“National development and the development of tribal communities are linked to each other.” – Droupadi Murmu
Speeches by the 15th President of India >>
Search tips: for up-to-date reports about this region’s cultural heritage, combine the name of any state with that of some of its communities or languages; or with any topic of special interest to you: e.g. “Arunachala Pradesh weaving”, “Manipur tattoo”, “Meghalaya poetry”, “Sikkim biodiversity”, “Mizoram education”, “Sikkim music” etc.
“The uniqueness of northeast states of India lies in their cultures” | Learn more >>
In Marginalised but not Defeated, Tarun Kanti Bose (a seasoned public interest journalist) “talks about the Khasis, Nagas, Karbis, Garos, Rabhas, Misings, Daflas, Bodos, Akas and others in the North-east. […] The mainstream development paradigm is being questioned and new rainbows of collective, community reassertions are happening across the tribal belt in India. More so, in most cases, led by brave, empowered and resilient women.” | Learn more: https://countercurrents.org/2023/05/book-review-marginalised-but-not-defeated >>
Learn more about India’s eight North Eastern states: The “Seven Sister States” & Sikkim
Find up-to-date information provided by, for and about Indian authors, researchers, officials, and educators | More search options >>
Search tips: in the search field seen below, combine the name of any particular state, language or region with that of any tribal (Adivasi) community; add keywords of special interest (health, nutrition endangered language, illegal mining, sacred grove); learn about the rights of Scheduled Tribes such as the Forest Rights Act (FRA); and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, women’s rights, and children’s right to education; specify any other issue or news item you want to learn more about (biodiversity, bonded labour and human trafficking, climate change, ecology, economic development, ethnobotany, ethnomedicine, global warming, Himalayan tribe, hunter-gatherers in a particular region or state, prevention of rural poverty, water access).
For a list of websites included in a single search, click here. To search Indian periodicals, magazines, web portals and other sources safely, click here. To find publishing details for Shodhganga’s PhD search results, click here >>
There are over 700 tribes (with overlapping communities in more than one State) which have been notified under Article 342 of the Constitution of India, spread over different States and Union Territories of the country. The largest number of main tribal communities (62) has been specified in relation to the State of Orissa. The Scheduled Tribes have been specified in relation to all the States and Union Territories except Haryana, Punjab, Chandigarh, Delhi, and Pondicherry.
Source: National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST), Government of India, Ministry of Tribal Affairs, FAQ accessed on 14 September 2021
Up-to-date information on India’s Zonal Cultural Centers | Government website
- Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre, Kolkata
Eastern region – Eastern Zonal Council - North Central Zone Cultural Centre, Prayagraj
Uttar Pradesh - North East Zone Cultural Centre, Dimapur
Seven Sister States & Sikkim – North Eastern Council - North Zone Cultural Centre, Patiala
Northern region – Northern Zonal Council - South Central Zone Cultural Centre, Nagpur
Central region – Central Zonal Council - South Zone Cultural Centre, Thanjavur
Southern region – Southern Zonal Council - West Zone Cultural Centre, Udaipur
Western region – Western Zonal Council
“The practice of religious rituals, ceremonies and sanctions by specific cultural groups allow such sacred landscapes to be maintained, emphasizing that humans are intrinsically part of the ecosystem. Taboos, codes and customs specific to activities and community members restrict access to most sacred groves. […] The inclusion of local people’s needs and interests in conservation planning is increasingly accepted as essential, both to promote the well-being of human populations, and to ensure that biodiversity and conservation needs are met in the long-term.” – Nazir A. Pala, Ajeet K. Neg and N.P. Todaria in “The Religious, Social and Cultural Significance of Forest Landscapes in Uttarakhand Himalaya, India” (International Journal of Conservation Science, Vol. 5, Issue 2, April-June 2014) | Sacred groves | Biodiversity and development – Himalaya >>
Learn more about biodiversity in the context of development in Mizoram >>