Once a Maoist stronghold, Tummala now has schools and roads, says young Koya artiste
A young Kommu Koya artiste shares her experience of how her village in Andhra Pradesh has transformed from a Maoist stronghold into a peaceful community with improved infrastructure. The story highlights the personal loss caused by past Naxalite violence and the subsequent development of the region.
Why it matters
This narrative illustrates the socio-economic impact of the decline of Naxalite insurgency on tribal communities and rural development.
“My mother said Maoists had shot dead my father, Patra Mutyam, when I was about one year old. I don’t know how my father looked. Now my village, Tummala in Chintoor mandal of Polavaram district, is peaceful after the Maoists have been eliminated,” said Patra Sowjanya, a young Kommu Koya dance artiste.
Sowjanya, along with her mother, Patra Jayamma, was in Vijayawada on Monday (August 10, 2026) in connection with the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples (World Adivasi Day), observed on August 9.
“Now, there are no Naxalite movements, and Tummala, on the Andhra Pradesh , Telangana , Chhattisgarh and Odisha borders, has drinking water, a school, roads, medical and other facilities,” said Sowjanya, a first-year degree student.
Kommu Koya dancers perform at the World Tribal Day event in Vijayawada on Sunday. The day marks the International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples. Video: G.N. Rao pic.twitter.com/gprUU6TPs7
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