Education and Change in Chotanagpur Tribals

resources: education

Education and Change among the Tribal Peoples of Jharkhand

Posted on: May 25, 2005.

Modified on:

By James Toppo, S.J.

... cont'd from page 15.

Corruption at every step of service – from appointment to retirement – has seriously hurt the school men’s dignity and self respect. Red tape and no-work culture in bureaucracy have rendered many a school non-productive. Numerous departmental dictates and prescriptions, demanding strict compliance, often have no formative value, while they seek to ruthlessly divert time, concentration and energy of the school management from the real business of forming the young.

Notably, aided status was accorded to the minority schools in order to alleviate poor parents of the otherwise heavy tuition fees. Indeed, grants-in-aid for subsidizing the teachers’ salaries was to be in compliance with the free education policy of the Government. As such, breach of contract on the part of the Government is extremely demoralizing.

With such derailment of the entire educational system, crises management seems to be the only exercise, year after year, term after term. As a bonus, irrelevant contents in the text books, culturally and environmentally foreign subjects, controversial jargon and cliché get surreptiously slipped in by politically motivated elements, who seem to be clueless about sound education and have neither interest, knowledge nor desire for anything tribal.

Conclusion

An over view of the intense missionary activities in the course of 150 years in transforming the rocky soil of tribal society of Chotanagpur, may justifiably bring us smiles of satisfaction. The so-called uncultured primitives have been transformed to such an extent that they can now compete with other advanced societies.

The tribal community has produced many IAS and IPS officers, who match the national standards. State level Government officials are even more numerous. Engineers, doctors, professors, social scientists, social activists, serious research scholars, people employed in public and private sectors are countless. One of the biggest areas of service, valour, courage and audacity is the army, where tribals have won outstanding recognition at the national level.

There are two areas, however, where the missionary education seems to have left a vacuum: political leadership and business. With the creation of Jharkhand state these lacunae look like gaping holes on the canvas of tribal transformation. If the problems enumerated above may not be contained earnestly, the masterpiece and fruit of the Christian education may soon get ravaged beyond recognition.

Reference

Arockiasamy S. and J. Chittanath J. (Eds): Songs of Silence. Media House, Delhi 2000.
Ball V. : Tribal and Peasant life in Nineteenth Century India…Usha Publications, New Delhi 1985 (First published in 1880 with the title –Jungle life in India or The Journeys and Journals of an Indian Geologist)
Banerjee Mangobinda: An Historical Outline of Pre-British Chotanagpur: Educational Publications, Ranchi 1989.
Choudhury P. Growth of Education in Bihar 1854–1937Bharati Bhawan, Patan 1991.
Ekka Beni A. (Ed.): The Catholic Church in Jharkhand: (A Mediator of Change) XISS, Ranchi: 2003.
Kumar N. : Ranchi District Gazetteer: 1970.
Sharma K.R. : Educational lifestyle of Tribal Students: Classical Publishing Company: New Delhi : 1991.
The Gazetteer of India Vol. II: History and Culture: 1973.
Toppo Sita: Dyanamics of Educational Development in Tribal India: Classical Publications, New Delhi, 1979.
Upadhyay V.S. and Pandey G.: Tribal Development in India: Crown Publication: Ranchi: 2003.

Last updated: May 19, 2008.

Quote for the day

"There are people in the world so hungry, that God cannot appear to them except in the form of bread."

-- Mahatma Gandhi

Indigenous Peoples Creed

"We, the indigenous peoples, walk to the future in the footprints of our ancestors. From the smallest to the largest living being, from the four directions, from the air, the land and the mountains, the Creator has placed us, the indigenous peoples, upon our mother, the earth."

From: Indigenous Peoples Earth Charter (1992)

Who are the indigenous peoples?

UNO defines:

" …those which having a historical continuity with pre-invasion and pre-colonial societies that developed on their territories, consider themselves distinct from other sectors of societies now prevailing in those territories, or parts of them. They form at present non-dominant sectors of society and are determined to preserve, develop, and transmit to future generations their ancestral territories, and their ethnic identity, as the basis of their continued existence as peoples, in accordance with their own cultural patterns, social institutions and legal systems."

-- Martinez-Cobo, 1984.

Handiya Making

Handiya: Rice beer "Handiya" or rice beer in earthen pot is a popular local brew in Chotanagpur. Indeed, hardly any celebration would be complete without it. Excessive consumption of it is also a regrettably common sight.

School Dropouts

boy and girl "In addition to perpetuating the ills of Bihar, no suitable education policy to emancipate the tribals and backward classes has been worked out, despite several years of autonomy."

-- Fr. James Toppo, S.J. :2005. (See: resources)

Let them play

May 7, 2008: To an euphoric Jharkhand Government, unprecedented 184 child labourers were rescued from various restaurants, eateries and garages in the suburbs of Ranchi alone. The bigger question is how to dissuade the kids in the prevailing socio-economic condition.