Andamanese threatened by development

Andamanese threatened by development

The indigenous population of the Andaman and Nicobar islands might very soon be extinct. Today the combined population of the four indigenous tribal groups -- the Jarawaha, the Onge, the Sentilese and the Great Andamanese -- number about 400. In 1858, they numbered 3000. This was before the British set up their penal colony in the islands. British rule bought in its wake diseases such as syphilis, opthalmia and measles. And, the lives of the once peace-loving semi-nomadic hunters and fishermen were imperilled.

Their exhaustive knowledge of the local flora and fauna had enabled the indigenous Andamanese to thrive on the islands. Botanists have pointed out that the islanders were acquainted with no less than 164 species of trees and plants. The preponderance of plants in the descriptive terminology of the Andaman islanders is testimony to the importance of forest products in their daily lives.

The development policies of the post-independence Indian state put paid to any chances of regeneration in the fortunes of the indigenous Andamanese. Until 1967, the Onge were left free to roam the 270 square mile island, but with the clearing of the forest and the encroachment of settlements, the surviving Onge population was confined to two reserves: Dugong Creek on the east coast of the Indian Ocean and South Bay along its southern coast. At first, the islanders were encouraged to barter coconuts, resin and honey at the local cooperative store. But this practice soon became a mere formality. Today the Onge receive rations without any binding commitment on their part to reciprocate in kind. The very challenge of survival in their lives has been eliminated.

Earlier, the various groups of Andaman islanders, including the Onge, were accustomed to spending the long monsoon season in large, circular communal huts. The significance of these communal huts as important ritual centres has been demonstrated by the discovery of human burials beneath the floors of several huts by the Italian anthropologist, Lidio Cipriani. But these dwellings went out of vogue when the Public Works Department of the Government of India condescended to house them in ugly hovels. The South Bay Onge soon abandoned these and moved to temporary shelters that afford more shade and conforms to the islanders traditional pattern of living.

An integral part of the Andaman islanders' economy involved a ritual taboo over certain plants so that they could exercise partial control over the collection of important plant foods, thereby ensuring a steady supply of these resources. Thus a taboo was imposed on harvesting the tuber of Dioscorea glabra during the season of new growth in the belief that Puluga -- the mythic being connected with the northeast monsoon -- needed the yams at that time. A similar taboo protected the seed-crop of Entada scandens and the palm-cabbages of Caryota sobolifera.

In Little Andaman Island, the honey-collecting season usually commences at the onset of warmer weather. Before approaching a beehive, the collector chews the leaves of the Orophea katschallica and applies its paste to his arms and face, which deters the bees from stinging him. The honey is then poured into a wooden bucket and taken back to camp. The seasonal collection of honey and the care taken to minimise damage to the trees on which hives are built, ensures year-round supply of this prized foot item. The forest offers delicacies such as the pupae of the cicada which are roasted as a great treat. The white larvae of the long-horned grasshopper are also consumed with relish. But, killing of birds is forbidden as they are supposed to harbour the spirits of the dead.

This lifestyle based on a symbiotic relationship with nature is now all but extinct. It is apparent that a forager economy is ill suited to a sudden change, to one that incorporates alien food items such as flour, rice and oil. I do not suggest that the Andaman Islanders should remain marginalised but they should be encouraged to use their exhaustive knowledge of the environment.

Zarine Cooper is an archaeologist who works in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands