P.A.Chacko
Jharkhand, in eastern India, was born as a new state in Federal India on 15 November, 2000.
The birth of the state resulted from a longstanding struggle of the indigenous people, which gained momentum in the 20th century with the Jharkhand Party. Its founder Jaipal Singh Munda spearheaded the movement in the 1950s.
Jharkhand literally means ’the land of forests’. By area, it is the 15th largest state and, by population, 14th.
The 2001 census showed that 58% of the population spoke Hindi, the official language of the state. Santali, second in line, was spoken by 11℅.
Its estimated population in 2024 is 40.1 million, covering male population 20.6 ℅ and female 19.5℅. The present Tribal population is around 26℅.
Records say that, though Jharkhand has India’s largest mineral wealth (35-40℅),
“39.1% of its population is below the poverty line and 19.6% of children under five years of age are malnourished.”
Jharkhand’s foundation day, 15th November, coincides with the birth anniversary of Birsa Munda who led a liberation movement against the British in the 1870s in the Chota Nagpur plateau.
Jharkhand is rich in many ways, but Jharkhand’s indigenous population has not shown a major headway in development.
Jharkhand’s mineral wealth contribution in India is 40℅. The state has around 25% of India’s total coal reserves and 40% of the country’s copper deposits, almost 50% of India’s mica. In addition, the state is a significant source of other valuable minerals.
There is an estimated 4.5 billion tonnes of iron ore concentrated in Singhbhum district, 80 billion tonnes of coal reserves in Dhanbad region (called the coal capital of India), and around 2200 tonnes of Uranium in Jaduguda mines (almost all of India’s reserves).
The mining activities in mineral rich Jharkhand have led to “largescale displacement of an estimated 1.5 million people over the years, predominantly from indigenous communities.”
Such a contradiction should be food for thought for Jharkhandi intellectuals as a wake up call.