Nilgiri Biosphere

“Despite the restitution of community rights under the Forest Rights Act of 2006, the Adivasis are not able to supplement their diet with resources gathered from the forest as they did before.” – Priti David in “In the Nilgiris, an inheritance of malnutrition” ( People’s Archive of Rural India, 1 May 2020)
https://ruralindiaonline.org/en/articles/in-the-nilgiris-an-inheritance-of-malnutrition/
https://indiantribalheritage.org/?p=30029

Alcohol and drug-awareness group, political leaders and women activists worried: Increased alcoholism in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh

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What’s the price of the ‘right’ to alcohol? By Mari Marcel Thekaekara, New Internationalist, March 8, 2013 While successive governments have patted themselves on their backs, each claiming credit for our galloping economy, India refuses to talk about the enormous social costs to our communities. Alcoholism and drug abuse are at their peak. In the past, many of … Read more

Garden party with the forest people of the Nilgiri mountains – Tamil Nadu

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By Mari Marcel Thekaekara, New Internationalist, June 1, 2012 After my last blog, lots of people wrote to me saying ‘we wish we could attend your Chembakolli party too’. Well, I wish you could too. So, the next best thing, I thought I’d tell you about it. I’d suggested some adivasi friends visit us for a change, … Read more

Wildlife and changing lifestyles in the “biodiversity hotspots” of the Nilgiri hills (Western Ghats) – Tamil Nadu and Kerala

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Tarsh Thekaekara,  New Delhi, Sun Jul 15 2012 I grew up in a small town on the border of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, cradled in the Nilgiri hills. I now work as a conservationist in the same area. Gudalur sits at the start of the mountains, at the edge of the Mudumalai Reserve. Till about … Read more

Ashwini community health programme to train village-level health workers (Gudalur) – Tamil Nadu

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Ashwini is working closely with tribal communities in south India to help improve their social lot through participative inclusion Deep in the misty Nilgiri hills, a quiet revolution has been taking place in Gudalur, a verdant valley nestled at the confluence of the southern states of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Home to adivasis — … Read more

Video & eLearning | Communities in charge of their own development and more: Vidyodaya Maths and Science Resource Centre & Kaathadi YouTube channel – Tamil Nadu

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Kaathadi started a year ago, and draws from experiences of the teachers and the students of Vidyodaya, which has educated hundreds of children from the adivasi communities living in and around Gudalur. It was started in 1996 by the Viswa Bharati Vidyodaya Trust (VBVT). The aim was to address the deprivation of education opportunities among … Read more