Tradition, Continuity and Conflict
in Jharkhand State

An exhibition supported by The Gandhi Foundation

© Robert Wallis

An exhibition of photography by Robert Wallis
and artwork by members of the Tribal Women’s Artist Collective from Jharkhand, North Central India

14th April – 25th June 2011

at The Brunei Gallery, SOAS, Thornhaugh Street, Russell Sq, London WC1H 0XG

In the early 21st century, India is experiencing unprecedented economic growth. The middle class is becoming more prosperous and numerous, the cities are rapidly expanding. But to fuel this economic boom, raw materials are being extracted by mining corporations at an ever‐increasing rate from mineral‐rich states in north central India inhabited by people who can claim to be the oldest dwellers in the land. These non‐Hindu tribal groups, known as Adivasi, have traditionally worshipped nature and maintained spiritual connections to ancestral territory where they have lived for thousands of years. Yet few Adivasi hold paper deeds to their land. As mining spreads, Adivasi are being displaced into resettlement camps or urban slums, dispossessed of their heritage and surviving as scavengers on the periphery of mines where they once hunted or farmed.

A growing economic gap between urban and rural India, and the so‐called “resource curse” of a rich land but poor people, is leading to militant insurgency in the countryside and prompting debate within the Indian government and beyond. Should India continue on its centralised model of development? Can the rights of Adivasi to continue living according to their ancient traditions be accommodated in the new India?

For more information and related events visit: www.soas.ac.uk/gallery

To download a brochure click here: A Disappearing World

Sunday 5th June at 3 – 5 pm

Burning Ground – Mining, Adivasis and India’s Civil War

A public forum with Arundhati Roy – whose new book Broken Republic examines the nature of progress and development in an emerging global superpower – in discussion with Felix Padel & Samarendra Das – authors of Out of This Earth (2010), which reveals the hidden finance and arms trade behind the aluminium industry connecting London to war-torn central India.

Moderator: Vinita Damodaran – Senior Lecturer in South Asian History

Free admission, but seating for the talk is limited.  To guarantee a place please RSVP by email: gallery@soas.ac.uk

Exhibition open from 1-7 pm on Sunday 5th June

Filed under: 1. News & Events, Adivasi Campaign, Reviews & Arts, South Asia | Tagged: economics, environment, Gandhi, India, politics | Leave a Comment »