Livelihoods of Vulnerable People: An Ethnographic Study Among the Birhor of Chhattisgarh

Abstract

Vulnerable people (VP) lack in access to resources, development benefits, such as education, health, infrastructure and basic means of livelihoods. They are considered disadvantaged in comparison to other groups in relation to access to resources and other entitlements. VP, such as women, person with disability, people living with HIV/AIDS, sexual minorities, poor migrants, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes often face numerous discrimination. One such vulnerable group known as Birhor, a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group from the Chhattisgarh state of central India, is the focus of this article. The main purpose of the article is to look into their livelihood complexities in the contemporary period. This article is an outcome of an ethnographic fieldwork among Birhor, in Umaria Dadar Tribal settlement, Kota block of Bilaspur District, Chhattisgarh. The article draws its inferences based on both primary and secondary data. The primary data is collected from the study area by using different anthropological tools and techniques. The secondary data is gathered from the Birhor Vikas Abhikaran (Birhor development agency), Bilaspur, and both published and unpublished reports of the government and civil society agencies, and other sources. The article looks into the inherent intricacies of livelihood approaches and vulnerability looking at the vicissitudes of livelihoods of Birhors. The major finding of the article is that Birhor people are slowly and steadily moving towards a settled life from their traditional life of hunting and gathering. They are accepting now the new sociocultural lifestyles in the study area.