For nearly three decades, tribal communities have been agitating against the proposed Netarhat Firing Range in Gulma and Lathehar districts in Jharkhand. When the government proposed to create a land bank of nearly 80 acres in the range to attract investors, irate tribespeople called for a _bandh _on March 29, 2017, to boycott then Chief Minister Raghubar Das' public event at Mahautar in Latehar district. Public support to the _bandh _led to the cancellation of the chief minister's visit. Sub-divisional officer of Mahautar, Om Prakash, informed the media that the demands of the people had been forwarded to the chief minister's office and also to the chief secretary.
Dayamani Barla, a frontal tribal leader, told LCW that land bank of nearly 80-90 acres for the firing range was created by the government to invite investors to the state and to displace the tribal communities. "The government did not have the courage to displace tribals in 2000 when land acquisition for the firing range had begun as our protest forced the government to take a backstep. So the government is now trying to enter the Netarhat firing range by giving land to industrialists, Barla said.
The proposed firing range, spread across 245 villages, threatens to displace 2.75 lakh tribespeople. The issue was debated in the Rajya Sabha in 2007 when MP Mabel Rebello sought the government's stand on how it planned to rehabilitate the displaced families.
Gladson Dung Dung, another tribal activist of Pilot Project Netarhat Field Firing Range Virodhi Jan Sangharsh Samiti, told LCW that nearly 90 per cent of the land under the land bank falls under Schedule V and hence cannot be purchased or transferred. "Moreover, the land in question belongs to various Gram Sabhas. The government has no right to put this land under the land bank," he added.
On 23-24 March 2021, thousands of tribespeople participated in an annual congregation in Latehar demanding cancellation of the project. It is to be noted, however, that practice in the firing range and land acquisition were stopped in 1994 after massive public protests.
When asked about the current status of the project, Pramod Kumar Gupta, deputy commissioner of Latehar, told LCW it was the same as it was 10 years ago. "Nothing much has changed. However, most of the land falls in Gumla district, so I cannot say much," he added.
Gumla DC Shravan Sai did not respond to LCW's phone calls.
17 August 2022, marked a victorious day for the resisting communities as the Government of Jharkhand, under the leadership of Chief Minister Hemant Soren, declared that it will not renew the notification of the Netarhat Field Firing Range that expired on 11 May 2022.
The Deputy Commissioner of the Latehar district wrote to the Principal Secretary of the Jharkhand Government on 4 June 2022, listing the reasons for not extending the notification. One of the reasons was the atrocities of Army personnel of raping the Adivasi women.
Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Refusal to give up land for the project
Complaint against procedural violations
Demand for rehabilitation
Demand to retain/protect access to common land/resources
Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Cancellation of the project
Region Classification
Rural
Type of Land
Common and Private
Forest and Non-Forest
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)
Status of Project
Project stalled
Original Project Deadline
2022
Whether the Project has been Delayed
Yes
Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users
Residential area
Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict
Yes
Source/Reference
<https://www.newsclick.in/Jharkhand-Adivasi-Resistance-Netarhat-Firing-Range-Continues-27-years>
Total investment involved (in Crores):
₹
Type of investment:
Year of Estimation
Has the Conflict Ended?
Yes
When did it end?
2022
Why did the conflict end?
Recognising the 30-year-old struggle led by the tribal people of the area against the project, the Government of Jharkhand said that public interest would be served by not re-notifying the firing range.
Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict
Forest and Scheduled Area Governance Laws, Land Acquisition Laws, Constitutional Law, Other
Legislations/Policies Involved
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute
What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?
What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?
Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:
Controversial land acquisition by the government
Forced evictions/dispossession of land
Non-implementation/violation of FRA
Non-rehabilitation of displaced people
Non-implementation/violation of PESA
Legal Status:
Out of Court
Status of Case In Court
Whether any adjudicatory body was approached
Name of the adjudicatory body
Name(s) of the Court(s)
Case Number
Main Reasoning/Decision of court
Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:
Whether criminal law was used against protestors:
Reported Details of the Violation:
Date of Violation
Location of Violation
Jharkhand
Kumar Sambhav is a social entrepreneur and award-winning journalist, leading innovative research in accountability investigations. He is the founder of Land Conflict Watch and is currently working as India Research Lead with Princeton University’s Digital Witness Lab.
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