A tribe out of time: how Chenchus have been caught between ancestral past and uncertain future in Andhra Pradesh

The Chenchus of Penukumadugu have lived in the dense Nallamala forests for centuries, their existence intertwined with the wilderness around them. However, their inability to keep up with the relentless pace of modernisation has led to dwindling work opportunities under the MGNREGA. Nellore Sravani writes how the Chenchus, caught between an ancestral past and an uncertain future, are grappling with isolation, poverty, and an erosion of their traditional way of life 

Sitting under a tree on a cot woven from leaves and logs, Dasari Kotaiah sighs wearily when asked about what he’s going to have for lunch.

“The usual,” he replies. A thin meal of rice and pachhadi — a simple chutney made from chilli, tamarind, and onion — has remained the family’s staple diet for years now. “This is our food for 25 days in a month. We cannot afford anything beyond that. Where is the money?” Kotaiah asks, shaking his head at the thought of buying fruits or vegetables from the market. His wry laugh speaks of a life where even the simplest comforts are out of reach.

Kotaiah lives in a hamlet called Panukumadugu in Dornala mandal of Prakasam district. The hamlet is home to the Chenchus, said to be the oldest aboriginal, Telugu-speaking tribe and the most vulnerable of the 12 Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) in undivided Andhra Pradesh. 

Around 25 kilometres away is Dornala, a small town at the edge of the Nallamala forest in Prakasam district. A pitstop for Srisailam-bound devotees, Dornala has had a growth spurt in the past two decades with hotels and eateries coming up. Dornala is the nearest go-to place for the Chenchu villages, including Panukamadugu. The contrast between the town and the hamlet of Panukumadugu is stark, more than what meets the eye.

Most of the dwellings in Panukumadugu are single-room thatched huts, simple and sparse, with conical or square roofs and rounded bases. Of the few pucca houses built under the Indiramma Illu housing scheme, many are in disrepair. The only sturdy structure in this hamlet is the Anganwadi, where a single female teacher educates around 10 children.

While Dornala thrives with an expanding menu of cuisines in its restaurants, life for the Chenchus seems to be moving in the opposite direction, with development passing them by.

“Ever since we stopped working under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) in 2022, life has become much harder,” Kotaiah explains. “The wages I earn as an agricultural labourer aren’t enough to support a family of 22,” says Kotaiah, who doesn’t remember his exact age, though his Aadhaar card lists him as 59. Both he and his wife take whatever work they can find, earning ₹250 each per day.

But it’s still not enough. “We need the ‘karuvu pani’ (MGNREGS) to be brought back,” he says, a statement that is being echoed by other younger men and women of the village.

Left behind 

However, the issue is quite complex. The Chenchus, who have steadfastly held on to their way of life, possess only a rudimentary understanding of modern society and find it difficult to adapt to the world that exists outside their village. “Most Chenchus lack post-industrialisation skills. They are still living in a pre-agrarian setup. To catch up with modern society, they first need to learn agricultural skills, and then must come to terms with industrialisation,” explains Chakradhar Buddha, a senior researcher with LibTech India, a consortium of activists and academics that has extensively studied the impact that MGNREGS has had on the tribe for years.

Chenchus are characterised by extremely low literacy rates, a subsistence economy, and a stagnant or declining population. The total Chenchu population in Andhra Pradesh stands at 28,349.

“The Chenchus are heavily dependent on the forest for food and other necessities. This deep reliance has made it difficult for them to migrate to other areas and has isolated them from the outside world. As many live deep within the forest, numerous development programmes, including MGNREGS, have struggled to reach them,” says Mr. Chakradhar.

In response, the A.P. government launched the MGNREGS Chenchu Special Project in 2009, aimed at alleviating poverty and improving their socioeconomic conditions. Locally, the Chenchus refer to it as ‘15-rojula pani, upaadhi haami’ (15 days of guaranteed work) or ‘ITDA pani’ (ITDA work).

The project was carefully tailored to the specific needs of the Chenchus, taking into account their physical strength, food insecurities, accessibility challenges, lifestyle, and cultural practices. Managed by the Integrated Tribal Development Agencies (ITDAs), the special initiative provided 180 days of employment per individual, compared to the standard 100 days per household in other areas. Chenchus were able to work 15 days each month, year-round, on individual or community land.

Ill-thought-out moves 

However, in December 2021, the Union government decided to bring all State-specific Management Information Systems (MIS), the operating software for MGNREGA, under the Centrally-controlled MIS, which standardised MGNREGS operations nationwide.

“This aligned the Chenchu Special Project with the broader national framework, which meant that policies in place for a person outside applied to Chenchus as well. This move of the government has had a devastating impact on the Chenchus, because of the reduction of employment days for them, removal of work concession and shift to bank-based payments,” explains Mr. Chakradhar.

“A reason behind the disillusionment among the Chenchus with the new system of MGNREGS could be the insistence on first getting Aadhaar and then linking it to one’s bank account and job card. With most Chenchus being illiterate, they were probably too intimidated by all the red tape,” Mr. Chakradhar says, adding that the Chenchu Special Project was precisely aimed at helping the Chenchus overcome such hurdles.

“A reason behind the disillusionment among Chenchus with the new system of MGNREGS could be the insistence on first getting Aadhaar, and then linking it to one’s bank account and job card. With most Chenchus being illiterate, they were probably too intimidated by all the red tape”Chakradhar BuddhaSenior researcher

“Earlier, Chenchus in 125 gudems (villages) across the three districts were going for MGNREGS work. But now, no one is interested in coming. We are also demanding that the special project be revived,” said the ITDA Srisailam Project Officer.

As per a Socio-Economic Survey taken up by the A.P. government in 2020-21, the project generated 69 lakh person days of employment between 2009 and 2021.

But now, most of the people in Panukumadugu, Marripalem and Billagundipenta ‘gudems’ in Prakasam district have stopped going for MGNREGS work. As per the data collected by LibTech India, only about 1,500 of the 4,000 enrolled households are taking up work across Atmakur, Dornala, and Yerragondapalem mandals.

A major deterrent for the villagers is the uncertainty surrounding the wage disbursement process. Kotaiah, like most others here, cannot read or write. At Panukumadugu, most of the 75 families do not have a mobile phone or a two-wheeler and more than 70 people, including children, do not have Aadhaar cards. Without Aadhaar, they are excluded from the Public Distribution System (PDS) as well as the Aarogyasri health insurance scheme.

Starting from January 1, 2024, the Aadhaar-based payment system (ABPS) was made mandatory for payment of wages to workers under the new system of MGNREGS. Now, the national framework requires a job-seeker to get their job card seeded with their Aadhaar card and then link their Aadhaar card with their bank account. This has become an overwhelmingly daunting task for the Chenchus.

“Earlier, most of us would work under the scheme because cash was handed out to us every month. Now, we don’t even know if wages are being deposited into our accounts. No one explains what’s happening. Those who have bank accounts fear being cheated since they cannot read or write. Bankers often get irritated when we keep asking,” Kotaiah says.

Except for one or two people, no one in this habitation has a mobile phone. The only way they can find out if money has been deposited is to visit a bank in Dornala, which is 25-30 km away, at least three times a month.

While Panukumadugu is located in the plains, many Chenchu gudems are situated within the Nagarjuna-Srisailam Tiger Reserve (NSTR) and are deep in the forest, making trips to Dornala expensive.

Bhumani Venkatamma, a Chenchu from Marripalem, located deep in the forest, shares that the Chenchus struggle to find work for most of the year. “At best, we get work for six months when farmers hire us for the chilli or cotton fields. Sometimes they ask us to herd cattle, which pays us about ₹200-₹300 per day. But we don’t do that every day; it’s only twice a week,” she says, adding that in October, November, and December, they have nothing to do.

Haves, and have nots

Ironically, the Aadhaar card has become a subtle source of discord between those who have it and those who don’t. “Only those with Aadhaar are eligible for disbursal of wages under the new system of MGNREGS. Not just that, but other things like coverage under Aarogyasri, school admission and getting ration cards are all possible only if one has Aadhaar,” Venkatamma says. When asked why she was not applying for one, she said the whole process of applying for the card, and then linking it to her bank account, and then to a job card, all to be eligible for getting work under MGREGS, was too daunting for her.

“Even then, we are not comfortable with our payments being deposited into bank accounts. There are many people in our tribe with the same name. Apart from me, there are two other women named Bhumani Venkatamma. Once, a villager’s payment was wrongly credited into the account of another person with the same name. Ever since then, we have been wary of the whole thing,” Venkatamma shares.

“We are called the protectors of the forest. Yet, ironically, we are being excluded from it in the name of tiger conservation”Bhumani VenkatesamChenchu tribesman

Traditionally, the Chenchus have been a food-gathering tribe. In The Chenchu of Andhra Pradesh, anthropologist Md. Azeez Mohidden notes that they rely on the forest economy, gathering leafy vegetables, wild fruits, tubers, and roots for consumption, while earning income from selling Non-Timber Forest Produce (NTFP) like gum, honey, soapnuts, and beed at the Girijan Cooperative Corporation (GCC). However, LibTech India activists report that restrictions on their movement in the forest and the collection of forest produce have increased recently due to wildlife conservation laws.

“We sell our produce at the GCC, but the returns are insufficient. We also sell along the Srisailam ghat road or at the Devasthanam,” says Venkatamma, who struggles to feed her family of six, including four children. While she has a ration card allowing her to receive 35 kg of PDS rice per month, she finds it inadequate.

“About 25 years ago, when we visited the gudems for work, we were fed various curries made from leafy vegetables found in the forest. There used to be 23 types of leaves used in cooking. Each night, a family member would venture into the deep forest with bows to hunt small animals like rabbits and peacocks for the next day’s meal. These days, we neither find these animals in the forest nor do the Chenchus utilise leaves as we once did,” recalls P. Srinivasa Rao, former Deputy District Medical and Health Officer of ITDA-Srisailam.

This situation has led to a higher incidence of nutritional deficiencies among children. “Child marriages and consanguineous marriages are common in the community, although government efforts have significantly reduced their prevalence. These factors have made them more susceptible to sickle cell anemia and thalassemia, with high infant and maternal mortality rates,” says Dr. Srinivasa Rao.

Over the past 15 years, MGNREGS has had a profound impact on their lives. “It provided them with regular work and income, enabling them to buy vegetables,” Dr. Srinivasa Rao adds.

Venkatamma recalls how they used to spend money on milk and lentils before the project was halted. She even managed to save enough to buy a TV and some gold, she says with a smile. Unfortunately, her brother broke the TV in a drunken fit, and now she has no money to repair it.

“We are called the protectors of the forest, yet ironically, we are being excluded from it in the name of tiger conservation,” laments Bhumani Venkatesam, another elder from Billagundipenta, a village deep in the forest. He notes that while the elders at least had access to forest produce, the younger generations are left with neither the forest nor the means of earning a livelihood.

The Chenchus received pattas under the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, commonly known as the Forest Rights Act (FRA). During their time in MGNREGS work, those who had received pattas were tasked with clearing land, creating trenches, and removing pebbles.

The project aimed to transform the tribe from food gatherers to producers. Under the special project, many Chenchus worked on their own land and received govermnent funds for purchasing pesticides and seeds. However, with its discontinuation, they are unsure how to manage their land.

“The government has not provided any explanation for the abrupt discontinuation of the special project. In Odisha, the government has identified 30 backward blocks and is offering 300 days of employment under the scheme, along with extra wages to curb migration. Why can’t the Andhra Pradesh government implement a similar initiative for both PVTGs and non-PVTGs?” asks Mr. Chakradhar.

Meanwhile, with dilapidated houses, irregular incomes, limited transportation, and a lack of electricity in some gudems, the Chenchus stare at an uncertain future. “We need pucca houses and regular work. Only then can we hope for some development,” concludes Venkatesam.

Published - October 04, 2024 08:16 am IST