Being Adivasi: Existence, Entitlements, Exclusion

by Abhay Flavian Xaxa (Editor), G.N. Devy (Editor)

The Adivasis form nearly 8 per cent of the Indian population and live in most states. Despite being one of the oldest constituents of the Indian population, barring a few states in the North-east, they are in a minority in the rest. Persistent problems faced by them-like land alienation, indebtedness, vanishing minor forest products from government forests and displacement from their ancestral lands-have led to their impoverishment. The Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA) and the Forest Rights Act (FRA), enacted by the previous governments, were decisive steps towards the empowerment of the Adivasis.
However, at present, the implementation of these provisions has taken a back seat. The seventh volume of the Rethinking India series, in collaboration with the Samruddha Bharat Foundation, presents the views of the Adivasis and the Denotified communities on the process of development and its clash with their rights.
This volume brings together the discussion of several issues from the Adivasi perspective, which is quite different from what is done in anthropology and ethnography.

Genres: Nonfiction, India, Politics

208 pages, Hardcover

Published November 1, 2021

Reviews

[Rick Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

1. What is it?

A Work on Adivasi; Huh, What is that?

Adivasi in Tamil means, first came dwelling.

In Western jargon; Native Americans, Aboriginals.

85 million Indians are classified as Scheduled Tribes.

2. So, Why read this?

If you want to know about people, who are different than you.

If you are interested in
Anthropology,
Policies,
India,
Politics,
Native People.

3. What else?

Perhaps; Indians are a collection of Tribes, use any name to describe your Tribe?

Tribe i.e Caste.

Tamil Nadu is endogamous for most parts.

Endogamous, meaning, people make sure, they do not marry from another tribe or caste.

In Tamil Nadu, if you choose to marry from another tribe or caste.

Be prepared to get burnt alive or face wrath of older men,

Here's some data:

a. Tamil Couple Hacked to Death

b. Tamil Groom Murder

c. Tamil Mother Burns Daughter for marrying a lower caste

So, Adivasis will remain Adivasis. It's less likely to change.

4. What's inside it?

Essays from various writers

Outline:
Safeguarding and Deepening the Promise of India for Adivasis
Tribal Development in Fifth Schedule Areas: Affirmative Action or Unequal Exchange?
Tribal Heritage and People’s Rights
The Question of Integration
Class Struggle and the Future of Adivasi Politics
Lessons from the Institution of ‘Indigenous Self-Governance’
Silent Voices, Distant Dreams: India’s Denotified Tribes
Speak Up a Revolution
Indigenous Republic (Indigenocracy)
How Not to Manage ‘Tribal Affairs’
The Life and Legacy of Abhay Xaxa


5. What is your favorite part?

I like the poetry,

I am not your data, nor am I your vote bank,
I am not your project or any exotic museum object,
I am not the soul waiting to be harvested,
nor am I the lab where your theories are tested,
I am not your cannon fodder or the invisible worker,
or your entertainment at India Habitat Centre,
I am not your field, your crowd, your history,
your help, your guilt, medallions of your victory,
I refuse, reject, resist your labels,
your judgments, documents, definitions,
your models, leaders and patrons,
because they deny me my existence, my vision, my space, your words, maps, figures, indicators,
they all create illusions and put you on a pedestal,
from where you look down upon me.
So I draw my own picture, and invent my own grammar,
I make my own tools to fight my own battle,
For me, my people, my world and my Adivasi self!

Abhay Flavian Xaxa*



Deus Vult,
Gottfried