This book presents an account of a primitive tribe practising food-gathering, hunting and shifting cultivation. It is among the first to describe such a tribe in an analytical frame of reference covering the first 25 years of India's independence. This study has an added significance, especially when the Government of India is giving more and more attention to the development of the tribal population of the country. It is a methodical analysis of not only the economic structure but also the social and ritual life of the tribe. The origin of the tribe has been described with its various clan names. Details of housing pattern, implements used for earning their livelihood, including fishing traps, bird traps, and weapons, etc. The description of the dress pattern of the tribe suggests that they have not been influenced by the more developed tribal population or the Hindu population.
The description of the life-cycle has been described by the help of case studies. Economically, the Hill Korwa mainly depend on the forest resources although they have been provided with agricultural lands in the mid-fifties of this century. One of the reasons for the economic backwardness of these people is the inferior quality of land and non-availability of irrigation facilities and lack of approach from extension officials to educate them about how to improve their agricultural productivity by using modern inputs. Considering the average size of the holdings of the family, it can be considered that if they are provided with proper guidance and financial assistance, they can improve their economic and social life significantly. Traders, moneylenders, distillery owners, and big landlords exploit the Hill Korwa because of their illiteracy and ignorance and nonexistence of financial institutions from where they could mobilise necessary funds on easy terms.
The study brings out some of the serious constraints which stand in the way of socio-economic development of the tribe such as lack of educational opportunities, lack of employment opportunities, and lack of transport and communication facilities, etc.
This work would have not seen the light of the day but for the encouragement shown by the Director General, Anthropo-logical Survey of India for an early publication. I express my gratitude to Dr. A.K. Danga, Director, Anthropological Survey of India, who provided me an opportunity to work among the Hill Korwa and has always been a perennial source of inspiration to me. Many other friends and colleagues helped me immensely the foremost among them was Prof. P.K. Mishra, North-Eastern Hill University, Shillong, Dr. A.K. Singh, Human Ecologist, Mr. M.N. Kaul, Statistician, Mr. Chandra Kant, who painstakingly typed the manuscript and Mr. Deshpande of Anthropological Survey of India. Dr. Francis Ekka, Central Institute of Indian Languages, Mysore was kind enough to put the services of Mr. Ingti, Cartographer, C.I.I.L., Mysore for preparing maps. Dr. Rajshekhar offered his valuable comments. In the last but not the least I express my gratitude to my wife Rizwana who spent many a sleepless night with me when this book was under preparation and enlightened me with her valuable comments. I am thankful to them all. It will be an act of thanklessness and ingratitude if I do not remember and thank my Hill Korwa friends.
Hindu (935)
Agriculture (118)
Ancient (1085)
Archaeology (754)
Architecture (563)
Art & Culture (910)
Biography (702)
Buddhist (544)
Cookery (167)
Emperor & Queen (565)
Islam (242)
Jainism (307)
Literary (896)
Mahatma Gandhi (372)
Send as free online greeting card
Email a Friend
Manage Wishlist