Learn more about tribal communities in Uttar Pradesh

The Uttar Pradesh government has recently embarked upon a scheme to take the unique culture of its ethnic Tharu tribe across the world. The intention is to put Tharu villages on the tourism map, and to create jobs and bring economic independence to the tribal population. […] The community belongs to the Terai lowlands, amid … Read more

“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

Cultural invisibility – India’s 600 potentially endangered languages

According to UNESCO, any language that is spoken by less than 10,000 people is potentially endangered. In India, after the 1971 census, the government decided that any language spoken by less than 10,000 people need not be included in the official list of languages. In India, therefore, all the languages that are spoken by less … Read more

Helping end human trafficking and modern slavery – #FREEDOMFORGIRLS

71% of modern slavery victims are women and girls. With an estimated 40.3 million people victims of modern slavery and human trafficking, that’s a lot of girls around the world who are being exploited for someone else’s benefit, or treated like a commodity, unable to leave because of threats, violence, coercion, and abuse of power. Read the … Read more