Tribals Stage Demonstration in Bhubaneswar Demanding PESA Act Implementation

Bhubaneswar: Hundreds of tribals hailing from 13 scheduled districts of Odisha organized a significant demonstration in Bhubaneswar, on Tuesday in support of their demand for the enactment of the Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Act of 1996.

The tribals, under the banner of the Odisha State PESA, Gram Sabha Coordination Committee, marched from Master Canteen Square before staging the demonstration at Lower PMG.

Their key demands included the genuine and faithful implementation of the PESA Act, the recognition of Gram Sabha as the primary decision-making body, ensuring protection under the Odisha State Immovable Property Transfer Act of 1956 – Regulation-2, and the withdrawal of proposed amendments to Regulation-2 as raised in the Tribal Advisory Council.

Addressing the crowd, Sudarshan Chhotoray, advisor of the Committee, along with President Budhua Jojo and Secretary Panduram Hembrum, appealed to both the Central and state governments to safeguard the constitutional rights, heritage, and culture of the tribal communities. They emphasized the need to empower Gram Sabha as the ultimate decision-making unit at the grassroots level.

Following the demonstration, a five-member tribal delegation submitted a memorandum to Governor Prof. Ganeshi Lal, apprising him of their longstanding constitutional rights. The Governor assured them that he would take up the issue with both the state government and the Central authorities.

It is noteworthy that at present, eight out of the ten Tribal-populous states in India have enacted this national Act, with the exceptions being Jharkhand and Odisha.