The second National Tribal Literary Festival concluded in New Delhi, with calls for greater inclusion of tribal literature in university curricula, translation initiatives and mainstream publishing, as writers and scholars discussed ways to preserve indigenous languages and oral storytelling traditions.
The two-day festival, organised by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs at the India Habitat Centre, brought together writers, poets, researchers and linguists representing 27 languages, including 23 tribal languages. The event was held as part of the Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas celebrations under the theme 'From Oral Tradition to Contemporary Tribal Literature'.
Summing up the proceedings, Dr K Srinivasa Rao, former Secretary of the Sahitya Akademi, stressed the need to give tribal literature greater recognition in higher education and publishing. He called for stronger translation efforts and the inclusion of indigenous literary works in university curricula to make them accessible to wider audiences.
During the valedictory session, Tribal Affairs Secretary Ranjana Chopra called for sustained support for authors writing in indigenous languages and better opportunities for them to connect with publishers and readers.
She also outlined the Ministry's plans to facilitate a dedicated section for tribal literature at the National Book Trust's forthcoming book fair at Pragati Maidan, where tribal authors and publishers would be able to present their works to a larger readership.
The concluding day's discussions examined how indigenous languages, oral narratives and community knowledge could be incorporated into education, particularly at the early childhood level.
A session moderated by Dr Rao brought together Anil Kumar Boro, Sylvanus Lamare and Parvati Tirkey to discuss the role of traditional songs, stories and oral histories in multilingual education.
The speakers emphasised the importance of using children's mother tongues and cultural experiences in learning. They also discussed documentation, translation and technology as ways to preserve indigenous languages and make community knowledge available to future generations.
Another session, moderated by Prakash Jha, examined the oral epics and heroic traditions of tribal communities. Speakers Bhagwandas Patel, Upendra Anu and Mayanglambam Sadanand Singh discussed the Gond Ramayana, Bhil Mahabharata, Manipur's Wari Leeba storytelling tradition and the Khamba-Thoibi epic.
The discussions called attention to the importance of audio-visual documentation and research, while recognising community storytellers as custodians of oral histories and cultural knowledge.
The festival also featured story and poetry readings by emerging and established tribal writers. Neeta Kusum Bilung, Ramesh Karthik Nayak and Vasanth Kumar V P presented their works during a session chaired by Mahadev Toppo.
A poetry session moderated by Jogamaya Chakma featured K Vasamalli, Kriri Mog Chowdhury, Babu Sangda, Hirjir Ingti Katharpi, Gopi Krishna Soni, Marina Ekka, Sudha Chauhan and Anjali Belagal.
The Ministry also presented Living Roots Originals, an initiative developed with the Indian Performing Right Society to recognise and protect the creative rights of tribal musicians and performers.
Inaugurating the festival, Union Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram had called for systematic documentation of tribal literature, folk songs, folktales and oral traditions.
The Minister said preservation efforts should involve writers, musicians, folk artists and digital content creators, particularly as several tribal languages lack a written script and some dialects face the risk of disappearing.
He also announced that the Ministry would collaborate with the Sahitya Akademi and other organisations working to preserve and promote tribal literature.
The festival was held ahead of Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas on November 15, which commemorates the birth anniversary of tribal freedom fighter Birsa Munda.