Panaji: A Goa-based media house has
petitioned the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) over
the alleged atrocities committed on the Velip and Gaonkar
tribals from Cauvrem village, where locals are fighting to
save their area from the mining menace.
GoaChronicle.com, a local news website, has written to
the NHRC seeking their intervention to stop violation of human
rights of tribals of Cauvrem, located 50 km away from here.
The village has five iron ore mines. Operations at one
of them were stopped after aggressive tribal agitation, while
villagers have halted movement of trucks from four others.
Since the tribals began their stir, there has been a
spate of attacks on the villagers. Earlier this month, around
100 villagers were arrested for blocking truck traffic, while
a tribal leader, Nilesh Gaonkar, was mercilessly beaten up on
Thursday allegedly by pro-mining goons.
GoaChronicle.com Editor-in-Chief Savio Rodrigues said
these incidents at Cauvrem and police cane-charge on villagers
are gross violations of the basic human rights of individuals.
"The villagers were only upholding the directives of
the Government when they staged a peaceful demonstration and
stopped movement of trucks," he said, adding the police acted
at the instance of mining firms and truck operators.
Rodrigues said a report highlighting the plight of the
villagers, the incidents in the past and recent, including a
police lathi charge video (where contains footage of a woman
being dragged by the policemen) and a report on the attack on
Gaonkar has been sent to the NHRC.
"Our discussion with NHRC Director General Sunil
Krishna has been elaborate and he requested us to send all the
details and videos in our possession so that the issue could
be discussed in a meeting on May 16," he said.
PTI
