Written by : Anumeha Jain
I was looking forward to my first college trip, and I was extremely enthusiastic and curious about the place we were supposed to explore. The fact that I hadn’t been to Wayanad, Kerela before was one of the major reasons for my elation. I still had my doubts though. But when I reached there, I wasn’t even close to being disappointed.
The
rays of the sun reflected on the window and shone on my face. Lush trees amidst
the fog surrounded the M.S. Swaminathan research foundation. A tiny part of the
sun peeped through those trees, straight into our room. And then I knew,I was
already in love with this destination.
It
turned out to be a completely new learning experience. Now, I am more informed
and conscious about the things I had only read about earlier.
The
Wikipedia teaches me that the definition of tribal is a group
of people who are food-gatherers (without any habit of agricultural practice),
with diminishing population and very low or little literacy rates and can be
called Primitive Tribes. Yet this trip has managed to change my stereotypical
mind-set, broken my assumptions about the indigenous people (“Tribal”) and has
forced me to believe the contrary of this definition. It has further helped me
to understand the different systems in our society.
During the first day, it occurred to me that NGOs
are a system and managing them properly is the pivotal part for this system to
be successful. For instance, Uravu. Uravu’s aim was to give the aboriginal
(especially females) the platform they required without enforcing it onto them.
Their main intention is not to make people work under them, but to provide
employment, empowerment and dignify their identities. The profit Uravu makes
isn’t used to start another business venture, but for the betterment of the workers
and products they make. The fact that they were ready to intervene, empower and back out
made it a unique system in itself.
The system felt right yet wrong at the same
time. I was extremely impressed by the fact that Uravu had managed to bring
about a complete change in their lifestyles by uplifting them to a new
platform. But the lack of opportunities disturbed me deeply. If the same funds
that were being used to promote their skills, could’ve been used to provide further
education to them (since most of them were educated till 12th), they
could’ve taken the same skills to a higher grade, promoted them in a better
market and could’ve had a better living style within a matter of 5 years or so.
Though, there is a part of the system that could
be applauded. They have successfully managed to upgrade the lives of these
women. Not a single month passes without salary and they save enough funds to
educate their children. They have learnt how to be independent and preserve their
dignity.
And hence, their efforts are exemplary.
What fascinated and shocked me was that Uravu
was willing to give employment yet the people were unwilling to work, choosing
against the job security provided by them.
Such NGOs play a major role in affecting the
aboriginal communities. But even Uravu, though successful in their efforts, needs a design upliftment
in terms of exploration and management.
The next day was interesting and attention
grabbing because I had to understand and face the issues that I had only read
about- SHGs, unemployment, government schemes, wages. I couldn’t ignore the
fact that they made 150 a day, while the jewelry I bought that day itself cost
me 260/-. The one advantage they had over other villages in India was the
availability of electricity. And hence, to increase the production, machines
and tools can be experimented with.
To improve their marketing and brand name, and
to rise at an individual level, the SHGs should break off from Uravu once
they’re stable and promote themselves all over India instead of restricting
themselves to Wayanad.
Going from one cluster to another I realized
that the design of their products was pretty average and lacked utility. They
weren’t efficiently utilizing their potential. Lack of exploration has actually
affected their marketing system. Even though what they make is aesthetically
beautiful, people don’t end up buying it because of lack of utility.
They
should modernize their designs according to what the requirements of
the
market, else it would be really hard for them to compete with the products
in the urban
market. They should break away from the common convention,
and Uravu
should help them for promoting the same. They can also involve
designers from
various colleges for new designs and stay in touch with them
through a blog.
They should explore more with the unique
qualities of bamboo and experiment with the 136 species, instead of using repetitive designs. They can also make
brochures of their work, and take orders for bulky stuff like furniture or try making new things in the gaming field. For
storage and transportation, a fixed price can be contributed initially.
A change in the mindsets of people who treat
them as backward also needs to be inspired.
Another issue that I observed was ‘Education’.
Even though Kerala has the highest literacy rate
in India, education doesn’t seem to be sorted for the indigenous groups. For
instance, Kanavu.
There
approach to education was contemporary and forward, which untagged them from
being “primitive”. They used ‘practical application’ as their main agenda, so
that the students not only learn the facts, but also apply them to everyday
lives. Due to this reason their curriculum included subjects like music, dance,
martial arts, physical health, cinema and above all, they teach them the
subject of humanity – which is extremely essential as being human is the study
above all. On top of that, students have the complete liberty to choose the field
of specialization.
According
to me this approach should be followed, not only in the Indian system of
education, but also worldwide, because it generates a high number of
opportunities for the students. And in areas such as Wayanad, where there is a
high requirement of social mobility for the various tribes to mix up, this
school acts as a medium to do so as well.
Yet
this system did not manage to retain itself, due to the lack of necessary
funding. They managed to get some funds by forming troops and performing whenever
given the chance, but that doesn’t fulfill the requirement to run the school.
They have an urgent and crucial need to register with the government, because
the government will not only advertise and make their school official, but also
provide them with the required funds.
A
problem they might face is the intervening of the govt. but I think that both
the systems can be interdependent and work together. Instead of using the
government as a disadvantage, they should use them as an advantage to improve their
schooling process. Making it an official school might even reduce the number of
drop out students.
They
could also consider collaboration with some other recognized school with
similar ideologies.
Another
major issue involving their community according to me is the loss of their true
identities and tradition. There culture is getting lost in the race to promote
common education. And hence there is an urgent need to preserve it. Increased
exposure at a very early age is also leading towards the major issue of
alcoholism and violence.
I
would suggest making of documentaries, films etc to make people aware of their
community’s importance and significance. Till the time these people are
empowered enough to take their own stand, others will continue to exploit them
at all stages; for which, equal education for all becomes crucial.
Another
important lesson that I learnt in the past 5 days would include the value of
our heritage and the need to preserve it. What amused me was how a particular
finding can change the history of the world. Proper preservation of such areas
becomes highly important.
Edekkel
caves were a fun learning experience. What I loved the most about the place was
the natural surroundings. Making proper roads and stairs would’ve spoilt the
natural ambience. But what they really needed to improve was the protection
methods. Govt. should at least put a glass covering to protect the inscriptions
on the walls.
The tribal museum could
also use the same suggestions, because both the
places couldn’t retain the
crowd. The abandoned feel degraded the ambience
further. Even though it was
interesting to look at but not informative enough.
They
should at least provide more information about the inscriptions so that people’s
interest is maintained. To further improve the facilities and market these
places, skilled guides who know multiple languages should be hired to show
around the place. A lot of the free area outside could be use as another
tourist attraction, or probably just a momento shop that the museum could lead
to.
(Even
a bamboo shop could be made to promote the work done by the clusters)
Eco
tourism was another challenging part of the course. There is so much debate on
the definition itself. The Soochipara waterfall, on one side was absolutely
beautiful, yet on the other hand a little disturbing. Proper toilets and changing
rooms should be made somewhere close by so that the waterfall isn’t trashed and
mishaps don’t take place.
Continuing
on the same line, we went to the Biodiversity Park for trekking. Not only did
we manage to achieve a great height but we also managed to learn about some of
the extremely beautiful parts of the environment. The variety of flora and
fauna amazed me. From spiders, ants and flowers that resemble peacocks to herbs
that cure health, coffee and banana plantations (lemon tree, plant that cures
arthritis, eucalyptus), we covered it all.
These medicinal plants
can prove to be of extreme help to the aboriginal people.
Since they are
unconsumed resources going to waste, judicious use of such
plants can be made
to add onto the funds of the school, or even for the clusters. But only the
people who are learned enough about the herbs should manage them,
because over-
exploitation might lead to problems in the overall society in the
future.
Natural
resource management becomes a pivotal requirement in order to move towards
sustainable development. The natural beauty needs to be retained.
The
last day was full of enthusiasm as we got to make our own products! The hands on experience made us learn more about bamboo as a product. Even though I failed to make a book rack in one day, they approved and appreciated my design. It was a cumbersome task, but if given the chance, i would go back and work with bamboo again.
According
to my point of view, the defect did not lie in the system, but the management
and the marketing procedure, which can be improved. For improving the marketing
system, they have to move beyond Wayanad, and be open to more exposure. The fact
that they restrict themselves to Wayanad, results in limited sales. Considering
the amount of skill and training they have, financial aid would take them to
new heights, and help them achieve their maximum potential.
At
designers level we need to start questioning the already existing perception.
Positive steps need to be taken towards helping such communities sustain by
themselves without harming the environment as a whole, which will further lead
to sustainable development. The Policy decisions should be made at the base
level and awareness about all the schemes like tribal act, NREGA , right to
education should be generated. We need to be judicious and sensitive towards
their system. NGOs like Uravu need to be advertised in bigger cities like
Bangalore, Delhi etc.
A
commendable effort needs to be made in order to change the portrayal of various
communities in the urban system, before the beauty of those communities is
lost.
The
urban people need to reach out to the others who are in need of help. New design
perceptions need to rise.
This
trip was a new and refreshing point in my life. I did a lot of things I never
thought I would. I spoke a new language without really knowing it, ate food
without spoons, without even knowing what it was, worked with bamboo and failed
in the attempt of making furniture in a single day, had intense interaction
with the locals, without even realizing the language barrier, realized that 5
days are enough to make good friends, ran downhill, got wet in the waterfall,
jumped from one bed to another fighting with pillows, made sense less songs and
yelled them a the top of my voice, learnt that you don’t really need a reason
to laugh, got a new perspective about design, and on the whole, I realized that
this is that time of my life that I will never be able to forget.
Now
when I look back, I can easily claim that I’ve bought a lot of things back from
this trip.
NOTE :
Tribal Act
Right to Education Act
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