New Year, New Project Launched! 

FYF has been working with adivasi, tribal, communities living in Chhattisgarh, central-eastern since 2001 to help them  improve their incomes, access public services and secure their rights. The Bhuvan project has been established to build on the success of our existing work and respond to the need, and demand, in neighbouring districts.

The History: Income, Land and Basic Rights

The  adivasi, account for approximately 8% of India’s enormous population yet their very existence is under threat.

The majority of adivasis live quite separately from the rest of Indian society. They live in remote hilly or forested areas and have their own languages, belief systems and cultural practices.  The adivasis’ distinct way of life has resulted in their exclusion from mainstream Indian society, and they often face extreme social, political and economic discrimination.

 In 2006, however, the landmark Forest Rights Act legislation, lobbied for by FYF and our partners, sought to address this ‘historical injustice’. It recognised the right of adivasis to access and manage land and forests they have lived and depended on for centuries, promising an end to land loss and displacement. Unfortunately, there has been little attempt to enforce the Act and, instead, exploitation of adivasi lands for hydropower, minerals and timber has intensified, as has the setting up of large scale plantations and protected wildlife parks.

As a result, over 85% of adivasis currently live in poverty and the land that they have lived, worked and survived on for centuries is under threat.

The Future: Bhuvan Project

The Bhuvan project (meaning ‘land and forests’), has been funded by a grant from the European Union and was launched in January 2011. 

FYF will collaborate with established local partners in three districts of Chhattisgarh address the identified needs of the adivasi communities.

Over 3 years the Bhuvan project will work to empower tribal communities to understand and put their rights into practise by: