Birsa Munda's followers live in abject poverty, yet say they are happier than ever

The followers of freedom fighter, religious leader and folk hero Birsa Munda are living in abject poverty and are deprived of basic necessities like even government schemes. Yet, these people avoid taking help from outsiders and say they are happy with the way things are.

Khunti/Chaibasa (Jharkhand):Tribals in many regions of Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha worship Birsa Munda as a god. There is a special community among these tribals, who still believe in Birsa religion and the whole life of people associated with this community is dedicated to Lord Birsa. They call themselves Birsaite i.e. those who worship Birsa.

About 80 km from Ranchi, after crossing Khunti there is the Bandgaon police station. After that, there is a village called Badedih. There is no mobile network here but there is peace and happiness on every face.

After riding on severely damaged roads, when the team of ETV Bharat reached the village of Badedih in Chaibasa, everyone started to look with suspicion. It took a long time to mingle and make friends with these people. No one was interested in talking to the media.

Birsaites, who are devotees of Lord Birsa, are engrossed in a different world. Farming and animal husbandry are their main occupations and Birsaites are recognized by the sacred thread which hangs around the neck of every man in this village.

Birsaite Etwa Munda told ETV Bharat that sacred thread is important to identify the followers of the Birsa religion. For them, Birsa is God.

Birsa's birthplace Khunti is about 50 km from Ulihatu in the Khunti district. Years ago, his follower Etwa Munda settled on the border of West Singhbhum. Etwa is no more. Until three years ago, three generations of Etwa Munda had been living together. Up until before the year 2017, the tradition of the same family was going on. Etwa Munda had laid the foundation for this. Today the total number of men, women and children in this village of Birsaite society of Badedih is close to 60.

There is not a single toilet in any house in this village

Etwa had three sons - Navru Munda, Dit Munda and Kande Munda. Later Navru had three sons. Dit also had three sons. Kande Munda had a son, who was named Etwa Munda after the grandfather. But with the coming of the fourth generation, the family separated keeping the feelings of brotherhood intact.

Birsait Birsi Manki told ETV Bharat “I got married in 2016. Everybody used to live together. Everyone's food was made in one place but all cooked separately; they used to cook at different times. Everyone got separated from 2017 onwards.”

There is not a single toilet in any house in this village. Government ration does not reach any house here. Ujjwala Gas cylinder has not reached any house in this village. They do not know what the Prime Minister Awaas Yojana is. Despite all this everyone is happy. In the name of government benefits, electricity was provided to this village a year ago, but there is no fan or TV in any house. Devotees of Birsa do not even know who the Chief Minister of their state is. They do not even know the name of the MLA of their area.

ETV Bharat Reporter spoke to Birsait Burua Munda

Reporter:Have you been provided with a toilet in the village?

Burua Munda: No

Reporter: The government provides food, do you take it?

Burua Munda:No, we do not take it.

Reporter: The government gives gas cylinders and stove for free, have you received any?

Burua Munda:No, we don't take it. We don't take any government facilities.

Reporter:Why don't you take the facilities provided by the government?

Burua Munda:We run our households and families on our own. We don't need anything.

Reporter:Who is the chief minister of your state?

Burua Munda: Don't know.

Reporter:What is the name of your deity?

Burua Munda:There is no deity.

Reporter:What is the name of your God?

Burua Munda:There is no God.

Reporter:Who do you believe in? Tell us Burua Munda, who do you worship?

Burua Munda:We worship Birsa Munda.

During the conversation, one thing was understood that these people whole-heartedly believed in one simple thing; which was that taking any facility or benefit from anyone would be against the principles of Lord Birsa. They fear that if they start taking benefits from outsiders, those outsiders will start interfering in their lives; and Birsa Munda had started the movement against the British and outsiders. It is surprising that in this village of Birsaites, there happens to be neither a statue nor a photo of Birsa. That is because the followers believe, Birsa resides in the hearts of people. Devotees of Lord Birsa are happy even in the midst of lack of amenities.

Government ration does not reach any house here

In the name of government facilities, this village of Lord Birsa Munda's followers received power 2 years ago and one hand pump has been installed. Apart from this, neither have they demanded anything nor has anyone tried to persuade them. The most surprising thing is that any person in the village who knows even a little Hindi does not know who the Chief Minister of his state is. They are not even aware of who is the MLA of their area. Despite the fact that Birsa Munda is revered in Chattisgarh, you can imagine that plight and poverty of the followers of Birsa Munda. They are living in deprivation and utterly backward conditions.