Tribal Empowerment & Preservation of Tribal Heritage

On March, 25, 2023, the Department of B.Ed. organized a webinar on ‘Tribal Empowerment & Preservation of Tribal Heritage’ in association with the Internal Quality Assurance Cell. The webinar was held in the blended mode and was attended by the faculty and students of the Department of B. Ed. of Loreto College, Kolkata as well as faculty and students of Women's College (Autonomous), Patna, St. Ann's College of Education (Autonomous), Secunderabad, Mount Carmel College of Teacher Education for Women, Kottayam, St. Ann's College of Education (Autonomous), Mangalore and Jesus and Mary College, New Delhi.
The first speaker on the programme was Dr. Sutapa Ghosh Dastidar (Professor of Barrackpore Rastraguru Surendranath College). She initiated a discourse on the history of various tribal groups, the places they live in, the marginalization and discrimination they face, their lifestyle, their strong heritage and the schemes that the government has initiated over the years for the overall development of these indigenous groups.
The second speaker of the event was Ms. Samayita Sen, a doctoral scholar, currently pursuing her PhD on Adivasi Studies. Having done a thorough research on three indigenous tribes of Jhargram, namely the Kurmi Mahato Tribe, the Santhal Tribe, and the Lodha Tribe, Ms. Sen took the audience on a virtual tour through the life of these indigenous people. Her presentation featured galore of pictures and videos on the everyday life, needs and hardships of the indigenes, their joy in playing “Jhumur”, a tribal song, their joy in making “pithe poolies”, and their essential animism as devotion that plays a pivotal role in shaping Hindu religion of the mainstreams. She concluded her presentation with a thought-provoking argument that engages directly with the theme of the webinar, as she upheld that “it is time to realize that the government has limited role to play as the indigenous people are already empowered”.
It was a very enlightening and stimulating session as it broadened the students' spectrum of knowledge about the indigenous peoples, their life and their heritage.