Indian Indigenous Practices

"In the name of progress, now

There are to be four and six-lane roads.

But those laboring away on concrete and asphalt

Are unaware. They know not

How many more free lanes of deceit

Run through the forests of Saranda."

• Excerpt from The Six-Lane Freeway Of Deceit by Indian poet Jacinta Kerketta “who saw glimpses of the fight over land and natural resources up close while growing up”

The term "indigenous" refers to the original inhabitants of a nation who have been living there before colonization or migration by another ethnic group. In India, the Adivasi communities are considered to be indigenous to the land since they have been living here prior to the Dravidians and Indo-Aryans. There are around 500 Adivasi groups in India. The biggest group, the Gonds, are about 7.4 million in number, followed by the Santhals with a population of 4.2 million. 12.6 out of the Indian population of 140.7 crores are Adivasis. 

These indigenous people have always harbored deep respect for the land and have lived in harmony with nature. However, time and again, their existence has been criminalized by the Forest Department, treating them as intruders and trespassers. Their unique ways of farming are considered to be primitive, even though they are sustainable and organic. Their lifestyles which are mainly based on hunting and gathering are falsely thought to be detrimental to the environment, even though they carry it out in an eco-conscious way. In this way, the rhetoric of the time shifts the blame of climate change from the big corporations who are solely responsible for it to the innocent indigenous individuals. 

The crisis of climate change has shaken the ecology to the core. Climate catastrophes like forest fires, floods and droughts affect the indigenous people the most since they are directly associated with the land. Deforestation in order to make way for big corporate projects lead to the loss of livelihoods for the indigenous people of the land. While the privileged classes can afford to move elsewhere and delay the effects of climate change on their own lives, indigenous people are intrinsically bound to the land and they lack the financial capital to shift location to escape climate catastrophes. Therefore, they are the most vulnerable to the inevitable catastrophes caused by climate change. 

In India, about 105 million forest-dwelling Adivasi communities are resisting the encroaching hands of capitalism and protecting their environment at all costs. Several indigenous climate activists are fighting tooth and nail to save the land and the natural resources. 

The Adivasi people have led several climate justice movements like the Chipko Movement, the Silent Valley protests and the Niyamgiri struggle resisting rapid and reckless industrialization and advocating for land and forest rights for indigenous people. 

In 2019, the Government axed 1500 trees in one day in the Aarey forests in the northern suburbs of Mumbai. This resulted in huge protests by the inhabitants of the land and one of the protesters was Adivasi climate activist Prakash Bhoir. He and the Warli Adivasis have always tried to safeguard the Aarey forests from the onslaught of several Government development projects. 

Women activists like CK Janu and Sukalo Gond have spoken out regarding forest and land rights for the forest-dwelling Adivasi groups in order for them to carry out their livelihoods. Their activism was instrumental in the recognition of the rights of indigenous people in the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006.

From Jadav Payeng or the "Forest Man of India", in Assam, to Ashish Birulee, a photojournalist and activist belonging to the Ho Adivasi community, the indigenous people of India are far more aware and conscious of the crisis of climate change and the imminent ecological collapse than the capitalist corporations or the ones in power. Their fight for "Jal, Jungle, Zameen" (water, forest and land) continues as they realize that it is the corporations who must be held accountable for the ongoing climate crisis.

The indigenous people of India can teach us quite a lot about preserving the environment and living in a sustainable way. The bond between Adivasis and nature is one where they love and respect the earth as their "mother" and worship the land. Their deep regard for the environment makes sure that no one is allowed to exploit the land. The relationship between nature and man is one of mutual understanding and symbiosis. The indigenous people take only what they need from the land and try to give back by nurturing the land as much as they can. Since Adivasi people lead a self-sufficient life, they follow traditional farming methods which are eco-friendly, sustainable and have been proven to be successful in the long run. They do not use harmful chemical fertilizers and save seeds from previous harvest seasons to reuse and utilize in the next season. They gather food from the forest and rarely use food packaged in plastic that are readily available in the urban areas. Therefore, they are not harming the environment by choking it with plastic waste. Their ancestral modes of plant-based medicines which are effective and eco-friendly, do not disrupt or destroy the environment like the corporate pharmaceutical companies who produce large quantities of hazardous waste. The entire lifestyles of the indigenous people are centered on nature, right from using sal leaves as plates to using bamboo furniture and eco-friendly plant-based products in their daily lives. Natural elements are personified as divine figures and children are taught to love, respect and worship nature and the land.

Adivasi people are often misunderstood as being "primitive" while, in fact, they are much ahead of their times than us. By living a sustainable, respectful and eco-conscious lifestyle, they are protecting nature and natural resources. Instead of criminalizing and vilifying them, they should be lauded for their empathetic and sustainable ways of living. They must be respected as climate-change warriors fighting on the frontlines. We must all be encouraged to learn from them and emulate their lifestyles and habits in order to live on the land and not live off it.