They have called for more money to go to “high priority” social goals such as healthcare, education and jobs, as mandated by rules governing the spending of funds collected from mining companies and the District Mineral Foundation (DMF). assigned by DMF).
DMF rules state that local communities must be involved in funding decisions, but Sundergarh villagers said they were not consulted and taken for granted to support the hockey tournament.
“This is a community-run fund and they should have a say in what is needed for their development and well-being,” said Oram Deme, president of Anchalik Suraksha Samiti, a group working for the rights of indigenous people in Sundergarh.
Demme said, “People are told there’s money, don’t you want to spend it and their assent is taken as an informed acceptance.” “Nobody knows what the plan is after the World Cup is over – who will maintain these grounds and who will actually play here?”
State politician Shankar Oram, who sits on Sundargarh’s DMF trust board, said that “money was allocated for hockey without discussing it with the communities”.
‘The cradle of Indian hockey’
There are about 600 hockey teams in Sundergarh, which is often referred to as the “Cradle of Indian Hockey” because of the number of players from the district who have played for the national team.
“Except for the two monsoon months, the game is played every week,” said Sushant Behera, a sports writer working on a book to document the history of hockey in Sundergarh.
“You can gauge its popularity from the fact that hockey sticks are gifted to couples at weddings.”
Sundargarh’s administrative head, Gawli Parag Harshad, said the government was tapping into the region’s love for hockey, and that using welfare funds to build the stadium and 16 pitches was in line with DMF rules.
“‘Why not spend on sports?’ I have a question for those criticizing the idea,” Harshad said.
“Players in every administrative block of the district will get the experience of playing on an international ground. There will be changing rooms and gyms attached to the grounds. It is good to invest in sports.”
Last month, Sundargarh organized a hockey tournament to raise awareness about the upcoming World Cup, which begins on January 13.
Beck’s team played and lost, and he received a T-shirt bearing the event’s logo. Couldn’t read what he said.
lack of coal jobs
Beck lives on the edge of open-cast mining operations run by Mahanadi Coalfields, a subsidiary of state-run Coal India, in Basundhara.
Through the DMF – set up by the Indian government in 2015 – mining leaseholders such as Mahanadi Coalfields must contribute 10-30% of their royalties annually to improve welfare and job opportunities in areas affected by the industry.
According to data from the Ministry of Mines, DMFs set up in 600 districts in 21 states had more than 600 billion Indian rupees ($7.2 billion) as of March 2022.
According to an October report by two NGOs, the Mineral Inheritors Rights Association and the Environics Trust, contributions to the fund have increased by about 25% over the previous year, reflecting an increase in mining activity.
Nevertheless, Saswati Svetlana, co-author of the report, said the study in four states showed that “many projects that DMF websites indicate are approved and completed do not exist”.