Dongria families are dominated by women and they refused to undergo tests. The other members followed suit. The persons whom we managed to test yesterday were asymptomatic. We are now told that a majority of the village is showing symptoms”, said Madan Mohan Dalbehera, Special Officer of Dongria Kondh Development Agency, Parsali.
Besides, this is the mango plucking season which fetches the Dongrias good money and fearing loss of earning for a fortnight if hospitalised, they are reluctant to get tested. On Monday, the tribal development and block officials held a meeting with leaders of Dongria Kondhs - Lado Sikaka and Krushna Sikaka - where they were counselled about Covid-19 and need to test all the villagers of Pakeri. Subsequently, the tribal leaders urged villagers to undergo tests on Tuesday and some have agreed. “However, we are not sure how many will voluntarily come forward”, said Dalbehera.
Meanwhile, the infected patients have been isolated at a community centre set up by SC & ST Development department in the village. Two ‘Corona Raths’ were also flagged off by the local administration on Monday to create awareness among Dongrias about Covid-appropriate behaviour and testing in their local language at Parsali under Kalyansinghpur and Chatikona under Bissamcuttack block.
Apart from the 13 fresh cases in Pakeri village, one more person tested Covid positive in Gandili village under Muniguda panchayat of Bissamcuttack block in the last 24 hours. With this, the total number of infected Dongria Kondhs has gone up to 19.
Sudarshan Padhy, DKDA in charge of Bissamcuttack and Muniguda said, the first person to have been infected in Bissamcuttack is from Hutesi village and suffers from comorbidity. He is currently under treatment at Christian Hospital. Door-to-door survey in both Gandili and Hutesi villages is being carried out now.
Rayagada Collector Saroj Kumar Mishra said medical teams have been sent to the affected areas for testing and treatment. “We are also reaching out to the tribals and creating awareness among them about masking and other Covid norms in Kui language”, he said.