Adivasi - v55_No. 2

Abstract

This is the 55th Volume of ADIVASI. With this volume the bi annual research journal of the institute becomes 61 years old. Soon after the independence, the Institute took birth in 1952 named as Tribal Research Bureau (T.R.B.) and its research journal took birth in 1955 when its inaugural number saw the light of the day bearing the name "Orissa Tribes Research Journal". The First Editor and Assistant Editor were Shri Gananth Das, I. A. S. and Shri Ajit Kishore Ray, an Anthropologist of the institute. Thereafter, the journal has marched ahead for six decades and currently, it is considered as one of the oldest of its kind in our country. The Editors, the Editorial Board and the Scholars who laid its foundation on which present super-structure rests deserve our sincerest obligations. To keep a journal alive and to publish its numbers regularly are only possible with the goodwill of all concerned. Though we have every reason to be confident, we cannot afford to be complacent, for in spite of some achievement, much more remains to be done. We call upon our contributors, both actual and potential, to take note of the fact that though it might have been difficult to launch "Adivasi" upon its arduous course it is still more difficult to keep it on as a going concern. It will be possible to sustain the venture only with their continued support and interest which we solicit through these lines. In the editorial of the 33rd volume (No.1, March, 1993), Prof. K.K. Mohanti, Director of the institute wrote, "The journal which primarily devotes its attention to unraveling the society and culture of the Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Caste communities has assumed a crucial status in the context of development intervention in these communities during the post-independence period. If the journal would cater to the needs of the policy-makers, planners, development practitioners, evaluators and scholars, the purpose would be served. The Editor sincerely wishes to receive unstinted co-operation from all concerned to cherish a better academic status in this intellectual endeavour. As our country is determined to integrate the weaker sections of the communities in the national mainstream of culture the journal of this kind is bound to play an essential role in documenting the fading outlines of their rich cultures and in providing clues for future policy implications." The journal lives cherishing the fulfillment of these objectives. In the present issue of Adivasi (Vol. 55, No. 2, December 2015), we are presenting 09 empirical papers based on the rich experience and sincere efforts of eminent and emerging research scholars. The first paper contributed by Prof. Jagannath Dash and Dr. Laxman Kumar Sahoo discusses the "Cognitive Aspects of Indigenous Knowledge System: An Anthropological Study of the Bhunjias in Odisha" focusing on the Bhunjias who live in and around Sunabeda Wildlife Sanctuary located in Nuapada district of Odisha underscoring the fact that Bhunjia indigenous knowledge system has had a cognitive structure to conceptualize and perceive nature and culture at cognitive and empirical level. The second one titled "Ethno-Veterinary uses of Medicinal Plants: A Study among the Tribal Communities of Jajpur District of Odisha" comes from Dr. Kedarnath Dash. It presents the findings of an ethno-veterinary study carried out for documentation of 46 species of medicinal plants used by the tribal communities of Jajpur district for the treatment of various diseases and disorders of their livestock. It emphasizes that their traditional healers possess tremendous knowledge in preparing herbal formulation of medicinal plants and that traditional ethnoveterinary healthcare costs very low that helps the poor tribals. Considering the fact that the useful plant species and the dependent ethnomedicinal system is declining under the impact of deforestation and modernization, there emerges an urgent need for documentation of ethnoveterinary practices for the conservation of such precious indigenous knowledge before its extinction and for comprehensive analysis for validation of these plant preparations for veterinary treatment. The third paper i.e., "Family Life Cycle Mileposts and Associated Rituals among the Paudi-Bhuyans: An Empirical Study in West Odisha" is authored by Dr. Harapriya Samantaraya. This empirical paper gives an account of the traditional family life cycle mileposts and the associated rituals of the Paudi Bhuyans in order to understand such events and the associated beliefs and rituals and their social recognition. It describes how these events are laden with many cultural transactions and assume differential importance in renewing group solidarity mostly confined to their respective kin groups. It infers that these traditional events are ritualized in presence of the kin groups to renew the normative behavior. However, due to external influence including that of modernization the social solidarity of the tribe is weakening and there is a gradual erosion of ritual importance of family life cycle events. Next comes the analytical paper i.e. the fourth one titled "PVTG Habitat, Habitation and Habitat Rights: A Contextual Analysis" contributed by Dr. Mihir Kumar Jena, Dr. Padmini Pathi and Prof. (Dr.) A.B. Ota. It discusses important issues and concerns relating to the habitat rights of the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) in the context of the historical Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (FRA) in view of the ambiguities and gaps in understanding of the purview of habitat rights as enshrined in the Act. The authors have made an attempt to build a contextual logic on the broader understanding of the term 'habitat' and its implications on determining the habitat rights of the PVTGs. They have tried a cross-referencing to layout the purview and domain of an anthropological understanding of habitat and habitations for its applicability in determining habitat rights of PVTGs with the view that the term 'habitat' has a broader social, cultural, political, ecological and spiritual context and that the folklore and ethnographic accounts of PVTGs should be important instruments to be used while delineating the customary habitat and the concept of the ancestral domain may also appear relevant in this regard. The fifth paper on the documentation and analysis oral folk traditions of a fascinating tribe, Juang styled as "A Poetic Evaluation of Juang Riddles: Preservation of the Intangible Culture" is produced by Shri Ranjan Pradhan. According to the author, the Juang riddles being unique manifestations of their rich cultural heritage are always new and lively enriched with the element of competition, not enmity. There exists only love and friendship in their songs. The sixth paper named "SIDU-KANHU: The Santal Freedom Fighters" authored by Shyam Hembram narrates the historic event of the stiff resistance of the Santal tribe which they call "Santal Hul" against the tyranny, injustice and exploitation of the colonial rulers i.e., the East India Company and their agents under the captainship of youthful, dynamic and charismatic leaders known as Sidu Murmu and Kanhu Murmu of Jharkhand. They fought bravely and valiantly till the last man and laid down their lives forcing the rulers to change their policy for the tribals. "Shifting Cultivation : Looking for an Alternative in the case of the Lanjia Saora of Serango" is the seventh paper based upon empirical research contributed by Shri S.C. Mohanty. He has emphasized that this mode of cultivation that is said to cause environmental degradation is being resorted to by the hill folks i.e., mostly the tribals, dwelling in the interior mountainous and forest tracts, in India and elsewhere in the world where enough plain lands are not available for settled cultivation. It's continuation across generations since time immemorial has made it a way of life for them. Whatever may be the attachment of the tribals to this enterprise, the magnitude of damage caused by it to the environments and ecosystem don't justify its continuation. The search for a viable alternative is going on and experiments have been made and are being made. In this regard, he has cited the case of the Lanjia Saora of Serango in Gajapati district of Odisha. Dr. Padmini Pathi's paper titled "Biodiversity in Crops and Heritage Agriculture Systems of Koya" is the eighth paper reflecting upon the traditional agriculture of the Koya tribe of Malkangiri in a perspective of biodiversity in crops. It presents the unique and distinct aspects of Koya agriculture with precise documentation of traditional crop varieties, especially that of paddy varieties, those are still preserved by the community through ages. It argues that there are elements in Koya agriculture that set standards for being considered for documentation under Tribal Heritage Agriculture Systems. The ninth paper named "Indigenous Knowledge and Medicinal Practices among the Santals of Dhenkisal Hamlet of Kalinganagar, Jajpur District, Odisha" has been contributed by Ms. Gulsan Khatoon, a young Anthropologist. It presents the empirical study findings reflecting the indigenous healing system of the Santal tribe, by the exploration of different indigenous methods of diagnosis and treatment of diseases, identification of specific plants used in medicine and cure of diseases, emphasizing to document their perception of illness and disease by probing through their system of disease classification. I sincerely thank the contributors of articles to this issue of the Adivasi. At the same time, I thank the colleagues and staff of the Institute for their ungrudging help and cooperation in bringing out the volume. My sincere and heartfelt thanks are due to Shri S.C. Mohanty, OSD(Research) and the Associate Editor of Adivasi who, like the previous years, has worked hard for bringing out this volume. Without his dedicated efforts, this issue would not have seen the light of the day. We shall be happy if these papers cater to the need of its esteemed readers with their varied interests in ethnic groups and several aspects of their society, culture, and development. I earnestly request all our readers to enlighten us with their valuable suggestions for bringing further improvements to this age-old research journal.