Dayamani Barla, tribal social activist from Jharkhand challenged indigenous peoples to come out of their “ghetto mentality” (living in isolation) of working for individual tribes and work collectively.
Ms. Dayamani, was speaking at the 22nd International day of the World’s Indigenous People held at St. Xavier’s School, New Delhi on August 9, 2016.

Article 31 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People (UNDRIP) gives emphasis to the indigenous people to protecting their cultural heritage and other aspects of their culture and tradition, which is extremely important in preserving their heritage.

It recognizes and honour diverse indigenous cultures and traditions to appreciate the achievements and valuable contributions of an estimated 370 million indigenous peoples worldwide.

Focused on “Indigenous Peoples’ Right to Education”, the event aimed to bringing tribal youth together on one platform and create an awareness of common identity and dignity. It also aimed to create awareness among tribal youth and children, living in Delhi-NCR, about their tribal values, cultures and practices etc. and to become aware of the struggles that tribals face in modern times and collectively find a way forward.
Ms. Roma Rashmi Ekka, film actress from tollywood and special guest at the occasion, insisted the gathering of more than 3000 people to openly assert their tribal values and rights.

Indigenous tribal culture and heritage is fading into the commercialized urban setup but the event tried to revive the tradition through cultural dances, nukkad-nataks, tribal fashion show and deliberations by some prominent tribal leaders and academicians.

Tribal fashion show was the special attraction of the event where tribal youth presented a fusion of traditional and modern dresses, all made of tribal traditional clothes, ornaments and artefacts.
A documentary “Loha Garam Hai” was also screened to showcase the impact of deforestation, mining and other allied developmental activities on the lives of tribals.

The celebration was well organized by the Department of Tribal Studies (DTS) of the Indian Social Institute (ISI) with the help of Fr. Ranjit Tigga as HOD in collaboration with the tribal youth of Delhi-NCR and financial support of Caritas India, CASA, Indian Social Institute (ISI) and IGSSS.