Cholanaikkan Tribe : New Scope
In a novel attempt to provide education to a bed-ridden girl belonging to the Cholanaikkan tribe, the Samagra Shiksha Kerala programme of the general education department has prepared 30 audio-visual texts in the tribe’s own distinct language.
- They are a diminishing tribe of India. With a population of less than 400 members, it is one of the most isolated tribes.
- They reside deep inside the Karulai and Chungathara forest ranges of Western Ghats.
- This is in the Nilambur region of the Malappuram district in Kerala.
- They are classified as a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG).
- The community prefers to stay isolated and away from both agrarian and urban lifestyles.
- They are among those unique tribes that still depend largely on forest produce for their survival.
- Also known as “Caveman of Kerala”, even to the present date, they use natural caves as a safe dwelling space in the forest.
- The community speaks a distinct Dravidian language called Cholanaikkan.
