By Express News Service
NEW DELHI: In a bid to give a major push to research and evaluation studies on tribal development, the Ministry of Tribal Affairs has sanctioned six new research institutes in the last four years.
The institutes will come up in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim.
The mandate of tribal research institutes (TRI) includes conducting anthropological studies on social, economic and cultural issues, documentation of the state tribes’ cultural heritage, raising awareness on tribal issues and conducting surveys on different tribal communities.
The primary aim of the TRIs is to address the gap between the tribal population and other citizens. Functions will include organising seminars, workshops, tribal festivals and dance and painting competitions.
Improving the documentation of tribal heritage by preparing books and dictionaries of tribal languages and translating policy provisions into tribal languages for the communities to access will also be the objecting TRIs will be aiming at.
The government launched the web page of tribal repository this year. It gives a comprehensive view of different communities’ folk songs, dance and livelihood options. The online database serves as a single window for documents, audios, videos and photographs of tribal communities from across India.
The Centre has also approved the setting up of six tribal freedom fighter memorials. It plans to use the latest digital technologies in the museums it plans to open to highlight the achievements of these freedom fighters.
