Over 46% of state tribals face economic hardship: Survey

Time of India

28-05-2025

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Ranchi: The indigenous communities of Jharkhand continue to face economic distress, with widespread migration, shrinking traditional livelihoods, and patchy access to govt welfare despite promises and policy formlations by successive govts.
These issues were reported in the 'Indigenous Navigator Community Survey Report-2023', conducted by a think tank, Indigenous Navigator, and hosted by the Women and Gender Research Centre (WGRC) on Wednesday.
The survey was conducted on Santhal, Ho, Munda, Oraon, and Kharia communities of 27 villages across Gumla, Simdega, Saraikela-Kharsawan, West Singhbhum, and Khunti districts.
Economic and social security remain severely compromised, with over 46% of surveyed individuals living below the poverty line, and only half of the communities having access to social protection schemes such as pensions, maternity benefits, or food security entitlements, the study revealed.
Migration is widespread, with 42.3% of young men and nearly 50% of young women, aged 15 to 24 years, leave their homes in search of work.
A santhali representative from Gamharia, Seema Besra, said, "We are forced to migrate due to lack of job opportunities in our villages. There are no jobs and no training imparted to upgrade our skills, but only empty election promise."
Only 8% of communities having full legal recognition over their ancestral lands and 81% reporting ongoing land conflicts, the study revealed.
Mere formation of a separate state does not guarantee justice. "Even after 25 years of Jharkhand's creation, protective laws exist more in principle than in practice. The exploitation of indigenous communities continues," said Virginius Xaxa, an expert.
Other issues included education gaps, with 88% reporting that tribal languages and histories are absent from school curricula, lack of access to govt and media, with 77% saying there is no tribal language content on state-run platforms, and limited awareness of legal rights, with over 65% lacking access to legal aid.
WGRC representative Bineet Mundu stressed upon the need to implement development policies that are locally rooted and community-driven. "State interventions must go beyond tokenism. What indigenous communities need is dignified access to land, education, and economic opportunity, designed with their direct participation," he said.
Another WGRC representative Elina spoke about the need for ground-level implementation of the PESA Act, secure land tenure, vocational training, and community-based development models.
The consultation ended with a call for tangible, time-bound policy actions guided by Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) to uphold indigenous rights and economic dignity in Jharkhand.