Distress sale of Mahua flower adds to tribals’ woes in west Orissa

The Pioneer, April 24, 2009
Pioneer News Service | Bhubaneswar

Mahua flower is considered a boon by the poor tribals in western Orissa, mostly forest dwellers, who have to earn their livelihood basically from forest produces. Apart from Mahua, these poor people also depend on collecting Sal seeds and Kendu leaves to eke out a living.

But the distress sale of Mahua, which is collected for only two months (March and April) in a year, has added woe to them while the traders are reportedly churning out maximum benefits.

Sources said Mahua trading is a seasonal business for over 35 lakh families in Boudh, Balangir, Subarnapur, Kalahandi, Sambalpur, Deogarh, Bargarh and Jharsuguda districts of the western belt.

Mahua flowers are used for manufacturing alcoholic drinks in tropical India and it has a major contribution towards the total revenue collection of the State. However, the trading is controlled by liqour manufacturers, who purchase the flowers at Rs 3 to Rs 4 a kg while the State Government has fixed the price at the rate of Rs 5 a kg.

Though collection of the flower from forests in the scalding heat in summer season and preserving those from misture in rainy season is apparently a tough task for the poor tribals, they have to sale it at Rs 2 a kg in adverse situations, rued a tribal.

Notably, Mahua has been included both under the Minor Forest Produce (Regulation of Trade) Act and the Patent Act. As per statutory provisions, no one should be allowed to stock more than two quintals of Mahua flowers, which facilitates distress sale of the forest produce, said a forest official on condition of anonymity.

In 2000, the State Government removed the power of regulation of Mahua trading from the Forest Department and vested it on respective panchayats. However, the system has come to a grinding halt due to severe negligence on the part of the Panchayati Raj (PR) institutions. In fact, the real power to regulate the traders is yet to be delegated to the PR bodies, he pointed out.

Another dimension of Mahua trading is the prevailing system of registration, about which the poor tribals are quite ignorant and the traders are getting the advantage by registering their names at Rs 100. A strict implementation of the rules and laws pertaining to Vanbasies, can meet the distress sale of Mahua, giving a respite to the poor forest dwellers, he signed off.