History

“Since the days of remote past, the diversified art and cultural forms generated by the tribal and rural people of India, have continued to evince their creative magnificence. Apart from their outstanding brilliance from the perspective of aesthetics, the tribal/folk art and culture forms have played an instrumental role in reinforcing national integrity, crystallizing social solidarity, fortifying communal harmony, intensifying value-system and promoting the elements of humanism among the people of the country.” – Final Report “Evaluation Study of Tribal/Folk Arts and Culture in West Bengal, Orissa, Jharkhand, Chhatisgrah and Bihar” submitted to SER Division Planning Commission Govt. of India New Delhi by Gramin Vikas Seva Sanshtha West Bengal
https://indiantribalheritage.org/?p=29938

Video & eJournal | “Biodiversity”: Inherited knowledge and its value for modern healthcare & using resources in a sustainable manner – M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation

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Learn from M.S. Swaminathan – a world renowned scientist (1925-2023) – how biological diversity contributes to public health, people’s livelihood and environmental security in addition to food security: his call on Indian citizens to use and share resources in a more sustainable and equitable manner; outlining the long journey from the 1992 Earth Summit to a … Read more

Gandhi’s profound religious belief and sensibility – Gandhi Jayanti (2 October)

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It may be argued that what is more representative of his outlook is the stupendously radical idea that if the Muslim prays, he should pray that not that the Hindu should become a Muslim but rather a better Hindu; that if the Hindu prays, he should pray not that the Muslim should return to the … Read more

Bharata’s story as told in the Mahabharata – Romila Thapar

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Source: Romila Thapar in “The Narrative from the Mahabharata”, Sakuntala: Texts, Readings, Histories (New Delhi 1999), pp. 41-42 “Tribal men and women mix freely, but with respect for each other [but] caste Hindu society in India is so convinced of its own superiority that it never stops to consider the nature of social organisation among tribal people. … Read more

Ekalavya and Drona shape collective expectations from a teacher and a student: Ekalavya branded residential schools in tribal areas

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Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) for tribal children is another ambitious programme under which 740 EMRS will be established in tribal dominated areas in the next three years. Source: “Education & Tribal Affairs ministries launch school innovation” (Times of India, 16 July 2021)URL: https://m.timesofindia.com/home/education/news/education-tribal-affairs-ministries-launch-school-innovation-programme/articleshow/84474106.cmsDate Visited: 26 October 2021 Drona-Ekalavya: How mythology has ruined teaching in … Read more

Tip | Search articles on tribal history, politics and literature on Ramachandra Guha’s website

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We met adivasis who had been persecuted by the Naxalites, and other adivasis who had been tormented by the Salwa Judum vigilantes [i.e. “a strange, not to say bizarre, example of bipartisan co-operation“]. The situation of the community was poignantly captured by one tribal, who said […] “placed between the Maoists and the vigilantes, we … Read more