tribals say no tourism

8/10/2019 Tribals Say No Tourism

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Tribals say no tourism

A scenic tribal village beside the Narmada river, in Gujarats Narmada district, has erupted in protests.

Tribals from 70 villages around the Sardar Sarovar dam in evadi!a colon! have been agitating in"ndravarna village against the governments move to ac#uire their land for tourism. $%et them first

rehabilitate our &in from si' villages, including evadi!a, (ho (ere evicted four decades ago,) the! sa!.

The evadi!a *evelopment Authorit! +A*A is set to ac#uire 70 villages around the dam, - of (hich

lie in densel! forested areas. /lans are on the anvil to develop the area for (orld class tourism (ithhotels, a golf course, camping grounds and tre&&ing trails, among other infrastructure.

The Statue of 1nit!, a 273foot statue of Sardar /atel, is proposed to be built on Sadhu Te&ri, a hilloc& 4.-

&m from the dam. 5illed to be the (orlds tallest statue, it is slated to be a major attraction. The project

also includes a garden, museum, research institutes and so on.

The statue (ill be built under the Sardar 6allabhbhai /atel ashtri!a 8&ta Trust (hich has given themammoth project to a consortium of Turner 9onstruction under a ///. The statue (ill ta&e 2: months to

be completed and (ill cost ;-,0:4 crore. The Gujarat government has allocated s ur ancestors are buried on these sacred lands.) And the (omen cr!

out, )?o( can (e tolerate the destruction of @a Narmada and the trees, our gods) The tribals are upset asthe statue (ill be located on a hilloc& that the! regard as sacred.

Garudesh(ar =eir,


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The pancha!ats (ant development under the /ancha!at Act and not under the To(n /lanning Act. The!

do not (ant to give up their traditional livelihoods of farming and fishing to get the urban tag, sa!s %a&han@usafir, a member of the A*A 6irodhi Samiti. 5hailalbhai Tadvi, sarpanch, e'horted the people, )=ith

one voice (e proclaim on ?iraji Te&ri on Gandhi Ca!anti *a!, that (e shall not be#ueath our fertile lands

for hotels. =e dont (ant our children to become slaves on their o(n lands.)

@edha /at&ar of the Narmada 5achao Andolan +N5A, (ho has (or&ed in these areas, sa!s, $s -,0:4crore allocated for the Sardar statue is more than the rehabilitation pac&age for -20 villages +submerged b!

the Narmada dam and a to(nship.) She points out that attempts to urbanise forest3d(elling communities

(ithout sensitive socio3economic and ecological planning could have adverse impacts. "nstalling a

mammoth statue in a densel! forested area (ould affect do(nstream villages.

Boisting urbanisation and tourism in a primaril! rural and tribal area has its o(n share of problems.

*omestic tourism is age3old in the Narmada area, as this is the onl! river in the countr! (here pilgrims

perform pari&rama through the !ear. There are man! ancient temples along the river, sa!s ajni *ave,

editor of 5humiputra (ho has lived on the ban&s of the river for man! !ears. $?o(ever, (e have noticedthat man! people are no( encroaching on these temples. " have also heard of rampant land3grab during the

past


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Maroon Migratesdevelops innovative responsible tourism experiences in the Indian

state of Gujarat. For the first of our new style Spotlight, eremy Smith spea!s to the

company"s founder, #ischal $arot, about how the company"s approach to

responsible tourism and the lessons he has learned along the way.

#hat inspired you to create your business$

My hometo%n is the source o& my Inspiration' I am &rom

the(armada)istrict o& *u+arat' eturning home a&ter my Masters in -nvironmental

Science, I %as ta.en abac. by the degradation o& the region/s natural resources' The

area %as being totally discriminated against and under tremendous pressure to

modernise' I started visiting &orest villages and meeting %ith local community

members to%ards developing ecotourism in the (armada district'
http://blog.wtmresponsibletourism.com/?p=1261&preview=truehttp://www.narmada.org/http://blog.wtmresponsibletourism.com/?p=1261&preview=truehttp://www.narmada.org/


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o% does being responsible help your business attract potential customers$

Mostly, tourists are attracted to the places %here %e operate

and to the %ay %e %or.' lthough %e tal. about responsible tourism in our

mar.eting, %e don/t state directly #e practice responsible tourism/' ather %e

describe the area, its activities, and ho% the communities are involved'

o% do you engage guests in your responsible tourism activities$

3ur products engage tourists directly in

responsible tourism' or our latest programme 5 !ive *()I &or a #hile5 %e

enable tourists to live, %or., act and dress li.e *andhi, all %hile staying in the6ochrab shram %hich he established'

Through this product, our goal is to promote simple and sustainable li&estyle' #e

give people the opportunity to observe alternatives in li&e %hich might change their

perceptions 5 they might &ind themselves during the tour' 3ther%ise it is not that

simple to understand the simple message o& Mahatma *andhi The earth has

enough &or everyone/s need but not &or everyone/s greed/'

#ithout engaging directly %ith tourists about %hy %e operate the %ay %e do, %e see

the impact directly 5 people s%itch o&& their music to listen to the peace o& the +ungle'They start recognising birds and plants' They reuest the recipe &or local &ood' Ma.e
http://blog.wtmresponsibletourism.com/2014/03/tourism-storytelling-responsible-travel/http://blog.wtmresponsibletourism.com/2014/03/tourism-storytelling-responsible-travel/http://www.maroonmigrates.com/#/gandhijihttp://blog.wtmresponsibletourism.com/2014/03/tourism-storytelling-responsible-travel/http://blog.wtmresponsibletourism.com/2014/03/tourism-storytelling-responsible-travel/http://www.maroonmigrates.com/#/gandhiji


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&riends %ith the local people' #e connect the tourists directly to %hat is happening

on the ground' nd believe me, it %or.s'

#hat is the responsible tourism initiative o& %hich you are most proud$

This is a di&&icult uestion, as I have

al%ays put my heart into any part o& our %or.' 8ut i& I have to choose, I %ould say,

bac. in 2009, %hen %e had +ust started, I introduced a Tribal 8oat Sa&ari' The

(armada district o& *u+arat state holds the largest dam in India, the Sardar Sarovar

)am, and another that has submerged huge &orest area o& the Shoolpanesh%ar

#ildli&e Sanctuary, .no%n as 6ar+an )am' Those living do%nstream are very %ealthydue to the irrigation but those upstream have been totally discriminated against'

Some o& the tribal villages %ere barely surviving, using their o%n, handmade, boat

&or &ishing' I trans&ormed their &ishing boat into the Tribal 8oat Sa&ari' (o% many

tourists visit them at %ee.ends and &estivals' The locals have learned to provide

hospitality, manage their needs, and earn more than their average daily income 5

that is more than enough &or me'

#hat positive impacts does your business have on the local community environment$

!ocals, %ho %ere shy tal.ing to the tourists, no% deal %ith

groups o& tourists %ithout our involvement' They have learned to use tourism as a

tool' They have realised that the &orest;surrounding them is the


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#hat has been biggest challenge you have &aced$

#hen I started tourism in the Shoolpanesh%ar #ildli&e Sanctuary, I %as con&ident

that I could connect people in urban areas %ith the local tribal community' 8ut Iunderestimated the reuirements &or operating in a remote area %ith no telephone

net%or.' >ou cannot contact the locals &rom the outside %orld and you cannot

connect tourists %hen on site' 8ut %e learned to ma.e plans, design schedules &or

tours and &i?ed meeting points, and ensure %e had the euipment reuired &or any

emergency'

#hat advice %ould you give to any entrepreneur starting a responsible tourism business$

*o %ith your instincts and be patient' )on/t plan on the basis o&

%hat is in demand$/ but rather %hat demand can my pro+ect generate$/ ealise

money is not everything in the %orld/ and ta.e +oy in your %or. bringing positive

change to a &e% lives &orever'

Dangs DarbarIn Satpura Hills and at the Ahwa region of Dang district of Gujarat, Dangs Darbar is organized.

Many isitors and een thousands of tribal inhabitants co!e to Dangs Darbar in order to attend


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the festial. "ot only the national people but seeral international isitors !a#e plan for Gujarat so

that they can celebrate this eent. $herefore one should not !iss the opportunity and attend this

festial. Arrials can een see different types of tribal co!!unities li#e %unbhis, &hils, Ga!its and

'arlis. $he people of all tribal co!!unities are dressed up in their traditional attires.

Traditions

Dangs Darbar is the na!e for annual fair that is held in Ahwa region of Gujarat eery year. $his

fair is celebrated before Holi especially by the tribal people of Gujarat state. $he na!e Darbar was

used during &ritish rule when a Darbar of "ai#s and (ajas were used to asse!ble there. )en the

tradition of heads and rulers are honored by the Dangs Darbar. $his tradition continues still in

!any tribal do!inated districts. $he for!er "ai#s and (ajas are still accorded status. In the !onth

of March to April before Holi this Dangs Darbar ta#es place. It is found that during Dangs Darbarthousands of tribal people fro! arious districts of Gujarat gather up and floc# to region of Ahwa.

$hey are dressed in beautiful and colorful liely costu!es along with e*+uisite siler jewellery.

)en in the procession the dru!s !oe!ents and shennai sounds both are acco!panied.

Tourists Essential

Dangs is a district of Gujarat that is located near Satpura hills and also it adjoins the Maharashtra

border. $his Dangs is een ho!e of adhiasis who lie in highlands and forest. $hey !aintain their

lielihood fro! forest products such as honey, ti!ber, wa* and lac. $hese tribal people celebrate

this dangs Darbar with great po!p and show. $ourists isiting this region will co!e across the

traditional custo!s of the tribal people. Also in this festial the people perfor! fol# dances and

sing arious songs. $his festial is acco!panied by !any !usical instru!ents along with arious

other cultural actiities such as garba perfor!ances, ras dances, dra!as and songs. .

Things to Do

Dangs Darbar is the !ost stupendous festial that can be enjoyed a lot by the arrials. During this

festial all tribal !en wore lion clothes with a colored turban and waistcoat whereas wo!en are

seen in blouses and sarees along with heay e*+uisite siler jewellery. $here are lots of things that

can be done during Dangs Darbar. $his festial is acco!panied by the tribal dance that is

spectacular to watch. $he perfor!ers !oe in concentric circles by holding each other fro! waist.

$hey dance on beat of wind instru!ents and also on of percussions. In this district !any !usical

instru!ents are typical.

$ourists isiting this illage can enjoy at the Dangs Darbar and een can spend their acations at

the nearby cities such as Surat and Da!an. Surat is a busy co!!ercial region with great historical

releance. Arrials can also trael at Da!an that is -#!s far and consists of seeral well #nown

attraction points. Sajan also lies ne*t to this region and it is a fa!ous place of Gujarat. $his Sajan

region is considered as a place where /arsis first landed in India. $raelers can een isit Mu!bai

just by traeling few !ore hours when isiting this region.

How to Reach


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$his Dangs Darbar festial is celebrated by tribal people liing in Ahwa region and at Satpura Hills.

0ne can easily reach this region as it is well connected with roads and railways. $he nearest city

situated to Ahwa region is Surat that is 11#!s far. Many roads are lin#ed with this city and one

can isit this illage of without any issue. )en goern!ent has proided arious local, regular and

state buses that ru! all day and proides econo!ic transportations. $ourists can land at Surat

railway station or airport and fro! there can hire cabs, jeeps and ta*is that sere safe and sound

roads routes.

)arly !an in Gujarat probably roa!ed about at will along the

rier alleys with the adent of Aryan tribes with their superior

stri#ing power. $he tribes that we find today hae probably

descended fro! the!.

$he i!portant tribes present today are &hil, 2haran, Dhan#a,

Dhodia, Dubla, &harwad, Ga!ti, %ali, %olcha, /arashi, (abari,

Siddi, 3asaa, 3agari and 'ari etc.

$ribal life in Gujarat reeals two distinct patterns of life. /urely

pri!itie age, which lie in the !ountain region and secondly,

acculturate co!!unities, those who lie in the plain region.

$he Dangs district is a short drie fro! &ulsar as well as Surat.

$he Dangs is forest area where the Adiasi tribal co!!unity

lies. 'aghai to Saputara, a distance of thirty two !iles, the

rier A!bica playing hide and see# alongside, one beco!e

aware of aweso!e bounty of nature eerywhere.

$ribal art is not aesthetic but !ainly utilitarian, apart fro!satisfying a deep4rooted want, art has helped to integrate the

people and enrich their life. $he artistic actiities are !ainly

/lastic and graphic art, Music and dance and 0ral literature

/erhaps the oldest for! of art in which pri!itie !an first

e*pressed hi!self is dra!atic art. 0ccasion li#e !arriages and

festial li#e Holi proide the! opportunities or the deelop!ent

and e*pression of dra!atic talent a!ong tribal people of

Gujarat. During Holi festial, their dra!atic groups isit nearby

towns and gie perfor!ance.


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During Holi festial Dongi tribal hae their 5$he Annual 6estial

of 6ance5 and song, which is #nown as Dang Darbar, iscelebrated during Holi festial.

Adorn!ent of the body is ery popular in which the artistic

i!pulse of the tribal people has found e*pression. In wor# of

clay, wood and stone i!portant aspect in which their artistic

talent can be felt.

Rathana Tribe

Most of the! are found in 2hotta 7daipur talu#a of &aroda district and

/ancha!ahal district. $he history of (athawa tribals says they are !igrated fro!central India.

Dhanka Tribe

$hey are !ainly found in &aroda, &haruch and Surat district. $hey wor# as

agriculturist and agriculture labors. 'orship Hindu God and Goddess.

?ealth care of Tribals.

To ensure better outreach, Gujarat plans to set up


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countr!, Gujarat has embar&ed upon a strateg! to engage the services of 9onsultants (illing

to provide specialiEed

medical care in 9ommunit! ?ealth 9entres under 9@ S8T1, a fle'ible and innovative ne(

scheme. =e also plan to

spend an amount of ; F:< crore for strengthening the e'isting and ne(l! established @edical

9olleges to increase

availabilit! of trained medical persons.

G1"*8%"N8S B> "N9>@8 AN* S"%% TA"N"NG />C89TS "N T?8 T"5A%

A8AS >B G1CAAT

N

"ndia has the largest concentration of Scheduled Tribe people an!(here in the

(orld e'cept perhaps in Africa. The tribals are children of nature and their lifest!le

is conditioned b! the 8co3s!stem. "ndia, (ith a variet! of ecos!stems, presents a

varied Scheduled Tribe population throughout its length and breadth. The State of

Gujarat comprises of a total of


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approvals are re#uired for the same. Gujarat /attern funds mainl! meant to provide

for missing lin&s, economic development and infrastructure in tribal areas. -0J

funds &ept at State level for inter districts projects. The current !ears provision for

the same is s. -442 crore +


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Economic Development

)ouble the income o& all tribal &amilies@ provide migrant tribal &amilies %ith opportunities &or s.ill development and

civic amenities@ mainstream all =rimitive Tribal *roups@ and provide each tribal village %ith basic &acilities such as

roads, bus stand and energy net%or.'

IndustrialiAation and economic gro%th has been proli&erating in *u+arat at a rapid pace' 3ver a &i&th o& the nation/s

industrial investment lies in *u+arat and the state has B0C o& the share capital mar.et and 24C o& &und &lo% &rom

&inancial institutions' (ature has also been generous and has besto%ed abundant resources in the tribal regions'

lthough eastern *u+arat has &avourable agro;climatic conditions, it has not been able to generate %ealth' or

this situation to change there is a need &or a multi;sectoral response that goes &ar beyond the mere provision o&

uality agricultural inputs and &acilities' In aiming to respond to the poverty challenge o& tribal areas o& eastern

*u+arat, the role o& the private sector cannot be undermined' It is the private sector %hich has been .no%n to

lead the process o& economic gro%th %ith its entrepreneurship, use o& modern technology and creation o& s.illed

+obs' or agriculture and &arm;based activities, %hich is the mainstay in the tribal regions, the private sector can

&orm the bedroc. &or their e?pansion and value addition'

loo. at the country/s development strategy over the years sho%s that the private sector has not only been

neglected but that it has also had to &ace entry barriers &or participation' In a paradigm shi&t, the Ten =oint

=rogramme %ill see. to encourage a vibrant private sector involvement &or poverty removal and creation o& a

bottom;up gro%th process'

Value Addition to Natural Resources

=reliminary studies in the IT)= talu.as have indicated that the eastern &ringe o& the state is amenable &or small to

medium siAed ventures by the private sector' =rivate players can easily underta.e pro+ects related to horticulture,

agriculture, processing and agro services' They can play a crucial role in lin.ing production, processing and

mar.eting'

The upland areas are particularly suitable &or success&ul horticulture, and agricultural activities are already strong

in the region' Simple steps such as better land preparation, choice o& better seeds, treatment o& seeds, better

nutrient management and basic mechaniAation can yield good results' Dalue addition to the produce then calls

&or introduction o& sophisticated post;harvest technologies li.e cold storage and agro;&ood processing &or bringing

prosperity to the tribal communities' or e?ample, a land;based pro+ect covering appro?imately hal& a talu.a and

bene&iting about 2000 belo% poverty line &amilies can provide enough produce &or setting up a medium;siAed

processing unit' -very such pro+ect is e?pected to result in value addition o& about s' 20 crore annually'

Creating an Enabling Environment

It has been a universal &inding that returns on assets created in tribal areas have remained hal& o& %hat has been

achieved in non;tribal areas' 3ne reason &or the lo% per&ormance o& assets is that they do not al%ays address

the needs and opportunities in these areas' In order to get higher returns, it is necessary to prioritiAe asset

creation on the basis o& commercial reuirements' The private sector, in addition to its o%n competitiveness and

e&&iciency, needs an enabling environment to &lourish' In&rastructure, access to resources and support services

help attract private investment and this investment in turn provides a boost to the local economy'

Inter;sectoral coordination %ill there&ore underpin all initiatives under the Ten =oint =rogramme' "onvergence o&

resources and e?pertise o& all )epartments %ill be ensured so that all e&&orts lead to a common goal' -?isting


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schemes and programmes %ill be bundled together in such a manner that the resources meaning&ully address

the livelihood needs o& tribal &amilies' s an illustration, the dove;tailing o& schemes o& the Irrigation, griculture

and -nergy )epartments %ill not only help harness the irrigation potential o& the area in a systematic manner, but

the accompanying availability o& %ater;saving technologies and electricity %ill lead to sustainable and desired

outcomes'

Tourism

The tribal hinterland is an inviting tourist destination %ith its picturesue &orest;clad hills, cultural niches and

temples' "atering and tourism;oriented s.ill training %ith the involvement o& ma+or hospitality groups and training

institutions can help pro&essionaliAe the tourism industry in these parts' Tourism;related businesses has the

potential to generate employment &or about 1000 tribal households, and the training programmes can reach out

to about 10,000 tribal youth'

tribals say no tourism

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