Where we work
Background across India
The indigenous Adivasis of India hold a unique place in the country's diverse culture. As original inhabitants, they have long been custodians of ancestral lands and traditional ways. However, they have faced marginalization, displacement, and exploitation by colonizers, settlers, and dominant groups.
Adivasis constitute 8.6% of India's population, over 104 million. They face higher rates of infant/maternal mortality, malnutrition, and inadequate healthcare access. Education and literacy rates lag the national averages. Many live in poverty, relying on subsistence agriculture, forestry, and traditional occupations.
The marginalization of Adivasis is rooted in colonial legacy and discriminatory practices. They have been pushed off ancestral lands, with their way of life eroded. The 2006 Forest Rights Act has been ineffectively implemented, denying Adivasi claims. Their languages and cultural practices have faced systematic suppression.
Restoring Adivasi centrality requires addressing social, economic, and political challenges. The government should formally apologize, grant autonomy over resources, recognize Adivasi languages, and develop "Rights of Mother Earth" legislation in collaboration with communities.
Adivasis constitute 8.6% of India's population, over 104 million. They face higher rates of infant/maternal mortality, malnutrition, and inadequate healthcare access. Education and literacy rates lag the national averages. Many live in poverty, relying on subsistence agriculture, forestry, and traditional occupations.
The marginalization of Adivasis is rooted in colonial legacy and discriminatory practices. They have been pushed off ancestral lands, with their way of life eroded. The 2006 Forest Rights Act has been ineffectively implemented, denying Adivasi claims. Their languages and cultural practices have faced systematic suppression.
Restoring Adivasi centrality requires addressing social, economic, and political challenges. The government should formally apologize, grant autonomy over resources, recognize Adivasi languages, and develop "Rights of Mother Earth" legislation in collaboration with communities.
Background across Karnataka
Around 1.2 lakh families, 6 lakh population of forest-dwelling tribes in Karnataka and Jharkhand - Malekudiya, Jenu Kuruba, Betta Kuruba, and others - remain deprived of livelihood rights under the Forest Rights Act (FRA). Over 15 years since the Act, less than 10% have secured individual land rights, even less for community forest rights. Across India, the affected population inhabits 153 Lok Sabha constituencies.
In Karnataka, only 5.17% of individual forest rights claims were recognized, the highest rejection rate among surveyed states. Where recognized, the average land allocated is 0.8 acres, too small for livelihood. Community rights were inadequately focused on, with committees lacking capacity even after 15 years.
The situation has resulted in biodiversity loss from forest replacement by plantations, depletion of tribal livelihood resources, identity loss, and state assaults on tribal constitutional rights. The Forest Department has strategically declared critical tiger habitats in traditional tribal areas, evicting tribes. Tribes are forced into low-wage work, and their culture, language, and values face threats from mainstream influences.
Strengthening grassroots democracy, capacity-building, advocacy, and cultural rejuvenation through Gram Sabhas are crucial to empower indigenous forest-dwelling communities.
In Karnataka, only 5.17% of individual forest rights claims were recognized, the highest rejection rate among surveyed states. Where recognized, the average land allocated is 0.8 acres, too small for livelihood. Community rights were inadequately focused on, with committees lacking capacity even after 15 years.
The situation has resulted in biodiversity loss from forest replacement by plantations, depletion of tribal livelihood resources, identity loss, and state assaults on tribal constitutional rights. The Forest Department has strategically declared critical tiger habitats in traditional tribal areas, evicting tribes. Tribes are forced into low-wage work, and their culture, language, and values face threats from mainstream influences.
Strengthening grassroots democracy, capacity-building, advocacy, and cultural rejuvenation through Gram Sabhas are crucial to empower indigenous forest-dwelling communities.