Delhi University establishes Centre for Tribal Studies

New Delhi: The Delhi University on Wednesday announced the establishment of the Centre for Tribal Studies (CTS) with an aim to understand the diversity of tribal practices, culture, language, religion, economy, commonalities and relationship with nature through an India-centric perspective.

The university made the announcement on the International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples.

In a statement, the DU said the Centre for Tribal Studies is a "transformative step in advancing and addressing the contemporary issues relevant to the tribal communities in terms of their overall development and well-being in present as well as in future progression".

A governing body has been constituted with Professor Prakash Singh, Director University of Delhi South campus as its chairperson, along with academicians Prof. Payal Mago, Director, Campus of Open Learning; Prof. K. Ratnabali, Faculty of Law; and Prof. V S Negi, Department of Geography as members.

The centre will also get academic inputs from two external experts Prof T V Kattimani, Vice Chancellor of Central Tribal University of Andhra Pradesh, and Prof. Chander Mohan Parsheera, Director, Institute of Tribal Studies, Himachal Pradesh University.

"The Centre for Tribal Studies (CTS) stands as a testament to Delhi University's vision of empowering tribes who constitute more than eight per cent of India's total population," the university said in the statement.

The university has appointed Prof. Soumendra Mohan Patnaik, Head of the Department of Anthropology, as the Director of the Centre for Tribal Studies, and Dr. Avitoli G. Zhimo, Associate Professor of the Department of Anthropology as the Joint Director.

Dr Seema Singh, Faculty of Law and Dr Santosh Hasnu, Department of History, Hans Raj College are also its members.

The centre will have an all-India perspective with due consideration of regional diversities of Northeast India, Central India, South India and Island regions and others, said Prof. Prakash Singh, the chairperson of the governing body.

At present, the CTS will function from the Department of Anthropology, University of Delhi.

"The establishment of the Centre for Tribal Studies will endeavour in highlighting the role and contribution of many tribal leaders throughout the Indian history and also bring to light the efforts of many unsung tribal leaders in India's struggle for freedom," the varsity said.

Through its research endeavours, the CTS will study and document various traditions of Indian tribes and their indigenous knowledge, as well as work towards dissemination of such information to the public in general and to academia and students in particular, the DU added.

It will also play a pivotal role in bridging the gap between the needs of Denotified, Nomadic tribes, and Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs).