Tarh Ramya

• B.A. (Honours), PGDCA, M.A., MPhil., PhD
• Assistant Professor at Arunachal Pradesh University

Arunachal Pradesh, the erstwhile NEFA, is the homeland for 26 tribes and many smaller tribes that have gained substantial ethnographic attention during the colonial to post-colonial phase. Though this tribal state has undergone a meaningful transformation, one can notice significant inter-tribal or intra-tribal inequalities in contemporary developm...

Adi tribe, last rite, rites of passage, funeral tradition, tribal custom This study examines Adi funerary rites, rituals, and customs through Gennep's model of passage, questioning whether these categories fully capture the complexity of these practices. Rather than viewing death as a singular transition, Adi rites and rituals function as an ongoin...

Dear Colleague(s), Dera Natung Government College Research Journal is a peer-reviewed multidisciplinary research journal founded in 2016, published and sponsored by Dera Natung Government College, Itanagar. It is an annual research journal with international editorial board members, published in the month of December. It is dedicated to the public...

An exploratory study to document the indigenous knowledge of the Nyishi tribe in their daily lives.

The paper focuses on the perspectives of sustainable development among the Nyishis of Kurung Kumey district in the state of Arunachal Pradesh who have the status of a Scheduled Tribe but are somewhat deprived of the benefits of development even after India’s economic reforms. The study reveals that Nyishis living in remote and inaccessible villages...

This book provides a first-hand description of the living traditions of the Nah (Tagin), one of the least-known indigenous communities domiciled in the Taksing administrative circle in the Upper Subansiri district of Arunachal Pradesh. This research is the outcome of intensive fieldwork conducted among the community during November and December 202...

This study on the Nyishi customary laws on property and inheritance was conceived to document for posterity the customary laws governing the Nyishis in matters of property and inheritance before they are completely modified. Documenting this is an important contribution to preserving a part of their culture for future generations. The data gathered...

“Dictionary and Grammar of Ashing: A Moribund Language of Arunachal Pradesh” is an outcome of the collective efforts of the research team of the North Eastern Council (NEC) funded project titled, "Documentation of Endangered Languages, Oral Narratives and Cultures of the Lesser-known Tribal communities of Arunachal Pradesh" under the aegis of Centr...

The book discusses and debates theoretical, conceptual, and empirical issues that have arisen from studies of the tribals of Northeast India, and by extension, those of India in general. It sheds new light on tribal societies and aimed to produce multidimensional outcomes and prospects for future academic research on ‘Tribal Studies in India.’ To s...

This paper investigates the language attitudes among Bangru in Arunachal Pradesh, an ethnically and linguistically diverse state in the northeastern region of India. Bangru, an unclassified language cluster is spoken mainly in about 15 Bangru villages of Sarli circle in Kurung Kumey district, a northernmost frontier district bordering Tibet (China)...

The current study reports on the indigenous ethnomedicinal knowledge and practises of the Adis in two villages of the Upper Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh. Extensive personal interviews, concrete case studies, and participant observation were used to collect data in the year 2021. Herbal medicine, as well as magico-religious-spiritual practise...

This exploratory study was conducted on the forest dependency nature of the Bangru community of Arunachal Pradesh by highlighting their indigenous knowledge of housing patterns and food habits. A numerically weak community, Bangru is sited in about 15 villages of Sarli circle in Kurung Kumey district, a northernmost frontier district bordering T...

Despite the acknowledgment that participatory approaches in development have potential in understanding and designing development programs and policies, perceptions of development continue to be dominated by outsiders including professionals and other development agents, most of whom do not experience the conditions. Using qualitative data collecte...

This paper attempts to present an ethnolinguistic profile of Bangru, the lesser-known language spoken mainly in 15 Bangru villages of the Sarli circle of the Kurung Kumey district in Arunachal Pradesh. Bangru language may be included in the Tibeto-Burman language family, though no evidence is available on its language affiliation. It is different f...

This paper aims to understand anthropologically, the corruption in the sociocultural context of Arunachal Pradesh. Today, corruption is rampant across the length and corner of the state; and it encompasses all the aspects of everyday life. To understand its genesis, forms, and its development, one must first look at the intellectual and cultural he...

Livelihood of a community comprises of the capabilities, assets (including both material and social resources) and activities required for a means of living. The economic life of the Bangru is based on shifting as well as terraced cultivation because of the geo-morphological condition of their habitat. The food deficit is supplemented by occasional...

The present paper intends to narrate some agricultural rites and rituals, specifically of jhum cultivation of the Nyishi tribe of Arunachal Pradesh, taking Kurung Kumey district as the case study. These rites form the part of ritual cycle and lingering as crucial in the community lives in relation to agriculture. Nyishis, the people belong to one o...

Introduction: Bangru is the Tibeto-Burman language speech community who confined to Sarli circle of Kurung Kumey districts of central Arunachal Pradesh. The present study was carried out in fifteen Bangru villages to explore the kinship terms in different lines of relationship and to establish the degree of relationship within the several kin group...

People and culture are inseparable since there is no denying the fact that what makes any human society is its culture; a Latin word which was derived from “colore” meaning to practice or cherish. For a society to be societal, it must be cultural, therefore, society and culture are also intertwined. The culture of any society is the way of life of...

Drawing on the example of the Nyishi of Arunachal Pradesh, an ethnic group that has been enjoying a wave of popular revival in recent years, this study suggests that changes in the perceptions of an ethnic identity are related to socio-economic transformation. The festival is a key aspect of the Nyishi revival since the 1970s. An examination of the...

Cultural tourism is the fastest-growing sector of the tourism industry and hence there is a trend towards an increased specialization among tourists. The attraction over the adventure, culture, tradition, history, etc. marks the increase of tourists in any region. Especially the interest of foreign and domestic tourists in travelling to cultural de...

Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) is considered as a “Panacea” for eradicating rural poverty and unemployment. Its objectives are: (a) provide, on demand, not less than one hundred days of unskilled manual work in a financial year to every household in rural areas; (b) create productive assets of prescribed qualit...

Arunachal Pradesh, like other states of India is experiencing numerous development challenges. The development challenges are mainly concentrated in the rural areas of the state. The focal objective of this study is to examine the challenges of rural development in Kurung Kumey district of Arunachal Pradesh. A total of 150 questionnaires were admin...

The present book is a compilation of the papers presented during the seminar on Family and Clan in Tribal Societies of North East India jointly organised by North Eastern Social Research Centre (NESRC), Guwahati, and Tribal Study Centre (TSC), Eastern Theological Centre, Jorhat on 26-27 June 2014 at Guwahati, Assam. This compilation aims to capture...

Public Distribution System (PDS) is viewed as the most important food securitynetwork in India in terms of its coverage and public expenditure yet it is not withoutits limitations. The government spends around Rs. 750 billion per year on food grains,however, over 20% of the population remains undernourished in the country. The presentstudy focuses...

The role of women in development is closely related to the socio-economic and political development of any given society. Any society, which neglects the need for enhancing the role of women as a dynamic factor and a valuable asset, for the overall process of development would be left trailing behind. Women play a very strategic role in the develop...

The vibrant life of the tribal people, their traditional customs, festivals, and dances are some of the significant components of their rich cultural diversity. Culture is a dynamic and ever-changing entity. The changing environment makes internal adaptation necessary for culture to change. As a result, lot of changes have also been observed in the...

The present book is the fruit of the deliberations of the National Seminar held in April 2016 at Saint Claret College, Ziro. Not all papers presented at the Seminar have been selected for this book. Applying certain parameters and wanting the selection to be representative of the various thematic concentrations, the editorial board identified 18 of...

For each and every society, region, and state, its population is important assets specially the youths. Nyishi tribal youths may be categorised as productive population or productive assets of a society. Unemployment is one of the dilemmas that have entangled the Nyishi tribal youths of Arunachal Pradesh, particularly the Nyishi tribal youths. Its...

This paper is about the implementation of public distribution system in Arunachal Pradesh with particular reference to two districts.

The existence of anthropology as an academic and research discipline in Arunachal Pradesh is in its infancy. The traditional ethnographic studies among the tribes were initiated by the early British administrators, missionaries, travellers, explorers, etc. Professor Furer-Haimendorf and Verrier Elwin were perhaps the first professional anthropologi...

The Puroiks are traditional occupational group in Kurung Kumey district of Arunachal Pradesh inhabiting in about 20 villages. Hunting and gathering is their main livelihood. They use their indigenous knowledge and techniques to hunt animals and gather food stuffs from the dense forest. It is their popular livelihood and income. Presently lots of is...

The study of the movements of people has been an important dimension of anthropological discourse that offered a unique opportunity for anthropologists to study centre-periphery relations and to gain new insights into population movements produced by regional and global political, economic, and historical processes. A range of factors are associate...

The Bangru community is one of the numerically weak, less-explored ethnic communities dwelling at Sarli Circle of Kurung Kumey district in Arunachal Pradesh. These people are hardly known in the state as well as in north-eastern region and hardly anthropologists or other scholars tried to focus on any study concerning their origin, history, and cul...

In mountainous regions of Arunachal Pradesh, natural resources are economically very significant. Majority of the native tribal groups are heavily dependent on land, water and forests for their survival. In this scenario the contribution of tribal women is quite significant both in the utilization and management. Changes in physical as well as huma...

In mountainous regions of Arunachal Pradesh, natural resources are economically very significant. Majority of the native tribal groups are heavily dependent on land, water and forests for their survival. In this scenario the contribution of tribal women is quite significant both in the utilization and management. Changes in physical as well as huma...

Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) is considered as a “Panacea” for eradicating rural poverty and unemployment, with an objectives to: (a) provide, on demand, not less than one hundred days of unskilled manual work in a financial year to every household in rural areas; (b) create productive assets of prescribed quality...

Women play an important role in every society across the globe. Within tribal societies, the tribal women which constitutes nearly half of their community’s population holds special status. Thus it is imperative to ensure their equal political presence and participation in the larger process of decision-making. As studies suggest (Ota & Acharya, 20...

This paper observes the conditions of elderly Nyishi individuals living in rural Arunachal Pradesh by investigating their daily activities and their work lives, including how and with whom they work. This research was conducted primarily in one Nyishi tribal village in Kurung Kumey district of Arunachal Pradesh. All elderly individuals, known as Ny...

Hiya is a Nyishi tribal village located in the Nyapin block of Kurung Kumey district, Arunachal Pradesh. The present study slots in the socio-economic conditions and associate problems of the Nyishi tribal villagers of Hiya. This study tries to highlight various aspects of socio-economic structure like age-sex structure, marital status, educational...

The study focuses on the impact of the old age pension or rechristened (Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme), a national Old Age Pension Scheme in India on the livelihoods of the poor tribal elderly people in the north-east Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. The major objective of the study was to assess whether the pension fund has been...

Overall development of country is the main objective of Indian government since its independence. In the earlier Plans the main thrust for development was laid on Agriculture, Industry, Communication, Education, Health and Allied sectors but soon it was realized that the all-round development of the country is possible only through the development...

Traditional systems for conflicts resolutions in Arunachal Pradesh have been playing a major role to bring harmony and peace among members of the tribal society. These mechanisms are created within a socio-political structure of every tribe. They have been shaped by the realities that are happening in every tribe, making them unique to each tribe....

The folklore is vital in transmitting the values, beliefs and moral teachings of any given society. Since ages, it has been an eternal part of any human culture, more specifically of tribal culture. The folklore, culture, heritage and agriculture define the tribal society. The folk and tribal arts of Arunachal Pradesh are simple, ethnic and colourf...

The study was carried out in the 15 Bangru inhabited villages of Sarli circle in Kurung Kumey district of Arunachal Pradesh. It focuses on perception of illness and health ideology among Bangrus; the people belong to one of the numerically weak less-known tribal communities of Arunachal Pradesh. They describe multi-cause for a single illness and be...

Forest is a complex ecological system in which trees are dominant life forms. Today, a forest is any land managed for the diverse purposes of forestry, whether or not covered with trees, shrubs, climbers or such other vegetation. Technically, forest has come to be defined as an area set aside or maintained under vegetation for any indirect benefits...

The Longte-Yullo, one of the oldest and agriculturally significant festivals of the Nyishis is a harbinger of new season after which begins sowing of seeds on cultivated fields. This festival also commemorates the separation of human being from evil forces by a barricade that took place from time immemorial. The unique feature of the Longte-Yullo f...

A P e e r R e v i e w e d I n t e r n a t i o n a l J o u r n a l o f A s i a n R e s e a r c h C o n s o r t i u m AJRSH: ABSTRACT Belief in the existence of supernatural powers and day-to-day unexplainable experiences has led the Nyishis into believing in other than the material visible world i.e. in the invisible spiritual world or supernatural...

Forest is a complex ecological system in which trees are dominant life forms. Today, a forest is any land managed for the diverse purposes of forestry, whether or not covered with trees, shrubs, climbers or such other vegetation. Technically, forest has come to be defined as an area set aside or maintained under vegetation for any indirect benefits...

The Bangrus live in Sarli Circle of Kurung Kumey district, one of the remote areas of Arunachal Pradesh. Communication system in the district is too bad to maintain regular relation with the outside world. The people live mainly with their traditional health care practices under the given ecological condition. The modern medicine system suddenly ma...

The present paper reports the ethnographic profile of an unknown or unrecognised small sub-tribe of Nyishi namely Bangru living in Sarli circle of Kurung Kumey district in Indian State of Arunachal Pradesh. A total of 15 villages from the circle were selected for the study. The data were collected using a set of ethnographic techniques viz., observ...

Belief in the existence of supernatural powers and day-to-day unexplainable experiences has led the Nyishis into believing in other than the material visible world i.e. in the invisible spiritual world or supernatural power. Generally, the people are found to establish a close relationship with the spiritual world either by controlling or overpower...