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Deccan Herald
4 days ago
- General
- Deccan Herald
Lessons in co-existence: Karnataka tribes blend rituals with conservation
Waghoba, Beteraya, Wageli, Wagro, Hulidevara, Huliyappa, and Huliveerappa — these are just some of the many names by which the awe-inspiring tiger is known among forest dwellers across Karnataka. These names are not merely linguistic variations. They reflect deep devotion among Kunabi, Soliga, Havyaka and Jenukuruba these communities, the tiger is both protector and destroyer, revered as a divine being who rules the land. To live in harmony with this king of the forest, they believe, is to ensure a win-win relationship for both humans and the beast. .'Project Tiger' review: Retelling the tiger's before the world began observing International Tiger Day on July 29, celebrated globally since 2010, forest communities in India — including those in Karnataka's Western Ghats and coastal tiger territories — have worshipped the big centuries, certain rituals have invoked the tiger's blessings. For instance, when newlywed daughters or daughters-in-law pass through forested paths on their way to their husband's home, families seek the tiger's protection for a safe journey. Similarly, prayers are offered at the start of the harvest season or before cattle are sent to graze in the forest. .This blend of reverence and ritual can be seen clearly in the town of Londa in Belagavi district, where the Waghoba temple stands as a symbol of enduring devotion. Locals say the recently renovated temple is more than 300 years old. It was once surrounded by dense forest, until railway tracks laid during British rule fragmented the landscape and brought human settlements closer. .Ravishankar Mirashi, a priest from the Kunabi community, recalls how the temple served as a ritual starting point for brides heading to their new homes. 'The entire village would gather at the temple and pray to Lord Waghoba to keep her safe as she passed through the forest path,' he today, Waghoba is honoured with special prayers during the ten days of Dasara. Devotional songs in Marathi echo through the temple, sung by members of the Kunabi community. On Mondays and new moon days, rituals are held to seek protection from the tiger deity. 'No labourer will begin harvesting in nearby fields without offering prayers to Waghoba first,' says Mirashi. .Elevated statusBeyond individual temples, the belief system itself gives the tiger an elevated place in spiritual life. There are sacred sites where the tiger is worshipped even before Lord Ganesha, who traditionally receives the first prayers in Hindu rituals. In some places, the tiger is venerated as the mount of deities; in others, it is worshipped as a deity in its own the Soliga community, tiger worship is not a seasonal ritual but an intrinsic part of daily life. Frequently cited as a model of human-animal coexistence, the Soligas do not see the tiger merely as the mount of their deity, Male Mahadeshwara.'Every Soliga child grows up hearing hundreds of songs praising the tiger's strength and grace. Huliveerappa is our judge. We believe he punishes those who harm the community or break the laws of the forest,' says Soliga leader Dr C Madegowda from B R Hills. .Tiger worship among the Soligas peaks during Ugadi and the harvest season. From February to May, community members carry tiger idols in processions as part of seasonal rituals that reinforce their respect for the Agnihotri, who has worked with the Soliga tribes, explains that deifying a wild animal was a conscious way to ensure its tribal communities recognised that safeguarding the tiger also meant preserving the forest around it. .'At a time when tigers are rapidly losing their habitat and human-tiger conflicts are rising, there is much to learn from these traditional practices. They remind us that conserving this apex predator, an umbrella species, is also a way of conserving the forest itself,' she reverence is echoed across regions. In Uttara Kannada, Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts, there are hundreds of Hulidevara temples and sacred groves dedicated to tigers. In Joida taluk, for instance, the Kunabi community places the tiger third in their religious hierarchy. 'After our local deity and the Astadikpalakas, the tiger or Vagro is our most important god. During Holi, we offer him special prayers,' says community member Jayanand Derekar. .According to him, the tiger is regarded as a leader or Nayak. Every hamlet has either a statue or a stone that serves as a site of worship. 'Though we have lived among tigers for centuries, not a single one has harmed or killed a member of our community. We believe a tiger will attack only if one commits an unpardonable sin. In such cases, we perform special prayers at one of the tiger's sacred sites as an act of repentance,' he also notes that the tiger defines the boundaries between its territory and human habitation. 'This understanding ensures that we do not over-extract minor forest produce from protected areas. Today, the modern forest department's tender system is breaching these boundaries, leading to more human-animal conflict.'Further south, in Yellapur and neighbouring areas, the tiger is revered with an added sense of fear. Members of the Havyaka community offer one coconut for each head of cattle they own, a gesture of supplication to the the holy month of Karthika, as the rest of the country celebrates Deepavali, the Havyakas begin their rituals with prayers to the tiger before turning to their cows. .ConservationEnvironmentalist Shivananda Kalave explains that the practice of balake ondu tenginakai — one coconut for every cattle tail — is a prayer asking the tiger not to harm their livestock when grazing. Here, the Hulidevara temples are not located within villages, but deep inside the jungle.'The presence of such temples is proof that tigers once lived in these areas. Within half a kilometre of each site, there is usually a perennial water source. These forest patches were left untouched by humans in reverence for the tiger,' Kalave says. He has documented more than 160 such places between Bhatkal and Yellapur in Uttara Kannada.'Not all of these temples have tiger idols. Some are marked by stones, hillocks or trees that were known tiger haunts. The Malnad region is dotted with many such Hulikallu and Hulimane,' he many experts agree that these traditions stem in part from fear, they also acknowledge the role such beliefs have played in creating safe spaces for wildlife. These cultural practices, born from reverence and restraint, have quietly contributed to conservation for generations.
The Hindu
17-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Citizen groups release open letter condemning ‘colonial conservation' model in Nagarahole
Several citizen groups came together to release an open letter in front of the Wildlife Conservation Society office in Bengaluru expressing concern regarding the ongoing tensions inside the Nagarahole Tiger Reserve. The letter expressed solidarity with the 52 families of Karadikallu who have been demanding the recognition of their forest rights. The signees of the letter condemned 'the historical violence and threats the communities continue to face in the name of conservation.' They termed the actions of the Forest Department 'deliberate attempts to deny the communities their rights'. 'Anti-people and anti-environment' On June 18, 2025, around 250 Forest Department officials, with the police personnel and armed special tiger task force members, demolished six makeshift huts of the Jenukuruba tribal families in Karadikallu. This was following the re-entry of the tribals into the forests of Nagarahole Tiger Reserve in May 2025 'to reclaim their ancestral land'. The Jenukurubas have been in a long-drawn dispute with the Forest Department officials who, according to them, have repeatedly rejected their claims under the Forest Rights Act. 'Underlying these actions is a model of conservation witnessed in Nagarahole over the past decades, touted nationally and globally as a 'successful model', led by organisations like Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and prominent conservationists Ullas Karanth, Krithi Karanth, late K.M. Chinappa, that is viciously anti-people and anti-environment,' read the letter, which alleged that the model has turned Nagarahole into a militarised conflict zone. 'Fact-finding missions and widespread documentation on media and social media highlight that 'forest conservation' in forests like Nagarahole has come to mean violence, militarisation, persecutional AI-based, and digital surveillance, forced evictions, displacement and deprivation for the tribal and other vulnerable forest communities who have lived and nurtured the forests for centuries,' it further said. 'Criminalising natives' The letter said that several portions of the forest have been replaced by timber plantations, and eco-tourism has been popularised to allow entry of tourists and resorts into the forests, while denying tribals their customary rights. It also noted that the conservation model criminalises local forest communities by terming them 'encroachers'. 'It has been widely documented that what is termed by the WCS and the Forest Department as 'voluntary relocations' is anything but that... while conservationists like Chinnappa seek to minimise human interference in the forest to restore biodiversity, the latest science shows that lands managed by indigenous communities tend to be the most biodiverse, more than areas managed under 'wildlife reserves' or 'protected areas',' it said. The letter has been signed by the representatives of Community Network Against Protected Areas, Fridays For Future, All India Students' Association Karnataka, and Peoples' Union for Civil Liberties, among others.
India Today
30-06-2025
- India Today
Three Karnataka cops suspended after tribal man wrongly jailed for wife's murder
Three police officers have been suspended after a tribal man from Karnataka, who was wrongly imprisoned for nearly two years in connection with the alleged murder of his wife, was acquitted in April 2025. The action followed strong criticism from the 5th Additional District and Sessions Court in Mysuru, which faulted the police for serious lapses in the investigation. The suspension was ordered by the Inspector General of Police (Southern Range) Police Inspector GB Prakash and Sub-Inspectors Prakash Ettinamani and Mahesh have been suspended for their role in the wrongful arrest and man, Suresh, a member of the Jenukuruba tribal community from Basavanahalli village in Kushalnagar taluk, had filed a missing person complaint in 2020 with the Kushalnagar Rural Police after his wife, Mallige, went missing. However, when skeletal remains were later recovered in the jurisdiction of the Bettadapura police, officers pressured Suresh to identify them as his wife's. He was subsequently arrested and charged with her murder, spending 18 months in judicial custody. A year later, DNA testing confirmed that the remains did not belong to Mallige. Just days after the test results, Mallige was found alive and living with another man in Shettihalli village, about 30 kilometres from Madikeri. Following the discovery, the Mysuru court acquitted Suresh and condemned the police conduct in the with the limited accountability, Suresh had recently approached the Karnataka High Court seeking Rs 5 crore in compensation and criminal action against the officers responsible. In his petition, he had named five officers, including then Investigating Officer Inspector Prakash BG, then Additional Superintendent of Police Jitendra Kumar, Sub-Inspectors Prakash Yattimani and Mahesh BK, and Assistant Sub-Inspector Somashekara. He had accused them of fabricating evidence, abusing their authority, and arresting him without due the High Court had earlier directed the Karnataka Home Department to pay Suresh Rs 1 lakh in compensation, he has challenged the amount and the absence of broader accountability by filing a criminal appeal seeking financial damages. - Ends IN THIS STORY#Karnataka
The Hindu
02-06-2025
- General
- The Hindu
As monsoon sets in, adivasis of Nagarhole plan to start constructing houses
With the monsoons setting in, Jenukuruba tribal, who re-entered the forests of Nagarhole Tiger Reserve almost a month ago 'to reclaim their ancestral land', said they will begin construction of houses. Addressing a press conference here on Monday, J.A. Shivu, leader of the Nagarhole Adivasi Jammapale Hakku Sthapana Samiti, said, 'We held a gram sabha on May 20, where it was decided that we would start constructing houses. Individual forest rights surveys have already been done for the 52 families who re-entered the forest, and therefore, we know the plots that have been surveyed. So, we will start constructing the houses there, since the rains have arrived.' Case to be filed The tribal leaders also said that they are planning to file a case against the Forest Department and panchayat officials under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act for withholding the rights of the people and dragging their feet on the forest rights claims raised by adivasis under the Forest Rights Act (FRA) 2006. It was a month ago that 150 tribal people entered the Nagarhole forests as a mark of protest against the delay in granting rights. Officials of the Karnataka Forest Department and the Karnataka State Tiger Protection Force (STPF) attempted to prevent this move, and tensions have been brewing in the regions since. 'The Forest Department and tiger protection force have been continuously trying to evict us out of our ancestral lands. They attempted to bring down the sacred structures we built. There were many instances where in the middle of the night they tried to bring down the three structures in which we are collectively living now,' Mr. Shivu alleged. A long wait According to Community Networks Against Protected Areas, the forest dwelling communities of Nagarhole were evicted in 1985 after it was declared a wildlife sanctuary. The indigenous population were subsequently forced to work as bonded labourers in coffee plantations. After the FRA came into effect in 2006, the tribals applied for their forest rights in 2009, and have been waiting for 16 years for the officials to act upon it. 'What has happened since 2006 has been a complete denial of those rights and a return from the promise that was made under the Forest Rights Act,' said Lara Jeswani, lawyer at Bombay High Court. She said that out of the more than three lakh claims, only 15,000 claims of individual rights had been decided. Political ecologist Nitin D. Rai alleged that adivasis were bearing the brunt of what the State needs to do to meet its financial and developmental obligations. 'Denial of forest rights comes directly from the (government's) need to increase the tiger numbers so that they can show they are doing very well on the conservation front and therefore cannot be questioned of diversion of forests and infrastructural development,' he said.
Deccan Herald
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Deccan Herald
Notice served to protesters in Nagarhole forest
Members of 52 Jenukuruba families have been holding a stir since May 5, urging the government to provide them with forest land rights.
