Description Of Our Project Area Kangar Village Kholi Bhil Tribe.

In the Kangar village there are six thousand people living, among them majority are known as Maratha Samaj, who have their own land for cultivation. They are treated far above the ground in position and possession in the society. The 'kholi Bhil' tribe also live in one corner of the village. There are 45 huts in which there are 350 people living. The walls of the huts are made out of sticks and smeared with mud. The roofs are covered with sugarcanes leaves. During the rainy season, they cover the sugarcane leaves with plastic sheets to prevent rainwater from entering their huts. They do not have electricity. In this modern age, they are not aware about computers and televisions. But having portable radios are great chattels to them.

The Maratha Samaj is not cooperative to the people of the Kholi Bhil tribe. (After our Medical Camp their attitude towards the tribe is changing). They use these people as labourers. Some people do not have basic documents as proof of residence, which are very essential for getting facilities from the government. 

They have their own religion based on their ancestors' tradition which mainly emphasize on animism. They have their own religious leaders who intercede between spirits and people. They have special rituals for every special occasion like birth, marriage, divorce, death etc. They are very superstitious. They change their abode frequently when they fall ill and have ruthless fight with their own tribe men.

 

They speak their own dialect which others do not understand. They have their own community leaders who mainly look after their disputes. They are very hard working people.  In profession they are farmers, hunters and bricks makers. But due to lack of land they have become labourers to the village high class peoples' land, but they get work in their masters' land only from May to December.  

In order to survive they have to migrate to far places along with their families to make bricks for their masters who help them with cash whenever they are in need.  Though it looks like they are helping the poor tribe, they make them into their slaves. These kinds of migration disturb the family life and the children's education very severely.

They do not have basic facilities like pure water and clean environment. They do not have toilet facilities so, they relieve on open areas which pollute the environment. They also cut trees for fire woods for cooking their food, which harm the good environment. There is a High school in the village. The benefits of the school are not taken by this tribe. There are 119 children among this tribe, But only 39 children are attending school (21 boys and 18 girls) while some do not regularly attend school.

 

Women are very closely associated with activities like collecting fire-wood and cutting grass for selling. They also cook food for the family and take care of their children. In their culture women are not allowed to participate in public meetings. But in the family, women are dominant.   They are free to remarry if any problem in their family life. Through our MVDP work, we have facilitated to form a village committee in which there are 4 women and 7 men who have become active members to develop their community.

Whenever women go for work as a labourer, they get Rs.70/- (one Euro) per day for ten hours work, while the men get Rs.100/- per day for the same work. The women and the children are more vulnerable to malnutrition in this area. They always look and long for food to feed their spiritual and physical hunger.

Village description of Bhanas -Hivara: Mathang Community!

In this village most of them are known as Scheduled caste, which means by birth they are untouchable in the minds of the people. Even if they have improved their social economic status they have been looked down by the forward caste people. Till today they have separate place for their dwelling in the village. They are used for all kinds of manual work such as disposing dead animals and human waste and treated as second class citizens.’

Some 40 years ago this community was not allowed to enter into a temple and participate in religious functions. They were even kept away from all kinds of education. As per Hindu religion, they were the people  who pollute the place and people by their presence and even by their shadows. These kinds of atrocities are coming down due to punishment by the Indian penal law. 

This community is very eager to come up in their lives. But due to economic backwardness they are not able to give good education to their children. There are 126 children in this village who live without any purpose and motivation in their lives. Their livelihood mainly depends on rain as they go for manual labour on others fields and farms.

They live in small huts which are made by stone, mud, wood and roofs are made by sugarcane leaves and covered with plastic sheet during rainy season in order to avoid leakage in the house. Some houses are not even two meter height and when we enter their houses we have to bend and go inside. Pure water, sanitation, proper house and livelihoods are the common needs for their survival.

They are very religious but more superstitious. They have different ceremonies for birth, marriage, divorce and death.  They can marry only from their community.Though there is social security to this people, due to lack of documents to submit and prove their status, they are not much benefited from the Government facilities.

Women: These village women are very active even though their husbands dominate in terms of decision making.  They have created their own self help group apart from cooking and taking care of all family members including children. The world of a woman is surrounded with her husband and her children. Due to that they fail to care for their health and become malnutrition and earn many physical problems. We hope that MVDP can facilitate to build their capacity and cause them to be better citizen.