Old Peepal Tree of a Lady

Seeing Smt Bhimabai Rama Tekam (name not changed) – a 110 year old lady belonging to Kolam tribal community, a primitive tribal group endemic to this part of the region, on the occasion of Dharti Aba Birsa Munda Punytithi, was a very special experience for me. It reminded me of my tenure and purpose as Project Officer, ITDP Kinwat.

Primitive tribes have certain characteristics – a stagnant and diminishing population, pre-agricultural level of technology, very low level of literacy. Another obvious aspect of them living in jungles is their cutoff from mainstream community – they don’t go to same schools as urban or even rural poor, they don’t go to the same government hospitals as urban or rural poor, they don’t go to same workplaces as the other poor. So they have their own traditional medicinal practices, livelihoods, culture etc.

So what does a lady, one hundred and ten years old, belonging to a primitive tribe, who by the look of her face emanates radiance and pure innocence, whose house was burnt recently and suffered major burns but didn’t go to nearest hospital for treatment (despite sending a medical team and ambulance) have to do with a bunch of people from town coming to her doorstep? While the other relatively younger ladies were hesitant to take the jab, some even throwing tantrums (haha), the old peepal tree of a lady without any fuss, without any convincing took the vaccine dose. All the while I was in awe of that lady, maintaining deference to that soul and just observing her.

Seeing that lady, few others took the jab. I say by taking that vaccine dose she launched a special vaccination drive for Primitive Tribal group of Kinwat and Mahur area. While a majority of the rural population are taking the covid vaccine, tribal groups like Kolam and Gond have some misconceptions, fear and hesitancy. They believe its not safe, it will make them impotent and heck- what is Covid-19 in the first instance! They ask!  

Vaccinating them is a challenge for the administration. But a little convincing in their own language will certainly help our cause. Given their stagnant and diminishing population, we don’t want to lose any one of them due to Covid. My Tribal department colleagues elsewhere are also fighting this vaccine hesitancy among similar tribal groups.

Overall a visit to tribal hamlet and seeing Smt Bhimabai Rama Tekam made my day.