The Hindu : National : Concern over threat to tribals' survival

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Dec 30, 2004

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National

Concern over threat to tribals' survival

By Our Special Correspondent

MUMBAI, DEC. 29. Environmentalists have expressed concern over the fate of tiny groups of indigenous peoples living in the islands of Andaman and Nicobar, which have been devastated by the tsunami.

The Negritos are among the oldest inhabitants of these islands. There is already a threat to the survival of the people of the Jarawa, Onge, Sentinelese and Great Andamanese tribes in the Andaman Islands. While officially nothing is known about the fate of these people, there is widespread anxiety about their survival.

Pankaj Sekhsaria of the Pune-based Kalpavriksh Environmental Action Group and author of "Troubled Islands," a book on the Andaman and Nicobar islands, told The Hindu that the Great Nicobar Island was a stone's throw away from the epicentre of the earthquake near Sumatra — about 180 km away, and that could pose a threat to the Shompen tribe, which belongs to the Mongoloid group, of which are only 200 people are left. The Shompen inhabit this one large island in the Nicobar group but they also live in the interior parts of the island.

Mr. Sekhsaria said their survival depended on whether they were near the coastline at the time of the calamity. It would be difficult to assess the situation as the area was very remote and the damage potential was high. It may be recalled that after the first big earthquake around 7 am on December 26, there was another massive earthquake with its epicentre in Great Nicobar and 25 to 30 aftershocks in the area.

The indigenous Nicobarese people, who number approximately 10,000-15,000 on Central Nicobar comprising ten small islands, may also be badly affected. There are already press reports that half of the over 40,000 population of the Nicobar Islands bare untraceable. Samir Acharya of the environmental group Society for Andaman and Nicobar Ecology based in Port Blair said there was little information on the tribes and it was the vocal non-tribal communities which were being rescued and had more access to relief.

The Negrito tribe of Jarawa, which inhabits Middle and South Andamans, number about 270 and they have been pushed into the Jarawa reserves in dense forests. Till about six years ago, they had very little contact with the outside world. The Onges inhabit the island of Little Andamans and there are only about 100 or so left of this tribe. They have been facing massive problems regarding their cultural traditions and control over natural resources.

On the Sentinel Islands, there are about 100 Sentinelese left who are also a Negrito tribe. Mr. Sekhsaria said the island was flat and therefore the future of this small tribe was of great concern. About 30 Great Andamanese inhabit the Strait Island, which is northeast of Port Blair. These tribes with their minuscule populations were already under threat of survival.

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