“You take us to be poor, but we’re not”: Proud Not Primitive, a campaign on communities that can take care of themselves

The Jarawa of the Andaman Islands enjoy a time of opulence. Their forests gives them more than they need. ANVITA ABBI, PROFESSOR OF LINGUISTICS, JAWAHARLAL NEHRU UNIVERSITY The Dongria Kondh grow over 100 crops and harvest almost 200 different wild foods, which provide them with year-round, rich nutrition even in times of drought. Over generations, … Read more

International Mother Language Day (21 February): “Multilingual education is a pillar of intergenerational learning” – Unesco

The International Mother Language Day highlights the role of young people in shaping the future of multilingual education. Youth voices on multilingual education emphasizes that language is more than a means of communication: it is central to identity, learning, well-being and participation in society. The celebration underscores the importance of education systems that recognise and … Read more

Interview | Daricha Foundation traces the roots of folk and tribal arts – West Bengal

Interview with Daricha Foundation’s founder Ratnaboli Bose If one of the scenes that you remember from Satyajit Ray’s Agantuk is where Mamata Shankar serves goyna bodi to Utpal Dutt, then you could be a friend of Daricha, a one-stop knowledge portal aimed at documenting, promoting and disseminating Bengal’s folk and tribal culture. Conceived by Ratnaboli … Read more

Tagore’s Santiniketan, “an Abode of Learning Unlike Any in the World” – West Bengal

Santiniketan’s bell – Photo © Ludwig Pesch Located about 158 km northwest of Kolkata in Bengal’s rural hinterland, Santiniketan embodies Rabindranath Tagore’s vision of a place of learning that is unfettered by religious and regional barriers. Established in 1863 with the aim of helping education go beyond the confines of the classroom, Santiniketan grew into … Read more

Tribal Politics – adivasi culture, language, and religion in Encyclopedia of India

Tribal Politics The “tribal” peoples or adivasis of India, according to the 2001 census, constitute roughly 8.1 percent of the country’s population, some 83,6 million people, classified under 461 different communities. They occupy a belt stretching from the Bhil regions of western India through the Gond districts of central India, to Jharkhand and Bengal, where … Read more