Bhubaneswar: Balco agitation, one of the oldest green movements in the country, has found a celluloid depiction in the form of documentary titled “Balco Agitation: A Brief History”.
The documentary depicts the movement that took place to protect Gandhamardan Hill range situated between Balangir and Bargarh districts from mining operation of the Balco (Bharat Aluminum Company) in 1980s. It provides a brief history of how the green movement took place, reasons behind its emergence and strategies adopted by a cross section of its leaders.
Known as ‘Ayurveda Paradise’, Gandhamardan Hill with its rich medicinal plant diversity and religious places like Nrusinghanath and Harishankar has been the main source of livelihood for tribal-dominated villages. Despite being remotely located, with poor communication networks and no financial backup at the time, an inclusive green agitation emerged that successfully protected the Hill.
Tribal women, children, elderly and youth actively participated in the longest blockade of the road leading to the hilltop for about four years. A section of Arya Samaj sanyasis also played a role in the movement.
Making a documentary on such an old green battle is always a challenging task. A team consisting of Ajit Samal, Prof Jaya Prakash Pradhan and Hardik Bhatt travelled by road from Ahmedabad to different places associated with the agitation in Odisha. Apart from meeting a cross-section of leaders, the team climbed up to the top of Gandhamardan Hill to obtain information on Balco mining operation.
