“Tribal communities have proven that they are the best guardians of the forest and die-hard conservationists”: Illegal mining destroys the life and culture of the conservators of forests

Source: “Odisha’s Tribal Communities Are Reeling Under a Land Grab Project Masquerading as ‘Afforestation’” by Abhijit Mohanty (The Wire, 23 July 2020)URL: https://thewire.in/rights/odisha-kandhamal-forest-rights-tribalsDate Visited: 26 February 2022 Illegal mining in forests is destroying the life and culture of schedule tribes, opined Dr H Sudarshan, director of Vivekananda Girijana Kalyana Kendra. He was speaking at national … Read more

Tribal Knowledge Systems, Values and Traditions: Papers presented for “Tribes In Transition-II: Reaffirming Indigenous Identity Through Narrative” (National Conference)

Sandesha Rayapa-Garbiyal presented a paper titled “Runglwo: Undergoing a much-awaited Paradigmatic Shift.” Runglwo is one the most endangered languages in India. There are only 8000 people who speak this language in three valleys: Chaudas, Darma and Byans. People migrate according to seasonal changes. The language faces acute problems of survival due to the influence of Hindi … Read more

Striving for a “just, free and equitable society” by combating human trafficking, slavery and child labour: Shakti Vahini – Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa & West Bengal

Strengthening Women & Child Rights in India. Ensuring a better world for our future generations through education of children, empowerment of women and protection of environment. […] Shakti Vahini visions, aspires and strives for Just, Free and Equitable society. We consider it a duty of every citizen to have social concerns and strive for the … Read more

India’s tribal cultural heritage – Odisha (Orissa)

Though Odia is the official language, there are 22 officially recognized tribal languages in Odisha. The overall literacy rate of Odisha has increased from 49 per cent in 1991 to 73 per cent in 2011. The literacy rate among tribal population has also demonstrated the increasing trend over the years, yet the gap between tribal … Read more

Video | Living with the cycles of nature and understanding that it is bountiful: National award winning documentary “I Cannot Give You My Forest” – Odisha

I cannot give you my forest is a documentary directed and produced by filmmakers- Nandan Saxena and Kavita Bahl. It has received the National Film Award for Best Environment Film in 2014. Filmed in the forests of Odisha, ‘I cannot give you my forest’ is a window into the lives of the Kondh ‘adivasis’. The … Read more