TRIBAL FOLKLORE, FOLK MEDICINES, FOLK TRADE AND INDIGENOUS HUMAN RIGHTS....?

Of late it was discovered by some of the NGOs in the district of Jhabua(MP) that the eco-friendly or natural colours marketed for Holi festival and other events was beautifully and conveniently prepared for commercial reasons from an indigenous flower called Khihodi(Kishuk Kusum) from the tree called Khankhra in Bhili language(Palash/Tesu). Till very recent times Khihodi was sold in the Bhil markets only for a through away price on 5 Rupee ( 10 penny of a USA $) a kilo. One Bhil man or a woman even if he or she works for ten hours a day, will be a able to collect maximum 2 kilos. With that they can purchase food for a small child and what about for the rest of the family members at home and also medicines for the the sich at home....? But today an indigenous NGO working in the district of Jhabua called Pragati under the leadership of a Bhil named Malhing Kattara sold or bought it for Rupee 150 per kilo thus fetching enough money to purchase much needed daily food, for for the hungrary, deprived and oppressed tribals to whom even the legitimately alloted relief funds for making available themselves food, do not reach. Most NGOs are enjoying the foreign funds coming for the tribal development and never looking into such important matters at home. They even end up their projects often saying that the tribals are not interested in their development where as the NGOs are developing themselves further depriving the indigenous communities.Only the % of deprivation of tribals by the NGOs will vary compared to the public sector persons.

Similarly there are many home grown, locally growing and small forest produce of the Bhil jungles are marketed for negligible price, or often cheated by the non tribal traders, habits of whom are now penetrating in the tribal way of social and cultural life polluting these naive and innocent peoples to oppress and manipulate their own. Items of this type are herbs and many such useful things for day today life could be easily valued for the folk medicines, folk commerce, folk human right or indigenous rights, human rights, Bhil rights in Jhabua, as inseparable part of tribal property for trading and earning income for the their community income generation. In the late eighties of the last century, Mama Baleshwar Dayal did envisage a an ambitious and indigenous tribal plan for the cheap treatment of the Bhils, income generation programme and also for retaining the tribal money in their own community as the Jain community does. But the Government of India did not value the proposal and project of Mama Baleshwar Dayal remained hidden in the dusty files of Government of India.

In every tribal district of India especially among the Warli region, Gond region, Oraon, region, etc these types of deprivations are at stake. The Bhils are being deprived and exploited thus is various hidden ways impoverishing them not only socially, commercially, politically, culturally but in small little way like this. Will there come a day, when the tribal India will see a situation where their human rights are respected by the main strea community at least in small little ways....?

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