Priyashri Mani On the 3rd of May, a young adivasi girl (Madi*) from the Bettakurumba tribe was sexually assaulted by a guard working in the Forest Department. Madi lives in a village inside the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve in the Nilgiris district of Tamil Nadu. In the past, the Forest Department has been the single …
I want to be in a place where policies are being made: VP Gomathi
Neel Kranti Media (First published in the ‘Dalit and Adivasi Students’ Portal’ in 2010) Born in a village in Tamilnadu, VP Gomathi holds a Masters in Social Work (2009) from one of the most reputed institutes of the country and is striving towards fulfulling her dream of playing an important role in the empowerment …
Terrible attack on Irular people in Thenneri village
Terrible attack on Irular people in Thenneri village – urgent support action required Message from Makkal Mandram Dear Friends, A terrible atrocity is unfolding against the Irula people in Thenneri village at the hands of the dominant Mudaliar caste. There are 10 Irula families living in Thenneri Village, Walajabad Taluk, Kancheepuram District. Irulars are an …
The Touch of Ambedkar (part II)
by Thamburaj Dharmaraj (Continued from The Touch of Ambedkar (Part I)) The shadow puppeteers’ mother tongue is not Tamil. Among themselves they speak a remote dialect of Marathi, which is their only communicative medium. To interact with others they use Tamil language. They claim their caste identity as ‘Mandikar’. The names of men of this …
Indigenous technology of climate prediction among a Tamil Dalit community
by Thamburaj Dharmaraj Valluvar community is referred extensively in ancient Tamil literature as ‘masters of astronomical calculations as well as predictions based on that’. The author of the renowned classical Tamil text ‘Thirukkural’, Thiruvalluvar, is believed to be the offspring of this community. Though it has valid literary and historical evidences of being a literate …
People’s Watch’s interim report from Paramakudi
Paramakudi: a police engineered violence and firing [ An interim report from People’s Watch since police and District Magistrates have not been personally met, circulated in public interest by Henri Tiphagne, Executive Director, People’s Watch] September 11th, the 54th death anniversary of the dalit leader Immanuel Sekaran has not only been a day observed to …