The Year of the Weeds by Siddhartha Sarma is a fictionalized account of the

agitation of the Dongria G ondhs against the mining of the Niyamgiri hills in

Odisha, India. The story is told through the eyes of Korok, a young Gond

teenager.

K orok lives in a small Gond village with his grandmother. His father is in prison

for a crime he didn't commit, and his mother has passed away. K orok works as a

gardener at the Forest Officer's bungalow, and he loves spending time in the

garden, tending to the plants and learning about their medicinal and cultural

significance.

One day, Korok learns that a mining company plans to mine the Niyamgiri hills,

which are sacred to the Gonds. The villagers are determined to resist the mining,

and Korok becomes involved in the struggle. He works with the village elders and

other activists to raise awareness of the issue and to mobilize opposition to the

mining project.

Korok also befriends Anchita, the Forest Officer's daughter. Anchita is a city-bred

girl, but she is sympathetic to the Gonds' cause. She helps Korok to learn more

about the mining project and to communicate with the outside world.

The Gonds face many challenges in their fight against the mining company. The

company has the support of the government and the police, and they use their
power to intimidate and harass the villagers. However, the Gonds are determined

to protect their land and their way of life.

In the end, the Gonds are victorious. The Supreme Court of India rules in their

favor and stop the mining project. Korok and the other villagers are overjoyed,

but they know that the fight is not over. They must continue to be vigilant and to

protect their land and their culture from future threats.

The Year of the Weeds is a powerful story about community, resistance, and hope.

It is a reminder that even the most marginalized people can have a voice, and that

even the most powerful forces can be defeated when people come together to fight

for what is right.

Another source

A fictionalized account of the agitation of the Dongria Kondhs against the mining of the
Niyamgiri hills, Year of the Weeds is set in Deogan, Odisha. It captures the life of Gonds
of West Odissa, and the bureaucracy, corruption and the struggle against government,
spanning a period of several months.

The point of view is Korok’s, a young, Gondi teenager. Korok has a fairly simple life and
routine and works as a gardener at the DFO’s (referred to as epho by Gonds),
punctuated with timely visits to Balangir to meet his father (arrested wrongly) in jail and
release their bicycle. DFO’s daughter Anchita befriends Korok and she introduces him
to a world outside his viilage, including to the use of the computer (kompitar).

When Korok shows Anchita around their Devi Hill, considered sacred by the Gonds,
they come across some government officials mapping the land. Once a protected forest
land, Devi Hills, rich with bauxite, is now considered by the government for mining at the
hands of a “Company”. The only educated lad from Gonds, Jadob, begins measures to
counteract the encroachment with their majhi (village headman). Do the Gonds manage
to save their land from the encroacher? It is for the reader to find out.

Social elements
The officials keep the marginalized communities in check by falsely arresting and
terrorizing them. The corrupt officials themselves work under the orders from some
‘important person’ showcasing the depth of how deep far rooted corruption runs.

In Ghosh’s character we see how a propaganda to overturn the generic sympathy of

citizens is executed meticulously. A reflection of our society – an issue catches the
media as well as the political eye only long enough to garner attention and vote bank
before moving forward. While this is particularly set in Odisha, we could easy alter the
location and circumstance and relate to other struggles of people vs the corporate
giants. The absence of toilets and teachers in the school for Gonds compels an urban
reader to introspect about the social realities of our country.

When Anchita makes a remark on how Korok is using products from plagiarised brands,
he is indifferent; he has known his entire life. In DFO’s family we find an honest official,
however, prone to transfers. The title, Year of the Weeds, befits the story wherein the
allegory of weeds to the problems faced by Gond is striking. There are multiple
hard-hitting junctures throughout; like the false arrests, links to Maoists and the wait for
rain.

Another source
https://journal.bookwormgoa.in/review-siddhartha-sarmas-year-of-the-weeds-is-essential-readin
g-in-our-troubled-democracy/

Drawing upon the celebratory decision by the Supreme Court on the Niyamgiri Hills,
Year of the Weeds plots an engaging story of how a community manages to convince
the Supreme Court to reinforce the importance of the commons. And what better way to
do it than through the agency of a young boy. While the role of the older headman and
educated tribal members is important to the plot of the book, it is Korok with the help of
his new friend, Anchita, the Forest Officer’s daughter, who comes up with an idea that
prevents the government from displacing the community to mine their lands for bauxite.

Just as the stoic resignation of an older generation of tribal communities has given way
to a more vocal collective resistance against the injustice of the Indian state in many
parts of the country, Sarma’s book too makes place for the incipient collective anger that
fuels a people’s movement. When the tribals gather to protest peacefully at the entrance
to their village, the police lathi charges them, injuring many including Korok. Drawing
upon his journalistic side, Sarma writes about this with a reporter’s keen eye for detail
that becomes evidence for a well-researched opinion, as he points out that

“What is truly frightening is that more time has been spent thinking about the right way
to carry out a lathi charge than all the ways for a policeman to speak politely to people.”
The pace of the book picks up as Korok and Anchita work towards executing the plan
using all the tools at hand – from the gossip mill to the internet. As the brash but foolish
police officer acts with predictability, the book leads us to a very satisfying end,
resonating the sense of victory that many felt with the judgement on Niyamgiri.