Continuation of colonial-era forest laws and mass evictions: Historical displacement of tribals from forests – Forest Rights Act

State governments would have to undertake mass evictions if the court accepts a petition filed by wildlife groups. […]   If the court accepts the plea of petitioners, state governments would have to undertake mass evictions. The union ministry for tribal affairs estimates that by the end of November 2018, out of the 4.2 million claims received, … Read more

“The world sells humans. What kind of world is this?” – Hindi Movie “Kamla” revisited

“The world sells humans. What kind of world is this? Buying and selling is done every morning and evening. What kind of world is this?” – Hindi song lyrics in this movie (see below) “Kamla” (1984): Hindi movie (duration: 2h), written by Vijay Tendulkar and directed by Dr. Jagmohan Mundhra with English subtitles – to view the … Read more

“Indigenous women have an integral collective and community role as carers of natural resources and keepers of scientific knowledge”: International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples & Virtual commemoration (9 August) – Unesco

Source: “The role of indigenous women in the preservation and transmission of traditional knowledge”, United Nations 2022URL: https://www.un.org/en/observances/indigenous-dayDate Visited: 8 August 2022 Indigenous peoples and UNESCO Indigenous peoples live in all regions of the world and own, occupy or use some 22% of global land area. Numbering at least 370-500 million, indigenous peoples represent the … 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

India’s tribal, folk and devotional music: Secular and ceremonial songs – An overview

“The great diversity of music in India is a direct manifestation of the diversity and fragmentation of the population in terms of race, religion, language, and other aspects of culture. Yet the distinction between tribal music and folk music is not always clearly defined.” – N.A. Jairazbhoy To illustrate the above observation, namely “The distinction between … Read more