'These Books Will Serve As Treasure': Odisha CM Releases 5-Volume Encyclopedia Of All Tribes

The Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, on Monday (September 26), released the 'Encyclopaedia of Tribes', which covers the traditions and cultures of all the 62 tribal communities residing in the state.

The Chief Minister said, "These books will serve as a treasure and repository for all academicians, researchers, policymakers, and those interested to know about the tribal communities of the state."

What Does This Encyclopaedia Include?

The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Research and Training Institute (SCSTRTI) and Odisha State Tribal Museum prepared the five-volume encyclopaedia, which consists of 3,800 pages and 418 research articles on the tribals, including 13 particularly vulnerable tribal groups (PVTG).

The CM applauded the SCSTRTI and said that the 418 research articles in the encyclopedia were published in Adivasi journals and other publications during the tenure of the last six decades.

The detailed responsibility of editing, compilation, and republication has been managed by the research institute's Director, Professor AB Otta and his Consultant SC Mohanty for the last four years.

Visit To The Tribal Museum

CM Patnaik visited the galleries of the museum and admired the newly constructed projection mapping unit in another museum for PVTG, reported NDTV.

Prof Otta said the tribal museum has rare collections of exquisite arts and crafts of tribal communities. He said that it is the best interactive ethnographic institution in the world. He added, "The interactive technologies used in this museum are outstanding."

In 2001, Patnaik inaugurated the tribal museum, and in 2009 the other one, which is exclusively dedicated to the particularly vulnerable tribal groups.

Tribal Communities In Odisha

Odisha is renowned for having a rich and colourful tribal scenario among the Indian States and Union Territories. Most STs reside in hilly and forest regions with their economy primarily subsistence-oriented, non-stratified and non-specialized.

According to the census of 2011, the state has the third highest percentage of tribal population in India, which stands at 95,90,756. It has 62 different tribal communities spread over 30 districts and 314 blocks. The tribal areas of the state present a highly diverse socio-economic panorama, with 62 STs speaking as many as 74 dialects.

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