Asur Tribes in Netarhat to Get Forest Land Rights

The Asur community, a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG), residing in the Netarhat plateau region of Gumla, will soon receive benefits under the Forest Rights Act (FRA).

Background:

The Asur community has not yet been officially given ownership papers for individual forest rights or community forest rights. The community, believed to be one of the oldest iron-melting tribes, has been living in the Netarhat plateau region for centuries.

Development:

The Gumla district administration has taken steps to assist the genuine claimants to forest rights and authenticate the legitimacy of their claims.

1. A district-level committee (DLC) under the FRA, comprising the deputy commissioner (DC) and the divisional forest officer (DFO), has been formed to facilitate the process.
2. The DC and DFO visited the Asur settlement — Lupungpat — to understand their situation and problems.

Current Status:

1. 18 members of the Asur tribe have applied for forest (land) deeds.
2. The DC and DFO discussed their forest rights and inquired about their issues related to drinking water, electricity, and various welfare measures meant for them.

Forest Rights:

The Asur tribe's rights will be recognized after all the paperwork is completed.

• The DC said that their visit was to understand the gram sabha meeting for deciding 18 individual forest rights claims.

Other Initiatives:

1. The administration also intends to cover the Asur tribe under various government schemes to bring a change in their lifestyle.
2. A new multipurpose centre is going to come up in Lupungpat soon.

About Asur Community:

The Asurs are a small Austro-Asiatic ethnic group living primarily in the Indian state of Jharkhand.

1. They are included in the list of Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs).
2. As per the 2011 census, the tribe has a population of around 23,000.
3. They speak the Asur language, which belongs to the Munda family of Austro-Asiatic languages.

Occupations:

1. Asurs are traditionally iron-smelters.
2. They were once hunter-gatherers, having also involved in shifting agriculture.
3. Majority of them shifted into agriculture, with 91.19 percent enlisted as cultivators in the 2011 census.

Society:

1. The Asur society is divided into 12 clans.
2. Family is the second-most prominent institution after the clan.
3. They have their own community council (jati panch) where disputes are settled.

Religion:

• The Asur religion is a mixture of animism, animatism, naturalism, and ancestral worships.

Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs):

1. PVTGs are a more vulnerable group among tribal groups in India.
2. These groups have primitive traits, geographical isolation, low literacy, zero to negative population growth rate, and backwardness.
3. Currently, there are 2.8 million PVTGs belonging to 75 tribes across 22,544 villages in 220 districts across 18 states and Union Territories in India.

Challenges:

1. The Asur tribe faces challenges in terms of accessing education, healthcare, and other basic amenities.
2. They are also vulnerable to exploitation by outsiders.

Conclusion:

The recognition of forest rights for the Asur tribe is a significant step towards empowering them and improving their livelihoods. The administration's efforts to cover them under various government schemes will also help to bring a change in their lifestyle.

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