SANE Newsletter
April/May 2003
Introduction
In a PIL ("Public Interest Litigation") moved by SANE, Kalpavriksh and BNH, the Supreme Court of India on 7 May 2002 ordered the closure of the Andaman Trunk Road, among the other things, within a period of 90 days from the date of the order. The deadline for the closure of the road expired on 8th August; 2002.Even eight months after the deadline, the road remains open.
Ms. Richa Dhanju , a post-graduate Scholar from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, while on placement with SANE, conducted a study on the ATR, possible impact of its closure and its alternatives. The study reveals startling facts.
For more information on the Andaman Trunk Road see also
- George Weber 2005 The Andaman Trunk Road
- Vishvajit Pandya 2007 From dangerous to endangered: Jarawa"primitives" and welfare politics a
on this web site.
History of the Andaman Trunk Road
by Richa Dhanju
Table of Contents 2. Methodology 3. History of the Andaman Trunk
Road 5. What People Say ... and Want 6.2 Analysis of Traffic Data on the Andaman Trunk
Road 6.3 The Sea Route 6.4 Cargo Movement 7.2 Analysis 8. The Jarawa and the Andaman Trunk
Road 9. Field Trips 9.2 Trip 2 10. Conclusion 11. Appendices 11.2 Passenger Statistics 11.3 Available Vessels 11.4 Total Cargo
6.1 Analysis of Jarawa Traffic on ATR
7.1 Costs
9.1 Trip 1
11.1 Traffic Flow on the ATR
This map is not part of the original article but has been prepared by the Andaman Association. Since the original article does not contain a map, we hope that it will serve a useful purpose here.
If we may make one further intrusion into an article that is not
our own, may we suggest the following supplementary further reading
to the subject on this web-site:
- Befriending the
Jarawa - Indian tribal policy illustrated in the case of a
hunter-gatherer group in the Andaman Islands
I came to the Andamans with a little more than my scanty baggage. And the hope that I would be able to study the Jarawas. My knowledge about the subject was meager but the zeal was unmistakably extreme. What else would anyone expect me to study and write my academic report on but the world famous near extinct negrito tribes- the Jarawas! But this was not to be so.
The restrictions imposed by the government to study the Jarawas and their lives dissuaded me to a good extent to take up another project with SANE.
My interest in studying and analyzing the Impact of the Closure of the ATR came rather late while I was in the midst of data collection for my first project. But when the realization dawned upon me that my interest lies much with the ATR as that brought me closer to the Jarawas and their ever shrinking world, there was no looking back, much thanks to Mr. Samir Acharya.
Under the guidance and tireless support of Mr. Acharya and his team of most genuine workers at SANE, I became a part of the network that was willing to go to any extent to collect data on the roads through the reserve forests and prove the unproven.
The smaller nuances started coming to light rather too boldly. I was filled with questions about the administration (sleeping or silly?), the people, the Jarawas, their changing life, the significance of the road for them and for us. I left no opportunity to question people everywhere around me and weed out any kind of perception or factual information that came my way about the tussle between whether the road should be closed or not? And why? What happens to the Jarawas? And what about using the waterways?
All in all, the experience I gathered here was not limited to my work on the study of the road. Everyday, with each session of discussions that I had with Mr. Acharya, I got a fair peep into the lives of the Jarawas, their practices, traditions, the threats of speedy assimilation and the changes in and around them as perceived by them as a community.
The study speaks little about the impact that the closure of the road would have on the Jarawas as that would demand thoroughness in analyzing the impact of the road per se on the tribals. For this, since we have, till date depended much on our perceptions of what they would be feeling like or thinking about in regard with the road and all that has come with it, I would rather limit my study and, either wait for a qualitative study of the Jarawa's perception of the road, or hopefully come back and do it myself. There are definitely strong facts about the fatal diseases that the road has brought but much more is yet to be revealed by them and analyzed by us.
The focus of this study thus melts down to:
* Analyzing the traffic trend in regard with the stakeholders of the ATR
* Cost Benefit Analysis of the Andaman Trunk Road
* Comparative analysis between the roadways and the waterways.
*Understanding the changing world of the Jarawas since the opening of the road.To determine the volume of traffic on the Andaman Trunk Road, the records maintained at the Jarawa Reserve Check posts were used. The register maintained at the check post is in the following format.
To determine the volume of traffic on the Andaman Trunk Road, the records maintained at the Jarawa Reserve Check posts were used. The register maintained at the check post is in the following format:
|
Date |
Vehicle registration no. |
Type of vehicle |
Name of driver |
|
Coming from |
Going to |
No. of passsengers |
Cargo |
Data sheets were prepared for 96 days of the year 2002-03, 6 days of Nov. 15 days of Dec. 02 and 31 days of Jan 28 days of Feb. and 16 days of March 03. The data was fed into a computer and tables prepared. The average per day values was calculated.
To determine the composition of the traffic, primary data were collected through filling up of a questionnaire in respect of every person traveling on a single day. Seven volunteers traveled in the buses leaving Port Blair on the 16th April, 03 and got the questionnaire completed. The sample size was 500 passengers.
The same process was repeated on an inter-island vessel sailing from Port Blair to Rangat via Havelock, Neil and Straight Islands.
The data collected were fed into the computer and tables prepared for each type of vehicles, categories of travelers, frequency of travel and so on. Average per day numbers were calculated.
By extrapolating these values to the total number of vehicles using the road, the final results were completed.
The list of ships, passenger fare structure, volume of passenger and cargo were collected from the records of the Directorate of Shipping Services and the Port Management Board. The basic statistics like population, distance and so on were taken from various publication of the AandN Administration.
3. History of the Andaman Trunk Road
"It is possible that communication may not always prove a blessing. They can, for example, facilitate the entry of the exploiters and other harmful elements before the tribals become sufficiently conscious to look after their own interests." (Planning Commission)
The stance of Indian government post independence for the Andaman and Nicobar islands was one that converted the scantily populated islands into a settlement for the refugees from East Bengal and subsequently South India.
As a result of this, the populations of non-tribals in the Andaman Islands rose to 1,58,287 in 1981 and presently stands at an approximate figure of 4,50,000
The population of the tribals (all four negrito tribes) which was estimated to be around 8,000 before the infiltration by the civilized world, now rests at a mere 400, of which the Jarawas are no more than 260 presently (approximate).
With the ratio between the indigenous peoples and the non-autochthons becoming grossly lopsided thus importing a typical mainlander 'continental mentality, so far alien to these islands. The mainlanders are non-sea faring people; with very few knowing the art of swimming, for they rarely felt the need to be in proximity of the sea. For centuries, various civilizations bound to the land road have based their foundation of communication and transportaion on the road. The main roads would connect one place to another, leading to trade links and furthering into cultural and personal ties, irrespective of distances. So, for the people who have witnessed the road as a quintessential means of livelihood and the convenient growth of it, it was considered natural to demand one in a cluster of islands, in a bid to feel more connected and united in a place far away from the mainland India. What everyone overlooked was the practicality of infrastructural development and proper functioning of the ships and the boats as a more 'islander' means of transport and commuting.
The settlements were dispersed all over the Andaman Islands, right from Diglipur in the north to Port Blair, down south. The administration came up with the master plan of building connectivity between all the main settlement areas, for purpose of business and trade. The construction of the road started around 1965 and the plan for the ATR clearly stated that a long stretch of it would have to pass through the reserve forest area, in order to provide the much-required continuity to the road. This was done without even de-reserving the forest reserve area, thus making the construction and subsequent usage of the 129 km long patch that runs through the Jarawa Reserve absolutely illegal.
|
The Jarawa Forest Area was declared Reserved Forest in 1957 by the then Chief Commissioner of AandN islands. |
During the construction era, there are several reports that document the resistant fight the Jarawas had put up all through. The Jarawas considered the tree cutters and wood transporters as their main enemies. The GREF labor force started to need the protection of the police against the Jarawas. Many Police and Labor camps emerged within the reserve forests, thus adding salt to the wound- cutting the forests, intruding and settling into the Jarawa territory, hunting their game and chopping their trees to build the road which held no significance for them.
While the road was under construction, there were voices of protest from the anthropologists and various organizations concerned with environmental and ecological issues within the islands and even outside it.
The road was questioned by Indira Gandhi in 1980 on grounds of its running through the Jarawa Reserve Territory. Later, an Environment Impact Assessment was taken up by the Centre for Taxonomic Studies, which clearly declared that the waterways should be used as a more viable alternative to the road, considering that the road was hindering the natural environment - the jungle and its people, to a great extent. However, the EIA was not taken seriously by the administration and thus no step resulted out of the extensive study that criticized the road thoroughly.
The road became fully operational in 1989.
The annual cost of routine maintenance alone exceeds Rs. 400 million and at least Rs. 450 million when special works are involved. This cost of maintenance is for only 20 % of the total length of the road taken up each year. In comparison to the annual budget of the A & N Islands, which stands at Rs. 8000million, the price we pay for the road is ill logically excessive.
Even after the Administration has understood the ill-impacts of the road on the Jarawas and the expenditure of its maintenance there is little that has been done to make the water ways a more convenient means of inter-islands transportation.
Now that politics has become so closely associated with the road, its continuation and its convenience there is no doubt that the people of Andamans have been made to believe the pseudo relevance of the road. The road has thus become a major vote bank attractor.
Presently, the road stands complete at a total of 343 kms, connecting the four main islands of South Andaman, Baratang, Middle Andaman and North Andaman, and still running strong, cutting deep into the Jarawa Reserve Area as more than a mere road.
|
"The building of the Andaman Trunk Road was a cardinal folly" (D.S Negi, Former Secretary, Tribal Welfare, AandN) |
|
The Week12th January 2003 Lt. Governor NN Jha, who called the road a strategic
link, said 3 lac people would be affected if it was closed
down. "Even if the portion passing through the Jarawa
reserve is closed it would affect a lot of business," he
said. "Conservation at the cost of development is not the
answer." Andaman Express 14th January 2003 "…The Andaman Trunk Road which is having 3.6 mtr. width will be extended upto 7 mtr. making it a double lane road for the faster movement of traffic, the Member of Parliament Shri Bishnu Pada Ray informed. Andaman Express 24 January 2003 "…Mr. Ray also quoted the Prime Minister and said that Mr. Atal Bihari Vajpayee has agreed in principle to the proposal of making the Andaman Trunk Road a two lane road and added that although the PM never announced it but has agreed to this issue. |
|
"Let it not be said by future generations that the Indian republic has been built on the destruction of the green earth and the innocent tribals who have been living there for centuries." (President of India, 2001, Republic Day eve address) |
|
|
The evergreen rain forest along the Andaman Trunk Road has today turned deciduous (this and the other photographs of this article have been taken in August 2002) |
The Supreme Court sought the recommendations from the Shekhar Singh Commission's report and passed an order on 7th May 2002 that the Andaman Trunk Road, running through the Jarawa reserve territory, that is 129 Km of the total road should be closed for all, within a period of 90 days.
We would go through a brief history of the legal action that was initiated by concerned individuals and environmental NGO's for the closure of the ATR, which led to the above-mentioned verdict of the Supreme Court.
The first PIL that was filed in the Kolkotta High Court was by Shyamoli Gaunguly on 9th March, 2000. The PIL does not question the existence of the road. It simply raised objection against the nakedness of the Jarawas and their begging on the road. The PIL stated that the state should focus on the Jarawa welfare so that they could rise about their piteous conditions and live more respectably, by being inducted into the mainstream modern society.
Immediately, an intervention was filed by Society for Andaman and Nicobar Ecology, SANE, negating the need to mainstream the Jarawas and advocating for their undisturbed and unintervened existence in the jungle.
The Hon'ble High Court appreciated the facts presented by SANE and ordered the Principal Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs, to constitute a Committee of Experts including sociologists and anthropologists of "national and international repute" to study the problem and to recommend measures. The Court further ordered that in view of the grave import of the matter, the report of the expert committee should be widely publicised before holding a seminar to finally decide on the policy relating to the Jarawa. So no steps were then taken by the administration to work for the 'mainstreaming' welfare of the Jarawas.
However, what led to the verdict for the closure of the ATR is a different story altogether.
SANE, along with Kalpavriksh and Bombay Natural History Society, had filed a case in the Kolkata High Court for the 'Restoration of the Onge habitat to the Onges. The case was referred to the Supreme Court and, while the facts regarding the survival of the Onges were being debated at in the court, the Jarawa case, i.e the negative impact of the ATR on the Jarawa livelihood was also brought forward, both cases being of the similar nature. The Supreme Court passed a surprising verdict by announcing the closure of the 129 km long ATR patch cutting through the Jarawa reserve forest, i.e, from Middle Strait to Jirkatang and, Kadamtala to Porlobjig.
The Shekhar Singh Commission appointed by the Supreme Court to study the forests and other allied matters in the AandN Islands in January 2002, later studied the ATR and its impact on the Jarawas in detail, with the assistance of the submissions made to the same on the basis of the studies conducted by SANE.
The Supreme Court accepted the recommendation of the Shekhar Singh Commisson Report and passed a final order in favor of the closure of the ATR in May, as has been discussed earlier.
The Supreme Court, the apex body of the Republic of India, has been as blatantly contradicted as can be possible. The Administration of A & N Islands were provided with a time frame of three months to activate alternate means of transportation by building up a sufficient waterway infrastructure to function after the closure of the 129 km long ATR stretch. However this has been clearly defied as the time period lapsed in August 2002 and the road still cuts through the Jarawa Reserve.
The nexus of politicians, builders, contractors and the administration has emerged as lethal enough to continue to work against the orders of the highest court of law of our nation.
|
"What my people require is not adequate safeguards…they require protection from ministers that are in position today." (Jaipal Singh) |
5. What People Say ... and Want
|
"The inception of the road is regarded as a signifier of culturally constructed control, and order over the disorderly expansion of nature." (Vishwajit Pandya in 'To Build Or Not To Build') |
|
|
Miss Richa Dhanju talking to Lidah, an 8-year-old orphan Jarawa boy |
Before we discuss here the perception of the people about the road, or its closure, we must understand that a democracy respects the views of its minority as much as it depends upon its majority to gauge the general trend of views on the basis of which our society functions.
In the field of environment management, it is often the knowledge and operation of certain individuals and organizations that help us fight our temptation (or their repercussions) to exploit natural resources for the convenience of the majority.
There was little opportunity that went unexplored while trying to understand what the common man feels about the relevance of the ATR and the impact it has had on the Jarawas.
Most of the people we interacted with on the bus believed that the road had become a necessity in order to stay connected with the other main islands, and specifically so, Port Blair. Interestingly, as the data would reveal to you in the latter part of the study, majority of them use the road not more than once or twice a month.
Many passengers were of the view that for a small population of 250 Jarawas, thousands of travelers should not be made to suffer. Incidentally, much of these belong to the class of the intelligentsia of our nation.
According to one government Official, the question of closure of ATR was absurd. "And what about the defense of the nation? In case of an attack on the islands, we cannot depend on the ships to take us to Diglipur, which is so close to Coco Islands. Roadways are the fastest. If the ATR is closed then national security would suffer tremendously and we cannot take a risk."
The principles of warfare state somewhat the opposite. Roads and bridges are the first to come under attack in case of any war, as they are considered the main links between major cities. Moreover, what about the national security of our nation pre-ATR? In an archipelago where the naval power is expected to be supreme, if we heavily depend upon the army for security, there is a need to question our national defense policies with a more unbiased mind. (For now it is a continental bias of seeing the world from the side of a road)
Travel agents reveal a deadly Jarawa tourism game plan that is accomplished rather smoothly. Gypsies and Omnis are hired along with the promises of seeing the Jarawas, photographing them and even meeting them in person. The police are often party to such moneymaking expeditions. For these travel agents, ATR is 'where the money really is now.'
Some of them confess that they have been able to establish friendly contact with a few Jarawas to an extent that they themselves take tourists to their habitations in return of a package of gifts like biscuits, sukha, bananas, red cloth, etc.
"They can not be stopped now. The Jarawas have seen enough (of the world). They will eventually come out of their forests and become like us", quips a tourist van owner cum phone booth operator.
The policeman at the Middle Strait check post has a daily guest for lunch. Lidah is an 8-year-old orphan Jarawa boy who spends most of his time at the check post, collecting food from visitors and playing with the policeman's young son. The policeman has been at this check post for three years and has "witnessed a sea change in their attitude towards the outsiders."
He feels that the Jarawas are learning slowly. (Any guesses what?)
The school teachers are the most frequent users of the ATR, specifically those who are residents of Port Blair and teach at Rangat and other places along the ATR.
" Ever since the road started, I am able to be with my family every weekend. It used to take very long by boat previously and so I went home only once a month."
And take an early off on Fridays and be late for the first class on Mondays?
The road has indirectly resulted in deteriorating teaching standards and neglected students in the government schools, which are the only ones running in this area.
|
"No archipelago anywhere in the world uses the road for inter island communication. We need to shed our continental mentality if we want to live in an island." (Samir Acharya, SANE) |
6.1 Analysis of Jarawa Traffic on ATR
|
Month |
Males |
Females |
Boys |
Girls |
Total |
|
Nov. 02 (9 days) |
103 |
58 |
106 |
65 |
332 |
|
Dec. 02 (22 days) |
180 |
104 |
247 |
118 |
649 |
|
Jan 03 (19 days) |
132 |
91 |
191 |
93 |
507 |
|
Feb 03 (28 days) |
120 |
66 |
221 |
81 |
488 |
|
March 03 (15 days) |
62 |
40 |
107 |
43 |
252 |
|
93 days |
597 |
359 |
872 |
400 |
2,228 |
|
Daily average |
6.42 |
3.86 |
9.38 |
4.30 |
24 |
* 10.42/% of the entire Jarawa Population go for a joyride everyday.
* 26.8% of the travelers are adult males, 16.1% are Adult females, 39.06% are boys and 17.95% are girls.
* Or 57.14% of the Jarawa travelers are minors
* Of the Jarawa travelers 65.79% are males and only 34.21% are females.
6.2 Analysis of Traffic Data on the Andaman Trunk Road
On average, 24.08 private cars carrying 100.07 passengers and 25.34 buses carrying 772.33 passengers use the ATR daily including both ways. In addition, 5.16 Govt. vehicles carry 19.51 passengers on official business. 0.62 ambulances carry. 2.44 passengers daily. 25.8 trucks use the road carrying 88.5 passengers, 3.53 passengers per truck on an average. Most trunks carry a load one way and return empty. The Port Blair bound (up) trucks carry 4.46 passengers on an average while the down trucks carry only 2.51 passengers. The down trucks normally carry commercial cargo for outstations, apart from carrying construction material for repair of the ATR. These normally do not carry labourers. The data reveal that some of the up trucks carry a large number of labourers probably to ensure quick loading and unloading. It is possible that these trucks carry contraband like sand or timber.
Of the 891.91 passengers per day using the road, not counting the ambulances and trucks, 252.75 (28.33%) are Govt. Servants; 109.67 (12.3%) are in private service; 50.95 (17.5%) run small businesses; 18.54(2.08%) are farmers, 148.3 (15.61%) are students, 81.87 (9.18%) are housewives; 121.7 (13.64%) are tourists, others make up the rest. The category students also include students from the mainland who came as tourists. It is interesting to note that two housewives are with in the age group of 0-17.
7.8% of the bus travelers (772.33 passengers) travel once to thrice a week, 33.4% travel once to thrice a month, 34.4% travel once to six time per year and 24.2% are one-time travelers only.
An overwhelming 42.2% use the road for travel from home to place of work and vice-versa, 5.4% use the road for marketing, 0.2% to attend Court cases, 4.4% for medical treatment, 1.6% for travel to and from educational institutions, 24.6% for touring, 7.2% to visit relatives. The rest travel for other purposes.
26.6% of the travelers are between 0-17 years, 71.8% between 18-60 years and 1.6% are above 60 years of age.
39% travel to Port Blair, 18.4% to Baratang, 10% to Kadamtala, 14.6% to Rangat, 6% to Mayabunder and 4.2% to Diglipur. The rest travel to other destinations.
The average traffic would be substantially less if the entire year's data were analysed. During the rainy season, there are no tourists. During vacation period the passenger traffic get drastically reduced not only because of the absence of the students and teachers, but also a large number of govt. servants take their annual leave during that period. This annual exodus is so large that in years of severe water scarcity, the Administration times the vacation to coincide with low levels in water reservoirs.
6.3 The Sea Route
Prior to commissioning of the road, all passenger traffic to Baratang, Kadamtala, Rangat and beyond was by the sea route. In recent years, the people of these areas do not get an opportunity to take the sea route.
During 1.10.2002 to 31st March 2003, there were a total of 114 passenger boat sailings to Rangat. But not one of the sailings was to Rangat direct or to Rangat by the shortest route via Baratang and Kadamtala. Of the 114 sailings, 55 were via Neil Island, Havelock, Strait Island and Long Island to Rangat, which takes 11 hours to cover the distance as against 4-5 hours if the boat went via Baratang and Kadamtala. The other 59 sailings were to Rangat via Havelock Island again a much longer route. The frequency is not bad, 118 sailing in 180 days.
In spite of the constraints mentioned above the number of passengers traveling between the following stations by boat, was significant during the 11 months (Apr. 02 - March 03) for which data could be accessed.
|
Route |
No. of Passengers |
|
Port Blair - Neil Island |
20,467 |
|
Port Blair - Havelock |
81,689 |
|
Port Blair - Strait Island |
592 |
|
Port Blair - Long Island |
3,758 |
|
Port Blair - Kadamtala |
147 |
|
Port Blair - Rangat |
5,960 |
|
Port Blair - Mayabunder |
37 |
|
Port Blair - Diglipur |
28,970 |
The number of passengers to Diglipur shows that people are not really averse to travel by boat. Although Diglipur is connected by the ATR, the boat journey is faster, cheaper and therefore more convenient to the people. Boat traffic to Mayabunder is poor not because the people avoid the boats but due to the infrequency of the boat service. The heavy traffic to Havelock is because of the tourists. Most tourists coming to Andamans like to see the Jarawas and Havelock. To save time, many go to Havelock first, then to Rangat by boat and return by the road to Port Blair.
6.4 Cargo Movement
The 25.08 average daily trips by truck, half of which are empty, would carry 13x 5 MT of cargo or, 65 MT per day. While the data of the material for road building/repair are not available, it can be conservatively estimated at one third of that. So, real cargo moved would be 43 MT per day or 15695 MT or 3139 truckloads per year. The cargo movement by ship to Rangat during 2001-02 was 8805.3 MT. The cargo ships available has more than sufficient capacity to move this.
7.1 Costs
* The annual routine maintenance including special repairs costs around Rs. 45 Crores. ( 450 millions)
* The road requires 38 Metric Tonnes of Bitumen per Kilometre for maintenance
* It takes 88 Cords of firewood (approximately 249.04 cum) to heat the bitumen.
* Every year, 20% of the length only is taken up for repairs. So, the total firewood used is 12,452 cum.
* Andaman Public Works Department does not issue this firewood to the contractor.
* Logging of wood for construction purposes is visible within the repair sites.
* The Check Posts have no records of firewood movement into the reserved area.
* At a nominal cost of Rs.2500 per cum. the total cost works out to Rs. 3.50 Crores (35 millions)
|
|
Maintenance and repair on the Andaman Trunk Roaf continues, defying the orders of the Hon'ble Supreme Court. The fire wood used is cut in the tribal reserve |
7.2 Analysis
The Probable maximum total numbers of passenger trips on the ATR can be estimated at 365x891.91 or 3,25,547. Dividing the annual cost of repairs, 45 crores, by this figure, the cost per passenger trip works out to Rs. 1,382.28. One needs to ask oneself is this an affordable cost?
The closure of the road will result in a direct saving of 45 crores annually which could be gainfully utilized to improving the quality of life of the Islanders or to improve the inter-island shipping. The large police force deployed on the road will also not be necessary and would result in much saving. Upon closure of the road new diseases will, hopefully, not reach this isolated community resulting in substantial saving of medical personnel time. The 3.81 crore worth of firewood required for maintenance of the road will be saved resulting in healing the bold sores in the reserve forest. Huge quantity of sand that is spread on road surface every time bitumen is spread will be saved and will result in increase of earning for beach tourism by protecting the beaches.
The 3,25,547 passenger trips on the road can be boiled down to 1,62,774 passengers, since whoever goes also returns. Let us take a look at who they are and how dependant they are on the road. Of the 1,62,774 round trips, 4380 (2.69%) are made by the Jarawa and 40,042(24.6%) are tourists. The Administration never mentions these to justify the continuance of the road. That leaves 72.71% of the road users. 3561 round trips (2.19%) are made by Govt. Officials on duty by Govt. Vehicles. They can always travel by the 7 vessels reserved for their tour out of the 35 vessels that Administration has. 68,691 (42.2%) round trips are accounted for by persons in Govt. and private service to travel between house and place of work. The balance 46,010 round trips only (28.32%) are made by the Islanders, i.e., farmers, students, housewives and fisherman etc., whose "livelihood" is frequently cited by the pro-road lobby as the ground for keeping the road open.
Frequency of travel of different categories of users
|
Profession of Passenger |
1-3 /Week |
1-3/Month |
1-6/Year |
Once only |
|
Business |
3.15% |
21.89% |
46.88% |
28.08% |
|
Farmer |
- |
- |
- |
100.00% |
|
Housewife |
18.87% |
47.17% |
9.46% |
24.50% |
|
Student |
6.25% |
42.74% |
26.01% |
25.00% |
|
Private ser. |
9.59% |
28.74% |
39.68% |
23.47% |
|
Govt. ser. |
4.55% |
19.49% |
42.19% |
33.78% |
While 100% of the farmers use the road between 1 to 6 times a year, 18.87% housewives use the road 1-3 times a week, 47.17% 1 to 3 times a month, 9.46% 1 to 6 times a year and 24.5% once only. Only 3.15% of small businessmen use the road 1 to 3 times a week, 21.86% 1 to 3 times a month, 9.46% 1 to 6 times a year and the rest use it once only.
The biggest users of the road are the Govt., babus, tourists, and Jarawas. The farmers are the least dependent on the road. There does not appear to be any threat to the livelihood of the rural people on account of the closure of the road. The only jobs at stake would be those of the drivers and cleaners.
8. Jarawas and the Andaman Trunk Road
|
"When the last tree has been cut; the last stream poisoned and the last fish caught; only then will you realize that man can't eat money" (Red Indian Chief) |
|
|
Jarawa children begging for food on the Andaman Trunk Road |
"How many years more do you think they would survive?"
The question of the closure of the Andaman Trunk Road would definitely not hold much significance had it not been so closely related to the lives of an ancient community, threatened with extinction today. There might be many unwanted roads running haywire around our nation. But who would care to question them? It takes more than money or the wastage of it to arouse the genuine interest of many, and specifically so the Supreme Court.
What the ATR means for a Jarawa can have different perceptions from us. Some of us are bound to believe that the Jarawas are a starving and poor community of uncivilized and naked people and no wonder that they 'beg' on the road. That they need help and assistance to 'become one amongst us' can be a view strongly shared by many of those who have seen them asking for food and other stuff on the ATR.
There is an opposite lobby that understands that the Jarawas are forced into a system of 'fast assimilation' that has been introduced by the ATR. The road has brought with it not only travelers who come and go, but also the threat that engulfs the Jarawas today as to whether they shall be able to live with their cultural identity and their basic indigenous self till they are alive, or would they meet the same fate as the Great Andamanese and the Onges?
But this is all a matter of our analysis of the world that is still not open for us- to study and to understand.
That the Jarawas have the same word for the road and the forest (pepeyh) says a lot about how they interpret their relation with the road. If they consider the road to be the same as the forest in terms of the fact that both lead to someplace relevant- the forest in their case and the road in ours, then we may well ask them whether the road and the forest hold similarities also because now the road has become a contemporary food basket for at least some of them.
This brings us to the continuous debate of whether we are in a position to ever judge what is right and wrong for a community which itself has got neither the time nor the space to make decisions on its own.
People often wonder… how many years more can the Jarawas survive?
The table below indicates that how the Jarawas have been exposed to a variety of diseases ever since they started 'coming out' on the road.
|
Andaman Express 10th March 2003 The news report carries a statement by Smt. Namita Ali, Director of Health Services of the AandN Administration saying that Malaria has now been reported from the Jarawa people. She is quoted as saying, "… we found that many labourers from the North Eastern region were brought from mainland near the Jarawa Reserve by few private contractors to carry out road construction and other works. When examined it was found that most of them were carriers of this disease and they might have carried the infection to that region and the disease was then spread by the mosquitoes among the Jarawas." |
|
Respiratory |
PUO |
Malaria |
Measles |
Mumps |
Poisoning (unknown) |
Skin disease |
Injury |
Abdominal pain |
ENT |
EYE |
Insect bite |
Other diseases |
||||
|
RTI |
URI |
Pneu- |
PV |
PF |
Fracture |
Other |
||||||||||
|
229 |
27 |
48 |
282 |
23 |
39 |
59 |
42 |
4 |
49 |
2 |
71 |
13 |
8 |
8 |
1 |
25 |
The following two articles, Trip I and Trip II document the observations of the researcher during her trips on the ATR, on the basis of her interactions with a few Jarawas followed by discussions with environmentalists and anthropologists.
9.1 Trip 1
A little more than 13 years since the ATR became functional and a little less than 6 years since the Jarawas came out of their homes in the jungles, on to the road and, started a way of life that was partial to their existence in whole.
What is it that drove the Jarawas so close to the much resisted civilized world? Entertainment or Need? Or is it entertainment that has become a need?? I am yet to understand this. But on the black tar road that simmers heat of anger the whole day long, what is happening is what was never supposed to have happened, and may soon lead to a 'nothing' to everything, but for now, THE JARAWAS.
What else, but the 'civilized of the uncivilized' can be expected when the forests begin to shrink by the day and the beaten land fills itself with people- white and brown, Hindus and Muslims, Congress and BJP, clothed and uncouth, dismissive and aggressive - one of each kind, striving to create an existence as comfortable as possible, for themselves, exclusively.
The mind is numb on issues that question our very being and the genesis of its lawful righteousness in a society that governs itself on the basis of regulations, norms, customs and taboos that often slips its understanding- as per convenience.
|
|
Intruders from the so-called civilized world as they enter into the Jarawa reserve at Middle Strait jetty |
On my first trip on the ATR, I was not anticipating anything more revealing and real than the photographs and the graphic descriptions of the Jarawas that I had become accustomed to seeing and hearing, every time, everywhere and from everyone.
But during my first visit to Baratang, when the bus shrieked to a halt suddenly, these photographs and descriptions seemed to have come to life. It was like a sitting stampede in the bus for the first timers on the ATR. Everyone craned their necks to have a good look at the man. I thought back on the last two words…THE MAN, and smiled to myself. Surely one of his kind, a true man, not ashamed of himself, his material saneness and that of a thousand naked stares of the much clothed.
|
|
"The Man" (Jarawa tax collector) |
The "tax collector" seemed strong and demanding… like requesting you to be prompt with your taxes (biscuit and sukha) for being on the road, in his territory, or else…
The income tax department could possible take a few functional tips from him.
The bus moved on and we squeezed ourselves out of the windows to take one last look at possibly the only Jarawa we would see, for, were they supposed to be not straying on the road? Or was it that the road should have not been straying into their land…eating their forests and inviting intruders!!
The next Jarawa in sight was a young man, around 18 years old, enjoying the breeze on the top of a deluxe bus in front of ours. He had climbed on to the speeding bus with unprecedented swiftness. From a distance the youth looked like a masterpiece made of brown-black clay and decorated with bright red in bits and pieces.
|
|
A young Jarawa enjoying the breeze on top of a deluxe bus |
He sat there, fearless and hero like, looking down on us, traveling first class, no rush, no sweat, no ticket - right on top.
At that moment, anyone would have envied his space and would have wished to be a part of his world, to be able to feel free to do things the way they like, without apprehensions and piece-note judgments for all that we are and the dreams that we wish to become. The young Jarawa sprang off the bus at Middle Strait. He walked back to the comfort of his woods and I settled back with my speculations of the tireless yet subdued questioning of the world of the Jarawas.
Baratang
While we waited for the ferry to tow us across, we met a permanent visitor of the area. Puhu. He looked beautiful. Very stunning in his read head band, the wooden bark chest jacked that so graciously supported his weapons.
|
|
Puhu (left) now is in his traditional dress like his peer (below). We could not photograph Puhu in is traditional clothes because of the police bandobast.
|
Puhu was deep in conversation with the policeman. I wanted to ask him,( more than all the bus loads of passengers or maybe, even the President of India) about what he feels for the road. Should it go on? Is it good for you? Or is it bad? What does it have in store for you and 'Your People'?
No answer.
Blank stares…his and mine.
Maybe my Hindi was not 'Jarawaish' enough.
After several attempts of following Puhu in and around the bus , I managed to catch him while he sat sharing a sukha with the driver.
And it was a rather memorable moment.
For, we were on a bus, which was on a ferry, which rested on the still waters of the undisturbed creek. It was like time stood still…very stagnant. Pregnant with the suspense of what verdict Puhu would pass about the road, the semi-civilized spokesperson from his side of the world.
Puhu: "We used to stay deep inside the jungle. Now the road is here and we are out, closer to it…maybe the road is not good…we are out now."
His eyes were as red as his pan stained mouth, as red as his headband.
Red…stop
Red…danger
Red…extinct??
On our return journey the next day, at the same place, I saw Puhu again, but did not dare to approach him. This time, he was not alone. There were three young Jarawa women, clad in nighties and bright red caps, sitting on top of the bus, with sacks full of I don't know what. It seems that the family was going to the market…to buy and sell.
To buy from you a part of MY LAND
For you may sell me as a part of you now.
For I may buy me as a part of you then
I came back thinking through the photographs, thorough my Tribal Anthropology lectures, through the exclusive narratives that the Jarawa experts discourse on. And at night, all I could see was RED in my dreams.
9.2 Trip 2
The second trip was bound to be more exciting for me. It had to go beyond merely watching the Jarawas from the regulated distance of my vehicle. This time I had concrete plans to watch them more closely, hear them with concentration and understand for myself about what is it that the road has brought with it for the Jarawas…an unexplored world, a batch of new found diseases, a means of entertainment, or maybe a shortcut to the 'civilization assimilation' strategy(read as 'path to extinction')
(So many options from us to them. If adopted, in each option, the Jarawas would possibly find an answer in the other and then willingly question the contraption of each, thus rendering it as superfluous)
Our first interaction was with three little Jarawas, about 3-5 years old. They had come running out of their bath, somewhere behind the dense trees, on hearing the zoom of the gypsy. They clamored around us and tried to lay their hands on whatever they could inside the car. Very frisky, unafraid and uninhibited, they managed to empty our food stock into their little palms in a matter of few minutes. I felt absorbed in the beauty that these children hid within their innocence.
|
|
Four little Jarawa boys coming out of their bath to collect food from us |
And then a bombardment of queries filled my mind. Would I be able to see them here again after 10 -20 years the way they are now…natural and so very Jarawa? Would they be able to live their way of life with the long tar serpent cutting through their forests, spewing around bits and pieces of the 'other world'? What would the children grow up to be if they follow to live in two different spheres- in the forest and on the road? A fine sheet of guilt squeezed my breath out. I would be as party to their extinction as anyone else, on and off the road. (For, it is not always about doing things the wrong way; it is often about not doing the right things too)
I often witnessed the ultimate when a group of young Jarawas would fearlessly stand in the middle of the road with the buses approaching them at break neck speed. The buses habitually screech and stop. The Jarawas would then conduct a soft partial raid and leave once they have collected enough eatables and indulged in satiating their and our desire to know about each other's world. This is where I totally understand how "the Jarawas have studied us better than we have been able to study them."
Up ahead, we saw two Jarawa women (15-20 years old) and three children carrying bamboo baskets strapped to their heads. We slowed and looked for a chance to peep into their contemporary lives by scrutinizing the contents of their delicate baskets and what we saw was rather unexpected. Plastic bottles, iron rods and stones- all from the ATR.
|
|
Jarawa women carrying baskets strapped to their heads,
full of plastics |
There were two baskets full of abandoned water and cola bottles. So much of plastic! What use have they found for it? One of us guessed that maybe the Jarawas have started storing drinking water in these plastic bottles. They could have discovered it as a convenient alternative to their indigenous means for the same.
The growing relevance of plastic got highlighted through our last encounter with a mixed group of young Jarawa boys and girls. The vehicle was permissibly gheraod by this group and when we halted, the door opened and the Jarawas excitedly attacked the stack of empty bottles strewn around the car floor. The one with the maximum number of bottles emerged as the clear winner among his friends. They also managed to sneak a bottleful of ice and, when we looked back from the speeding car, the young group was deep in wonderment about what it exactly could be- so cold and crystals of white?
It was later that I discovered, during a conversation with an anthropologist, that the Jarawas have started using discarded plastic bottles to store not only drinking water but also honey, resins and most dangerous, the pig fat. These bottles are never washed once brought into use and can be carriers of diseases, unknown to the Jarawas till date. It is well known that the chemical additives including mould releasing compound that go into the PET bottles are certified safe for a single use for storing water. No one knows the potential toxicity of multiple uses with honey or pig fat.
Strange. Seems that while we are researching on the alternatives to the immortal plastic, the Jarawas have willingly adopted it as a new member of their kitchen.
The game of passing the parcel is at its peak now, except that here it does not go the full circle. What we dispose, they accept. Be it Plastic, Pan or Paisa- profitable for us and thrilling (temporarily) for them.
There is another very noteworthy pattern of behavior in regard with the Jarawas habit of sharing all their hunted and gathered food each day. It is an unquestionable and strong custom that comes naturally while living in a close hunter-gatherer community. However, it is for all to observe that the Jarawas do not share anything that they get from the road. One rather sees a competition between who can 'gather' the maximum amount of eatables and more recently even things like watches, clothes, etc. The anthropologists fear that this might be the beginning of the induction of a culture of consumerism and materialism that is so contradictory to their traditional means of livelihood and also very challenging in relation to their indigenous behavioral patterns towards each other and the equal distribution of resources around them.
|
"In the Jarawa society, each individual, however small or big, is a resource for the entire community." (S. Barik) |
And when the young pool of quintessential resources are spending their time on the road, thrilled with the easier alternative to the tiresome hunting in the deep jungles, the entire community feels threatened of losing its traditions, culture and subsequently, the identity. But what we gather from Puhu's case is encouraging to the fact that the Jarawas shield their traditions fearlessly and are not willing to let go of their younger generation, to be guided by 'the road to nowhere.'
The Jarawas become adults when they start hunting the wild boar by themselves. This is known as 'Lepa' in the jarawa language. It is after analyzing and judging the skills of a Lepa Jarawa in hunting and the skills of gathering and taking care of children of a young woman that any marriage is fixed. So, it is understandable how when the youngsters become addicts of the road and what comes with it, that the community feels afraid of giving their children in marriage to the ones who have given up hunting and have started gathering the products of the road! The Jarawas are now confronted with questions that they never assumed would emerge.
Puhu's engagement was on the verge of being called off because he was wasting too much of noticeable time on the road, while he was supposed to be hunting wild boars and fishes and, also because he had started to wear clothes. But now when we see Puhu with any of his family members, he wears only the bark jacket and a red lion cloth. This also makes us understand that the young are aware of the demands of his society from him and he wishes to follow them, at least to an extent, irrespective of whether it is contrary to the road and the people it brings.
My most memorable moments were the ones spent with the little Jarawa child, Ledah, around eight years old, talking to him on the road side in Middle Strait. The policeman at the check post was sharing his lunch with the boy. We talked over a packet of biscuits. It was more of us talking and he smiling. Ledah is an orphan. His father died of an unknown disease and the mother followed. His younger sister, around 6 years old and his little brother, around 3 years old, had both gone to collect honey from the forest. The orphaned children were now living with his maternal uncle. The policeman told us that Ledah came to the check post almost daily and stayed for long, so that he could get food. Some times, he would pack some food and take it back home to his siblings.
His friend, Ochaka, joined us a little later. He was around 11 years old and had lost his father to a disease. He told us that both of them come here often for food. Ochaka was good friends with the policeman's son, almost his age, who too roamed around without a shirt. They would often go to the forest together and play and eat fruits.
It was astonishing to know that both the children had lost their parents and that through diseases, not natural death. This shows that the mortality rate among the Jarawas is definitely underplayed. A thorough study on the same would reveal some very pertinent facts about the Jarawa community and their diminishing numbers.
The road seems to be in a mad rush to transport the Jarawas from one end of the history of civilization to the other, in a matter of years that would negate their identity as possibly the world's oldest homo sapiens. Long back, we were like them, a part of them; we took time and evolved to become what we are now. Its time to back off and let them be. Time will make them what they wish to be.
We have no right, meaningfully or sub-consiously, to disturb and intervene in a civilization that has detested and revolted against contact with us for centuries. They have their own reaosns to be what they are, or rather, are not. Let us not be over judgemental and act as per the fancies of the demands of a pseudo civilized society, and be patry to the disruption of our genesis, probably one of the oldest civilization, the Jarawas.
" Man will do the rational thing, but only after exploring all other alternatives."
How sustainable is the road? With the AandN Islands not earning more than 10% revenue out of its total expenditure, for how long can we afford to spend crores per year simply for its maintenance? How much more of the taxpayers money shall go into a road that has an intelligent but unexplored alternative in the waterways? In comparison to the 6 accidents that took place on the ATR last year, the ships have not even once met with an accident on any of its inter island voyages.
When facts reveal that the total expenditure of maintaining the road is equal to the expenditure on the health care facilities of the Jarawas and the maintenance of a Jarawa Protection Police, the fact that emerges that the road has brought with itself a burden of expenses.
Had there been no road, we would have not needed to create a JPP and a PHC and have special teams of anthropologists studying the changes in the Jarawas because of the road, and the social workers, which specialize in modernizing them. Interestingly, there are more non-Jarawa members from our side of the world residing within the Jarawa territory, in the name of researching them or protecting them or promoting them.
Sans Jarawa, the road itself is very contrary to the characteristics of an island and life on it.
|
|
The Photographs show the construction of a passenger hall, with the use of public money, on that part of the Andaman Trunk Road that should have shut down to traffic in August 2002 as per the 7th May 2002 Orders of the Hon'ble Supreme Court. The Petitioners in their PIL (Public Interest Litigation) to the Central Empowered Committee said that "this is a clear proof that not only has the AandN Administration not implemented the orders of the Hon, Court to close down the ATR, but that the construction of the passenger hall shows that there is even no intention for doing the same |
Why do we need a black tar, more felling of trees, pollution, increasing Jarawa tourism, unbearable expenses to the administration and uncheckable encroachment when all that we need to do is take the Shekhar Singh Commission Report as a piece of common sense that we are yet to imbibe and , work towards the building of a strong infrastructure for the water ways travel?
The facts that this study reveals are in favor of the closure of the 129 km long stretch of the ATR that runs through the Jarawa Reserve Forest Area. The report is for anyone to check, challenge and, analyze, as per their understanding and convenience(!) the facts however never lie.
The Supreme Court must take firm steps to ensure that the implementation of its verdict passed on the 7th May, 2002, is taken seriously by the AandN administration, as soon as can be possible., lest we start doubting the power of the very pillars of our just society.
11.1 Traffic Flow on the ATR
Sample Size - All vehicles on 96 days
Nov 2002 - 6 Days
Dec 2002 - 15 Days
Jan 2003 - 31 Days
Feb 2003 - 28 Days
March 2003 - 16 Days
11.2 Passenger Statistics
Sample Size - 500 passengers travelling on 16th April 2003
11.3 Available Vessels
11.4 Total Cargo (MT)
Port Blair - Rangat : 4987.46
Rangat - Port Blair : 21.46
Total Cargo(KL)
Port Blair - Rangat : 3662.130
Rangat - Port Blair : Nil
Total Cargo (CBM)
Port Blair - Rangat : Nil
Rangat - Port Blair: 134.288
[ Go to HOME]
[ Go to
HEAD OF
SANE NEWSLETTER ]
