Category Archives: Government of India

Supreme Court declares a buffer zone around the Jarawa Tribal Reserve Area: Protecting the safety, security and interests of the Jarawas – Andaman

J. Venkatesan, The Hindu, New Delhi, January 21, 2013 The Supreme Court on Monday banned tourists from taking the Andaman Nicobar Trunk Road that passes through the area where the Jarawas live. The road is used to reach the Limestone Cave. … Continue reading

Posted in Accountability, Government of India, Names and communities, Press snippets, Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Tourism | Tagged | Comments Off

A way to preserve biodiversity: India’s inspiring tradition of sacred groves – Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel

In commissioning a High-Level Working Group headed by the space scientist K. Kasturirangan to study the recommendations of the Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP), the Ministry of Environment and Forests hoped to resolve an impasse. It now appears that … Continue reading

Posted in Accountability, Colonial policies, Commentary, Ecology and environment, Economy and development, Figures, census and other statistics, Government of India, Media portrayal, Modernity, Nature and wildlife, Press snippets, Western Ghats - tribal heritage & ecology | Comments Off

Egalitarian culture leaves Adivasi youth unprepared for competition: On the challenge of balancing tradition and modernity

Boro Baski is a teacher and social worker with the community-based organisation Ghosaldanga Adibasi Seva Sangha in West Bengal. Read the entire article >> Boro Baski, 13/05/2013 The young generation of India’s tribal communities is struggling with different problems than the college-educated urban … Continue reading

Posted in Accountability, Adivasi, Assimilation, Commentary, Economy and development, Education and literacy, Figures, census and other statistics, Government of India, History, Misconceptions, Modernity, Names and communities, Quotes, Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Worship and rituals | Tagged | Comments Off

The Irulas’ Natural Products Corporation: Providing employment to several hundred Irula women – Tamil Nadu & New Delhi

Times of India, 29-3-2005 The Irulas’ Natural Products Corporation is a partnership firm located in the ITWWS campus, which produces, promotes and markets Irula health-care products. It provides employment to several hundred Irula women. [...] A team of experienced vaidyars … Continue reading

Posted in Adivasi, Customs, Economy and development, Government of India, Health and nutrition, History, Maps, Names and communities, Organizations, Press snippets, Women | Tagged | Comments Off

Seminar on the issue of trans-border Asia’s trans-border communities: Struggling to preserve their social and cultural characteristics – National Atlas & Thematic Mapping Organisation

Ipsita Pati, The Hindu, Kolkata, February 24, 2013 Tribal groups have to relocate themselves to create new identities or merge with bigger nations as an adaptive strategy to preserve their inherited social and cultural characteristics, said National Atlas & Thematic Mapping … Continue reading

Posted in Anthropology, Assimilation, Government of India, History, Modernity, Networking, Organizations, Press snippets, Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Tribal culture worldwide, Tribal identity | Comments Off

Call for providing children’s literature in Jharkhand’s endangered tribal languages: Sahitya Akademi’s seminar – Ranchi

The Telegraph, Kolkata, November 28 , 2012 Eight languages spoken by tribals of Jharkhand are among the world’s endangered list of 1,763, including 171 in India, according to a Unesco report. In this context, Sahitya Akademi, which hosted a two-day … Continue reading

Posted in Childhood and children, Education and literacy, Figures, census and other statistics, Globalization, Government of India, Languages and linguistic heritage, Modernity, Organizations, Press snippets | Comments Off

Indigenous communities’ decisions on traditional lands and habitats to be respected, based on information provided in a language accessible to them: Supreme Court ruling a great victory for indigenous rights – Odisha (Orissa)

Amnesty International, 18 April 2013 India: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a great victory for indigenous rights Today’s ruling by India’s Supreme Court that the Indigenous (Adivasi) communities will have the final decision on plans for a bauxite mine by a subsidiary … Continue reading

Posted in Accountability, Adivasi, Democracy, Ecology and environment, Economy and development, Forest Rights Act (FRA), Government of India, Languages and linguistic heritage, Maps, Names and communities, Organizations, Photos and slideshows, Press snippets, Quotes, Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Women | Tagged | Comments Off

The Western Ghats are no ordinary ecosystem: They constitute the water tower of peninsular India

Madhav Gadgil & Ligia Noronha, The Hindu, 2-5-13  [...] This is a challenging time in India’s development history where a number of tenets of environmental governance are being questioned by the imperative of growth. Environmental governance in India is under … Continue reading

Posted in Accountability, Commentary, Democracy, Ecology and environment, Figures, census and other statistics, Forest Rights Act (FRA), Government of India, Maps, Misconceptions, Nature and wildlife, Press snippets, Western Ghats - tribal heritage & ecology | Comments Off

Adivasis (Scheduled Tribes) are the largest tribal population in the world – World Directory of Minorities

From “Adivasis of India” (dated 2008) | Read the full article >> Alternative names: Scheduled Tribes, various tribal names e.g. Santhals, Hos, Mundas, Oraons, Gonds, Konds, Bhils etc. [...] The Adivasis (original inhabitants) is the collective name used for the many tribal … Continue reading

Posted in Adivasi, Anthropology, Assimilation, Education and literacy, Figures, census and other statistics, Forest Rights Act (FRA), Government of India, Languages and linguistic heritage, Misconceptions, Names and communities, Quotes, Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Worship and rituals | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off

National Food Security Bill (National Food Security Bill Act), 2013 – Govt. of India

Excerpt from the “revised version, as tabled in Parliament, 22 March 2013″ It extends to the whole of India [...] Schedule III (See section 39) (1) “Revitalisation of Agriculture” – (a) agrarian reforms through measures for securing interest of small and marginal farmers; … Continue reading

Posted in Democracy, Ecology and environment, Economy and development, Government of India, Health and nutrition, Quotes, Women | Comments Off

An indigenous film industry for large indigenous populations: ‘Jhollywood’ tells the stories of modern Adivasis in Jharkhand, Orissa, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, West Bengal, Assam and Manipur

From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 7, Issue 26, Dated July 3, 2010 Jhollywood is calling Forget the faux tribals grunting in Raavan. Jharkhand has its own film industry, made by Adivasi filmmakers for Adivasi viewers, says G VISHNUIS BEERA Formula for … Continue reading

Posted in Adivasi, De- and re-tribalisation, Democracy, Film, Government of India, Languages and linguistic heritage, Media portrayal, Misconceptions, Modernity, Press snippets, Storytelling | Comments Off

Conference on unrecognized languages: Bhasha Research Centre – Gujarat

The Indian Express, Vadodara, Thu Feb 18 2010 Come March, and the city’s linguistic diversity will increase manifold, though for a few days. [...] People speaking as many as 250 languages, which are not recognised by the Indian constitution, will … Continue reading

Posted in Government of India, Languages and linguistic heritage, Modernity, Names and communities, Networking, Organizations, Press snippets | Tagged | Comments Off

Memories of life in a remote Bhil hamlet on the Narmada river: “poor but not impoverished” – Maharashtra

Simple ways of life Yoginder Sikand, Dec 23, 2012 : Reflections It was almost three decades ago and I have only very hazy memories of the trip. We, a batch of university students, accompanied our Anthropology professor to a remote tribal … Continue reading

Posted in Anthropology, Assimilation, Commentary, Customs, De- and re-tribalisation, Dress and ornaments, Economy and development, Education and literacy, Government of India, Health and nutrition, History, Misconceptions, Modernity, Music and dance, Names and communities, Nature and wildlife, Press snippets, Worship and rituals | Tagged | Comments Off

Missing school in spite “very good laws” for child protection: Unicef – Meghalaya

By GARDINER HARRIS, nytimes.com, February 25, 2013 Slideshow >> “We have very good laws in this country,” said Vandhana Kandhari, a child protection specialist at Unicef. “It’s our implementation that’s the problem.” [...] Meghalaya lies in India’s isolated northeast, a stump … Continue reading

Posted in Accountability, Childhood and children, Economy and development, Education and literacy, Government of India, Organizations, Photos and slideshows, Press snippets, Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Rural poverty | Comments Off

Implementation of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act poses the biggest challenge for the education system of India – United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education

Dr. Kishore Singh, Foundation Day Lecture, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education, 5th March 2012 New Delhi [...] Monitoring the implementation of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, enacted by Parliament in August … Continue reading

Posted in Accountability, Childhood and children, Democracy, Economy and development, Education and literacy, Figures, census and other statistics, Government of India, Organizations, Quotes, Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Tagore and rural culture | Comments Off

Towards administrative mechanisms that meet the requirements of the Indian Constitution and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child – National Commission for Protection of Child Rights

The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) was set up in March 2007 under the Commission for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005, an Act of Parliament (December 2005). The Commission’s Mandate is to ensure that all Laws, … Continue reading

Posted in Accountability, Childhood and children, Government of India, Organizations, Quotes | Comments Off

Slideshow | Butterfly survey by the Ferns Naturalists Society in North Wayanad Forest Division – Kerala

View a slideshow in the online edition of The Hindu (Nov 1, 2011) >> Photo: courtesy The Hindu, KALPETTA, October 30, 2011 – The team reported 38 species of skippers, 14 species of blues, 15 species of swallow tails, 18 white and yellows, and … Continue reading

Posted in Ecology and environment, Education and literacy, Figures, census and other statistics, Government of India, Nature and wildlife, Organizations, Photos and slideshows, Press snippets, Western Ghats - tribal heritage & ecology | Comments Off

Tribal languages face extinction as “young people want to be part of the mainstream culture” – Uttarakhand

Tip: for more information on the work of the “Central Institute of Indian Languages” and “Bharat Bhasha Vikas Yojana” mentioned in this article, use Google custom search – Indian press coverage of tribal culture; click Search select periodicals >> Excerpts from The Telegraph, … Continue reading

Posted in Cultural heritage, Figures, census and other statistics, Globalization, Government of India, History, Languages and linguistic heritage, Maps, Modernity, Names and communities, Organizations, Photos and slideshows, Press snippets, Tagore and rural culture, Tribal elders | Tagged , | Comments Off

Consent from tribals no longer required by Govt. of India: handing forestlands over for projects that affect sacred places of worship

Nitin Sethi, Times Of India,  Feb 16, 2013, NEW DELHI: The government has diluted its stand on requiring consent from tribals before handing over their forestlands for projects in an affidavit filed before the Supreme Court on the Vedanta case. … Continue reading

Posted in Accountability, De- and re-tribalisation, Ecology and environment, Economy and development, Forest Rights Act (FRA), Government of India, Modernity, Nature and wildlife, Press snippets, Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Tribal identity, Worship and rituals | Comments Off

Slideshow | Saving the wildlife habitat and livelihood of indigenous population of the Niyamgiri Hills – Odisha (Orissa)

The Dongaria tribe along with other villagers of 150 villages of Rayagada district demonstrating before the Orissa State Assembly in 2005. Photo: Ashoke Chakrabarty courtesy The Hindu To view the entire slideshow published in The Hindu, Aug 24, 2010, click here >> … Continue reading

Posted in Democracy, Dress and ornaments, Forest Rights Act (FRA), Government of India, Media portrayal, Names and communities, Nature and wildlife, Networking, Photos and slideshows, Press snippets, Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Tribal identity, Women | Tagged | Comments Off

Alcohol and drug-awareness group, political leaders and women activists worried: Increased alcoholism in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh

What’s the price of the ‘right’ to alcohol? By Mari Marcel Thekaekara, New Internationalist, March 8, 2013 While successive governments have patted themselves on their backs, each claiming credit for our galloping economy, India refuses to talk about the enormous social costs to … Continue reading

Posted in Accountability, Childhood and children, Economy and development, Figures, census and other statistics, Government of India, Health and nutrition, Misconceptions, Modernity, Networking, Organizations, Press snippets, Rural poverty, Women | Comments Off

Forcing tribal peoples into the mainstream, exploitative ‘human safaris’ allowed to continue – Andaman Islands

Survival for tribal peoples, 5 March 2013 India’s Supreme Court today reportedly reversed its previous ‘interim order’ to ban ‘human safaris’ in the Andaman Islands, dealing a major blow to the campaign against the controversial tours. [...] Alarm bells also rang when … Continue reading

Posted in Accountability, Commentary, Customs, De- and re-tribalisation, Government of India, Media portrayal, Misconceptions, Names and communities, Organizations, Photos and slideshows, Quotes, Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Tourism, Tribal identity | Tagged | Comments Off

India’s Supreme Court orders a “no-go” zone: protecting the Jarawa people’s dignity and health – Andaman & Nicobar

Dhananjay Mahapatra, Times Of India,  Jan 22, 2013 Supreme Court bars entry of tourists in Jarawa tribe habitat NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday wanted to know from Andaman & Nicobar Island administration whether it intended to keep in isolation the … Continue reading

Posted in Accountability, De- and re-tribalisation, Forest Rights Act (FRA), Government of India, Health and nutrition, Media portrayal, Names and communities, Press snippets, Tourism | Tagged | Comments Off

The Status of Tribal Children in India: A historical perspective – UNICEF Working Paper Series Children of India

Brief excerpts from the IHD – UNICEF Working Paper Series, Children of India: Rights and Opportunities. Read the full report (PDF) >> By Virginius Xerox, Professor of Sociology, Delhi School of Economics, Delhi University 2. Status of Tribal Children  On the eve of Independence, … Continue reading

Posted in Accountability, Childhood and children, Democracy, Economy and development, Education and literacy, Figures, census and other statistics, Government of India, History, Misconceptions, Organizations, Quotes, Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Rural poverty | Comments Off

Locations of dialects, languages, and language families – Linguistic Survey of India map collection

The LL-MAP team is happy to announce the completion of the digital adaptation of the Linguistic Survey of India map collection. This important series of maps was a survey of the languages of British India, conducted in the first several decades of the 20th century … Continue reading

Posted in Colonial policies, Government of India, History, Languages and linguistic heritage, Maps, Networking, Organizations | Comments Off