Rotish Das and many of his neighbours were forced to shut shop almost a month before the rest of India went into a lockdown to prevent the ...
Rotish Das and many of his neighbours were forced to shut shop almost a month before the rest of India went into a lockdown to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Das lives in Ichamati, a village in Meghalaya’s East Khasi hills, known for its vast limestone reserves. It lies on the border with Bangladesh.
Now, even as the rest of the country is gradually opening up, 46-year-old Das and his neighbours in Ichamati, as well as residents of adjoining areas, say they have not been able to resume business, most of which revolves around limestone.
It is not the coronavirus that is behind this protracted closure. Das and several others in the area Scroll.in spoke to alleged they had been forced out of business because of their ethnicity: they are “non-tribals”.
“Our situation is extremely bad – we have had absolutely no income for eight months now,” Das claimed. “It is not just me, everyone who is non-tribal is suffering.”
On October 15, three residents from the area submitted a memorandum to the state’s governor articulating as much. They accused the “state machinery” of stopping “the Hindu population from earning their livelihoods… in connivance with various NGOs”.
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