Exclusive/ 'No Housing, No Security': Hemchand Manjhi to Return His Padma Shri Over Naxal Threat

Raipur: Padma Shri awardee Hemchand Manjhi on Monday has offered to return the Padma Shri award due to constant threats from Naxalites. The ayurvedic doctor has said that from today onwards he will not even give medicine to anyone and has accused the district administration for not providing housing and proper security to him. He has been demanding to stay in his home village at Chhotedongar.

This comes after today after the Naxalites had put up banners and posters against Hemchand Manjhi in Chameli. Due to this reason, he was forced to stay in the district headquarters safe house for many months.

The decision by the Padma Awardee came after The Naxalites created a ruckus in Narayanpur district, and had set fire to BSNL tower in Chameli village

What exactly happened? 

Naxalites have once again created a ruckus in Narayanpur district. Late on Sunday night, they knocked at Chameli village, 4 kms away from Chhotedongar police station, and set fire to the BSNL tower. At the same time, the Naxalites put up several banner posters on the spot in which it has been shown that Padmashree Vaidyaraj Hemchandra Manjhi of Chhotedongar is a broker of Amdai mine and he should be driven out of the country

Previously, the Padmashree Hemchandra Manjhi's nephew Komal Manjhi was brutally murdered by the Naxalites and Vaidyaraj Hemchandra Manjhi is being constantly threatened by the Naxalites accusing him of brokering in Amdai mines. Due to which the police administration has provided security to Vaidyaraj in the safe house in the district headquarters.

Armed with the ancient knowledge of special herbs, Manjhi, a 70-year-old traditional medicine practitioner, was awarded the Padma Shri last month for serving and treating patients in Naxal-hit areas of Narayanpur and Bastar.

He had received the award in the field of Medicine for his dedicated service of providing traditional affordable care to locals since the past five decades.