Sumani Jhodia

Sumani Jhodia
Born	Rayagada, Odisha, India
Known for	Tribal rights activism

Sumani Jhodia is an Indian tribal activist hailing from Rayagada district of Odisha best known for campaigning against the sale of liquor in tribal areas, advocating for tribal rights over minor forest produce, and opposing government policies that lease tribal land to private companies for industrial projects. In 1995, Biju Patnaik, then Chief Minister of Odisha, appointed her as one of the unofficial advisors on sustainable development, literacy, and the poverty-alleviation programmes. Sumani was honoured with 2003 Rani Gaidinliu Zeiliang Stree Shakti Award (predecessor of the Nari Shakti Puraskar) by the Government of India.

Early life and education

Sumani Jhodia was born in the Siriguda village in Rayagada, Odisha. Her family is part of Jhodia Paroja, a tribal community with a population of 50,000 living across 85 Indian villages, particularly in the Kashipur block of the Rayagada district. Primarily a forest-dwelling community, Jhodias make a living by collecting forest produce, practicing podu chasa (or shifting cultivation), and engaging in various forms of daily-wage labour.

Sumani's father, Ravi Jhodia, encouraged her to attend school, but she dropped out after six months due to the nearest school being three kilometres away. By 17, she was married and had her first child. At the time, Ramdhar Jhodia was considered to be the most literate man in her village, having studied till Class 9 (or middle school). He worked as a night schoolteacher with Agragamee, a local non-governmental organization. The village elders persuaded Sumani to enrol at Agragamee, where she learned to read and write. She also attended Agragamee's leadership development programme that made her aware of the exploitation her tribal community were being subjected to.

Activism

In 1991, Biju Patnaik had planned a visit to Kalahandi and Rayagada districts in Odisha, however due to change in plans, he sent the Tehsildar of Kalahandi district to Rayagada instead. In response, the residents of Siriguda village in Rayagada, who had been campaigning against the government for issuing liquor licenses to shops in the tribal areas, sent a 10-point charter of demands to the chief minister through the Tehsildar. These demands were the outcome of a meeting attended by 450 women from 10 districts. Pattnaik, upon receiving the demands, called 20-25 women from Kalahandi and Rayagada districts to State Assembly in Bhubaneswar for a discussion. During a five-hour long meeting, Sumani, in the presence of other prominent tribal leaders like Andari Majhi and Sabai Majhi, shared the many ways in which alcohol had taken a toll on tribal families: “For decades, the people of the tribal belt have suffered the consequences of the menfolk’s addiction to country liquor. Even as many died of starvation and families were torn asunder, illicit liquor shops thrived in the area. The men simply couldn’t kick the habit despite the havoc it caused in communities.” She highlighted that tribal families lost their gold, their lands, and other belongings to the hands of alcoholic men, as domestic violence and other social ills became rampant.

Pattnaik agreed to a ban on the manufacture and sale of illicit liquor, and appointed eight tribal women, including Sumani, to be his unofficial advisors for the state's tribal development and anti-liquor movement. The advisors were issued a police uniform, introduced to district collectors and superintendents, and equipped with a Jeep that was later handed over to a hospital to be used as an ambulance. Led by Sumani, tribal women rallied against liquor breweries that were operating without a license. They protested at local markets, smashed liquor dens, and facilitated the shut down of toddy shops and dormitories where young men would go to get get drunk.

Sumani and her team of advisors faced opposition from local liquor barons, and local goons for their efforts. Aundhari Majhi, one of the women with special policing powers, filed a police complaint against Rati Majhi, the owner of one of the local breweries, for threatening her. Sumani mobilised 5000 women from the Kashipur block to surround the police station until Majhi was rounded up. As many as eight criminal cases were filed against Sumani during this time. She, alongside a group of tribal women, was attacked by an axe-wielding man on her way back from Mandibisi. He was kept in policy custody for four days after the women filed a formal complaint against him.