Tribal Bengal: Life in the Sub-Himalayan Terai Duars

West Bengal is now home to approximately 5.3 million tribal people, who form around five per cent of India’s total tribal population. In the state itself, they comprise 5.80% of the total population. It can be said that of the people of Bengal, one in every 17 belongs to a tribal community. It is this little-known world of the tribals that this book presents. Contemporary stories and photographs, taken by the author, bring alive many incidents in the lives of these fascinating people. Tribal Bengal: Life in the Sub-Himalayan Terai Duarsis is divided into two parts—Indo-Mongoloids and the Proto-Australoids and Others. Each chapter offers glimpses of the tribal people, their customs and celebrations, the languages spoken and their lifestyle. These are some of the earliest people in the subcontinent who are struggling to cope with the changing socio-economic landscape of the country. This book is an intimate account of their day-to-day life, marked by both joys and sorrows.