Green crusader

[1]

During the day, she is a simple 32-year-old tribal woman, weaving leaves together to make plates that would fetch her a fair amount of money at the local market. But as night falls, Jamuna Tudu turns into a fierce fighter on a mission. A mission to protect the jungles of her village.

A winner of Godfrey Phillips Bravery Award, Jamuna has managed to ward off the forest mafia in her village of Muthurkam in the state of Jharkand and preserve the trees that are a source of livelihood for a major population there.
Jamuna has gathered a motley group of 25 tribal housewives to organise the Van Suraksha Samiti — a body that patrols the forests. Armed with lathis and traditional bows — weapons deployed by the tribals — the group started challenging the intentions of the local goons who carried out illegal deforestation.
“I moved to Jharkand from Odisha after marriage. Since I grew up amongst trees, I was glad that my new home too was in the midst of greenery. But I started noticing that the number of trees in the neighbourhood was going down. I realised that something has to be done immediately to discourage the people involved or we’d have nothing left in our jungle. I urged the other women in the village to join me in my campaign. They were scared initially, but I assured them that I’d lead the movement and will not let them down. If there were to be a danger along the way, I’d be the first one to take the bullet,” she says.