Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Aug 9: On ‘International Day of World’s Indigenous Peoples’, Tribal Research and Cultural Foundation organized a webinar.
Gujjar scholar, Dr Javaid Rahi while interacting with community youth in the webinar said that traditional knowledge and practices of migratory communities needs urgent documentations and preservations for times to come.
He also said that indigenous people of J&K especially nomadic Gujjar-Bakerwal communities possess traditional knowledge about bio-diversity of J&K and can play a pivotal role in its use and conservation.
Rahi claimed that handmade textiles, paintings, stories, legends, music, songs, rhythms and dances of nomadic Gujjars and Bakerwals are disappearing rapidly which needs disseminations and documentation at the earliest.
He further said that Gaddi and Sippi tribes of J&K are also practicing indigenous traditions and requires special focus.
Rahi said because of social exclusion there are no takers of tribal traditional knowledge and claimed that these tribals are still treated as primitive, uncivilized and unskilled which is away from the facts.
He impressed upon Universities of Jammu and Kashmir, Tribal Department, local non-governmental organisations etc to focus preservations of traditional knowledge and practices of tribals.
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