Life of the People

Due to misconceptions and little education, unhealthy practices persist. For example, a pregnant woman is made to do domestic and field work until the day of delivery, and then resume again five days after the birth. She is given less food to eat, and made to eat after everyone else in the household, because people think her child will be harder to deliver if it is larger. This pregnant woman may very well be a teenage girl, because early marriage, combined with little education, leads to early pregnancy, and many children. Girls are illegally married (with false certificates from village officials) by the time they are 15 or 16, while boys are married between the ages of 16 and 20. These marriages are conducted in April and May, when families have money, in order to absolve parents of the responsibility of their children.

As far as schooling goes, in village schools, one teacher, from far away, manages first through fourth grade. The teacher must find his pupils and get them to school, because many parents don’t. Instead, girls above five, for example, are used for babysitting and other chores. In addition to teaching and rounding up students, the teacher does other administrative jobs for the school. Unfortunately, the child’s education, and future, depends on the, often nonexistent, ability, and motivation, of the teacher. Fifth, and higher, grades are far away from the village, and few parents can afford to send their children.

Statistics for the Vikramgad Taluka, in the Thane District (Based on 2001 Census Data)

1. Over 95% of the population is tribal.
2. The literacy rate for tribals is 25.84%; for women, the rate is 14.53%, while for males, it is 36.82%. The general literacy rate is 69.54%.
3. 67 villages have no educational facility within 5 to 10 km.
4. 84.28% of villages do not have any type of medical facility. 44% must travel more than 5km to reach a medical facility, which is difficult because the sick must be physically carried over long and rough terrain.
5. The infant mortality rate (before three years old) is 116 per 1000 males, and 99 per 1000 females. This is significantly higher than the national average, and in parts of Maharashtra, community health programs have brought rates down to from 180 to 25 per 1000 in 15 years (source: People’s health in People’s hands, Dr. N. H. Antia, Kavita Bhatia, FRCH).
6. Only 12% of households have toilets.
7. 50% of the working population are cultivators. Around 50% of land is cultivable, but barely 0.79% of the cultivated area is irrigated. Consequently, cultivation is near impossible after the monsoons. On average, agricultural produce supports partial food needs of families for 5-6 months in a year. Land degradation, and falling yields, is a consequence of high usage of chemicals for agriculture.
8. 65.5% of the working population do not work, which is leading to worsening poverty in the area. Entire families, or working members, migrate between November and May to meet basic livelihood needs. This results in hardships for the old, sick, children deprived of basic education, and the migrant, who is separated from his family, works in bad conditions, is exploited, becomes ill, and later, brings these illnesses into the tribal community.