RAIPUR: Gandhians, tribals and activists in large numbers from three states are planning a peace walk in insurgency-hit tribal Bastar region of Chhattisgarh on Gandhi Jayanti day to send out a message to Naxalites to join the mainstream, support peace and development.Calling it a foot march for peace in central India on the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, people from Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh would enter the forests of Bastar to carry out peace march through the same route from where Naxalites had invaded Bastar in the early 1980s. Nearly 150 people, including local tribals, are expected to cover about 200 kilometres of a peace march in about ten days.This is for the first time in the last 14 years that an initiative is being taken for peace with protesters hoping that Naxalites and the government must come forward for restoring peace in the region. They would take the same route through which the Naxalites had entered Dandakaranya from seven different openings in 1980 and would request peace from all sides with an aim to bring the conflict to an end.According to Sidam Arju, head of Gond Samaj in Telangana, "the government statistics show that more than 12,000 people have died in the on-going conflict between Naxalites guerrillas and security forces in Central India in the last 20 years. Around 2700 security personnel have also lost their lives in these years with approximately 9300 civilians killed in the crossfire. Most of those killed are ordinary Adivasis while more than 3000 are under trials and in prison. Hence, a few months back, we initiated discussion on a new peace process for Central India to help bring this violence to a halt."During a meeting in Tilda focussed on the theme "finding an alternative path", it was decided that a group of Adivasis with their friends will symbolically walk the same path in Dandakaranya forest, which is spread across six Central Indian states.The march would be led by tribal groups of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh and marchers will assemble at Shabari Gandhi Ashram, on the bank of river Shabari, at Chatti village in East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh. Marchers will walk 15-20 km every day to reach Jagdalpur, divisional headquarters of Bastar by October 13 for a public meeting."We will be meeting villagers along the way appealing them to join the padayatra and sending out a message for peace talks with the government," Arju said.He added that tribals and activists from Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Assam, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh would be part of the peace march.Leading participants would include Manish Kunjam from Adivasi Mahasabha, Arju Sidam from Telangana, VB Chandrasekaran from Shabri Ashram, Chetti, BPS Netam from Sarv Adivasi Samaj and others.

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