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The New lndialn the early 21st century, lndiais experiencing unprecedentedeconomic growth. The middleclass is becoming moreprosperous and numerous, thecities are rapidly expanding. Butto fuel this economic boom, rawmaterials are being extracted bymining corporations at an ever-increasing rate from states innorth-central India inhabited bypeople who can claim to be theoldest dwellers on the land.These non-Hindu tribalgroups, known as Adivasi,have traditionally worshippednature and maintained spiritualconnections to the ancestral

territory where they have lived for thousands of years. Yet fewAdivasi hold paper deeds to their land. As mining spreads, Adivasiare being displaced into resettlement camps or urban slums wherethey lose all links with their old way of life.A growing economic gap between urban and rural lndia, and theimpact of mining and other industrial projects on agricultural life,are leading to militant insurgency in the countryside and promptingdebate within the government and beyond. Should lndia continueon its centralised model of development? Can the rights of theAdivasi to continue to live according to their ancient traditions beaccommodated in the new lndia?

Jharkhand's ancient traditionsWhile tribal groups live all over the subcontinent, some of thelargest numbers reside in the state of Jharkhand, north-eastlndia. They have traditionally depended upon their environmentfor their livelihood, hunting and gathering in the once-abundantforests and farming on open land. They worship the trees, riversand mountains and also their ancestors whose burial stones andancient rock-art paintings dot the landscape.

r,. 'itAfter every monsoon, the women decorate the walls of their mudhouses with vibrant figures of men, animals and flowers, symbolswhich have been traced back to the earliest artistic traditionsfound in rock-art sites and reflect a deep connection to the naturalworld.

Rich land, poor peopleApproximately 40o/o oflndia's mineral depositslie beneath the soil ofJharkhand. While thestate was established in2000 with the hope ofgiving more autonomyto Adivasi, out-of-state corporationsand national miningcompanies haverushed in to exploitthe rich naturalresources. Open-cast mining of coal,iron ore and bauxiteis devastating theJharkhandi landscape.Underground coal firesburn out of control.Elsewhere, rivers arebeing dammed forhydro-electricprojects I

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to provide power for distant cities and for industry. Dispossessedof their heritage and bearing the brunt of the environmentaldestruction caused by industrial development, many Adivasibecome scavengers on the periphery of mines where they oncehunted and farmed. As in other countries, the "resource curse"of a rich land but poor people has been visited on the originalinhabitants of Jharkhand and lndia's other mining states - withdevastating consequences.