Azaad आवाज़

FEBRUARY 2021

Tribal Communities in India: History, Culture and Identity

In This Issue

The Adivasis are one of the most marginalized groups in India. According to the 2011 census, the community constitutes 8.6% of the total Indian population, making them a minority group. They lead a traditional lifestyle that is intrinsically tied to the forest areas of India. The Adivasi community has historically been the subject of state-inflicted oppression, trapping them in a vicious cycle of poverty and violence. To understand the complexity of issues that the Scheduled Tribes are subject to, it is important to first understand who the Adivasis are, and the criteria which determine which tribes are considered as scheduled tribes and which ones are not.

Awaaz in Focus introduces one to the varied perspectives shared by those who are initiating grassroot level changes in and across different local communities in a region. The people interviewed vary from academic scholars to grassroot level activists and practitioners.

In this edition of Awaaz In Focus, we talk to Professor (Dr.) Samrat Sinha about navigating through the conflicts inflicted upon the tribal societies and ways to strategize peace-building and nation-building efforts in areas of conflict.

This month’s opinion piece explores the Development- Displacement Discourse in relation to the Tribal Community in India, and asserts that the Development Paradigm in place is predatory, almost parasitic, for it thrives upon the oppression, the continued impoverishment of the powerless, in order to not only acquire but accumulate communally held resources. It also examines the role of the State and the Judiciary in the continued oppression of tribal communities in the form of Development-Induced Displacement.

Talk Point is the segment of the Patrika wherein individuals are interviewed based upon their perception and understanding of a certain issue.

This month, Talk point features Adivasi Lives Matter a platform which works towards amplifying Adivasi and Tribal voices of India. ALM is an attempt to empower Adivasi youth to assert their identity through digital story-telling.

Vichaar is Azaad Awaaz’s podcast series that aims at engaging with experts and professionals to further the conversation on the marginalisation of communities.

This month’s podcasts feature Professor (Dr.) Sangeeta Dasgupta and Professor (Dr.) Saagar Tewari. They talk about the origins of Tribal History in India and how they are read and interpreted today.

About Azaad Awaaz

Our initiative Azaadआवाज़ aims to tackle an erosion of empathy in our society. This monthly magazine (Patrika) aims to focus on the marginalized sections whose voices are often muted in the cacophony of flashy mainstream media discourse. When referring to the marginalization, this platform does not aim to restrict itself to the traditional focus on social aggregates like caste and race alone but aspires to include a discussion on class, gender, sexual orientation etc.