A tribe in the Western Ghats in need of a lifeline
The HinduIn Karnataka’s section of the Western Ghats, lies Makuta village, under Betoli gram panchayat of Virajpet taluka in Kodagu district. In 2021, with the help of two local people including a Muslim gram panchayat member, all the 19 Yerava households here were able to successfully claim their ‘land’ in the forest, under the Forest Rights Act. When this writer-researcher visited them to understand their socio-economic status after the implementation of the Forest Rights Act, almost the entire community was found to be in an intoxicated state due to alcohol abuse. Given this development, important documents such as ration cards, Aadhar cards, voter identity cards, or even government documents such as rights given under the Forest Rights Act have to be kept in the safe custody of trustworthy non-tribal members. In another habitation in Nerugalale gram panchayat in Somwarpet taluka in the same district, a headman of the ‘Yarava’ tribe expressed sadness that a number of his relatives had lost their lives due to addiction.
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From flowers, fruits, yam and honey, Odisha's forest-dwelling tribal communities survive on nature as many struggle for one meal during COVID-19 lockdown
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