“Tribal population was spread all over India and most of them occupied wild tracts, hilly and forested areas, away from more civilized centers. In 1880 their population was estimated at about seventy million. They had existed for centuries with their own social traditions and beliefs and subsisted on natural resources. They had preserved their near isolation and way of life until the British administration and policies made inroads into their territories.” – Subha Johari in “Tribal Dissatisfaction Under Colonial Economy of 19th Century”
http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1040271311
https://indiantribalheritage.org/?p=11961
The term ‘tribe’, as is widely known, subsumes enormous complexities—both anthropological and historical. However, the British India Censuses used to enumerate tribes as Animists until the 1931 Census, in which they were categorised as those practicing ‘Tribal Religion’. Thus, up to the 1941 Census, the criterion of primitive or tribal religion enabled the British census … Read more
Adivasi communities traditionally depended on the forest for all their nutritional needs. They subsisted mainly on fruits, vegetables, tubers, fish, small game as well as the occasional crop they grew, predominantly coarse grains. However, as time passed and the nature of, as well as their access to, forests changed, their diet started becoming deficient. Certain … Read more
A Mexican wave of empathy – Tribal culture strikes a chord with filmmaker couple One may be forgiven for asking “hom what?” But Mexican filmmaker couple Francesco Taboada Tabone and Fernanda Robinson has the answer. […] The couple, whose films are about indigenous issues in contemporary Mexico and South America, are especially interested in watching … Read more
Over six years after its signing, the Bodoland Accord is yet to usher in substantive changes on the ground [i.e. at the date of pulication in 2002]. […] The Sixth Schedule, extensively amended since the adoption of the Constitution, along with the Fifth Schedule (applicable to the scheduled areas and the Scheduled Tribes outside the … Read more
Dancing on our turtle’s back: Stories of Nishnaabeg Re-Creation, Resurgence, and a New Emergence. By Leanne Betasamosake Simpson. Kolkata: Adivaani. 2014 (First published in Canada, 2012) ISBN 9788192554174. Rs. 250. | Order details >> Felix Padel reviews Dancing on our turtle’s back… Because we belong to the land — a special introductory section for the Indian edition makes clear what … Read more