By IANS,
Bhubaneswar : A police man from the primitive Bonda tribe in Orissa has been awarded a gallantry award by the government for his role in fighting Maoist rebels.
Constable Shiv Sankar Nayak of the Bonda tribe, who still live deep in the forests and whose women do not cover their bosom, was awarded the President’s Gallantry Award by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Saturday.
“I have been awarded for my role in a anti-Naxal (Maoist) operation in Feb 12, 2007, at Malegeta and Baligeta jungles in Naxal-infested Malkanagiri district. I was working as a scout of the team and showed the way from the front,” Shiv Sankar Naik told IANS.
“I am happy to be awarded with the gallantry award. It is a dream come true for me to join the police force as hardly anybody from my community prefers to come to mainstream. And I am happy to perform my duty for the state, and helping in weeding out Naxal menace in the state,” he said.
Nayak was recruited into the Orissa police in special drive in the tribal districts.
The government has set up a Bonda Development Authority (BDA) to bring the tribesmen into the mainstream. The group has maintained its distinct identity despite repeated efforts by the government.