INSIGHT INTO THE TRIBAL COMMUNITY IN GUJARAT

They say it is important to be at the right place at the right time. And it happened fortunately for us when we visited Michael and Swati in Mozda. They were organizing a workshop for about 20 tribal people at their place on awareness about process of NREGA and RTI. Following discussions were some of those that provided a deeper insight into how they think:

• Positive changes in last 5 years

1. Increase in information
2. Improvement in healthcare
3. Improvement in education
4. Availability of drinking water
5. Electricity improvement
6. Transportation improvement
7. Communication improvement
8. Reduction superstitions
9. Increase in TV
10. Availability of computer
11. Right to Information Act

• Negative changes in last 5 years:

1. Increase in greed
2. Lack of care for neighbors
3. Broken social web
4. Difficulty in government operations
5. Free availability of stuff in the beginning (tobacco, seeds, pesticides) that led to the wrong path
6. Expensive to follow customs
7. Health deterioration due to use of pesticides
8. Religious fights
9. Pollution from factories
10. Increase in traffic
11. Ill use of mobile phones
12. Adoption of western culture without deeper understanding
13. Climate change
14. Increase in TV
15. Increase in wrong habits like tobacco
16. New diseases like swine flu
17. Increase in usage of plastic
18. Reduction in cultural values (no help in building houses, low participation in festivals)
19. Availability of computer
20. Increase in corruption (people openly ask for it and are not ashamed of it)
21. Big dams

• When asked about the wish list, following were the responses in order of their priorities (based on number of people from the group wishing it to happen)

1. Road, transport, electricity improvement
2. Improvement in social web
3. Improvement in healthcare
4. Reduction in corruption
5. Save forest and plant more trees
6. Reduction in use of plastic
7. Save culture
8. Exposure to complete knowledge through centers in their village 

• Following were the responses when asked what changes do you want in your personal life

1. No 24×365 life
2. Be helpful to others
3. Learn farming
4. Self organization
5. One travel every year
6. Improve farming
7. Improve financial status
8. Increase in new knowledge
9. Develop new mindsets with changing world

It was good to hear people speak up – something I couldnt have imagines unless the environment created by Michael and Swati. Ishwar brought up a very good insight during the discussion that often we all say that these tribal people should speak up but they are used to going to the field in the morning and coming back late, having dinner and then going to sleep. So, even in their everyday life, they are not used to talking much. How can then one expect them to speak up to a stranger.
Amusingly, quite a lot of people remarked that a lot of questions asked by Michael and Swati are much more difficult than answering the exam questions even if it is boards of 10th or 12th. Indeed they are difficult but unless we think, we will not get out of the comforts of status quo and will not desire for the change.