Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya organised on Friday another chapter of its popular series, Curatorial Talk Show, where Assistant Keeper of Manav Sangrahalaya, P Sankara Rao will speak on ‘Tribes of Pachmarhi: Some Anthropological Observations’. The programme was chaired Prof Sarit Kumar Chaudhari (Director, IGRMS).
The present paper deals with nine tribal village of Pachmarhi i.e. Dhana Pagara 2 Moargam 3 Singanama 4 Ghana 5 Matkuli 6 Chakar 7 Jamundonga 8 Raikheda 9 Bariam inhabited by Gonds, Korku, Bharia and Movasi tribes in different geo-ecological locations of the district.
In his lecture, Rao bring out some anthropological observations particularly ethnography, environment, religion including oral traditions such as folktales, legends, superstitions and myths reflect the collective community image through individual and group behavior.
In his lecture he gave focus on material cultural elements particularly tribal house types, high degree of specialization of labour skills, sacred mountain peaks and various cultural features as food, shelter, transportation, family organization, religious beliefs and language.
Rao also explained the dynamic drives of tribe of Pachmarhi i.e. goals, ambitions, value-systems and prestige which provide the spark for the tribal society.
In context of ecology, he said the most picturesque Pachmarhi Biosphere Reserve (PBR) displays a large variety in forest cover, ranging from dry thorn to tropical dry deciduous, moist deciduous and semi-evergreen forests. There is a considerable variation in the vegetation due to immense heterogeneity of soil, geology, temperature and moisture conditions. On the basis of forest composition, three major types have been identifies, teak, Sal and mixed forests.
Explaining the research methodology, Rao said that during the field work done in May, 2014 and collected 132 ethnographic objects that reflects the material cultural diversity among the tribes in Pachmarhi. “We also documented food security, storage and environmental management in sustainable manner,” he added.