• R.R.KAVITHA

Reviews of the Narikuravar in South India. 1MRS.R.R.KAVITHA, 2DR.RENUKA. 1Ph.D. SCHOLAR, 2GUIDE. Rani Meyyammai College of Nursing. Annamalai University. Tamilnadu, India, Introduction: The ethnic group of the Narikuravars are attributed to an extremely underprivileged status in the Indian Society. They neither have access to necessary resources for survival, such as drinking water or sanitation facilities, nor to formal education. The following are some of the problems that are confronting the Narikuravar Community: Discrimination There has been discrimination of Narikuravar since ancient times. Due to their consumption of animals and places of settlement and other habits, they are classified as untouchables as per the Hindu Varna system and are excluded from streets inhabited by upper castes. The Narikuravar have been recognized as scheduled tribes in 2023 by the central government of India. The discrimination of the Narikuravars in Tamil Nadu is obvious, almost palpable. Like other communities categorized with the derogatory term “Gypsy,” the Narikuravar community is often labelled as “dirty,” “uncivilized,” “uneducated,” “rude,” “aggressive” and “drunk.” Illiteracy: Permanent settlement has enabled Narikuravar children to go to school. There, they mix and make friends with Tamil children, and they learn to speak, read, and write in the Tamil language. There are around fifteen special schools providing education for the Narikuravar, which are financed by NGOs, Christian missionaries, or the state, but the drop-out rate is high, and only few pupils complete plus-two. High Crime rates and Unemployment: High crime rates and unemployment are other problems which afflict the Narikuravar community. The proscriptions of fox-hunting as well as killing endangered species of birds and wildlife have depleted the Narikuravars of their traditional sources of livelihood. As a result, unemployed Narikurava youth are taking to crime and illegal activities. There have also been instances when Narikuravars have been arrested for the possession of unregistered firearms as country rifles which are banned according to the Indian laws. Fight for Their Rights: The Narikuravars’ Fight for their Rights a community’s voice has been unheard. The Narikuravar community is unaware of how to get a birth certificate. As a result of which many children do not have this basic document. Because Narikuravars traditionally do not keep records of “Since many of our people are not aware of this documentation process, they struggle at every stage of life to get necessities like ration from Public departmental stores,” Child Marriage: Early marriage is a big threat for this community. 90% of the children get marriage before the age of 14 years. It denies the young an opportunity to grow and empower themselves. It challenges girl child the basic right of these children to education, health, protection and development. The girls are forced into it a lot more, in comparison to their male counterparts which consequently impacts girls with more intensity. Lack of Empowerment. The nomadic communities have been at the margin of the political system. Since they do not have a permanent residence, they have not been able to obtain an Identity Card‘, or any other proof of their being a citizen of the state. Their names do not exist in the list of voters List in any area. As a consequence of this, they are debarred from all those ventures that require a proof of their citizenship. They are denizens of the nation without the rights of citizenship. If the Narikuravar Community has to be given a fair chance to develop themselves and lead a socially satisfactory life, then there must be a concerted effort on the part of the Government, Civic Organizations to play an enabling role in their up-lift to an Empowered Status in the Society. Gender Equity: Gender equity is in practice within Narikuravar community. Though this being the case most of the women in the community are being exploited and discriminated in forms of Early marriage, reproduction without any planning and control, superstitions, myths and taboos, and child labour. Since Narikuravar women are skilled in making plastic flower and other decorative items of plastic flowers, newer product could be identified through training and capacity building including sourcing potential markets for the sustainable income generation. Health status: The established health services have assumed a supervisory role for the Narikuravar by carrying out various programmes administered by village nurses, which aim at health improvement. The health status of individuals, as well as general health provision, varies greatly from colony to colony. Conclusion: Narikuravars are widely known as nomadic communities having their own unique way of life and beliefs. Most of the communities live in poor living conditions and are deprived of basic amenities, such as toilets, water, electricity, etc. Given their low education level and limited mathematical skills, we have found a lack of understanding of how to properly calculate their profit, and thus daily or monthly income. Given that poverty drastically impacts access to health care. Bibliography: 1. Zafiu M; Joseph Wharton Scholars.(2021) Health Access for Vulnerable groups: A Study on the “Gypsy” Narikuravar Community in Tamil Nadu, India. 2. Mathai EK, Vijayakumar K; SIL International. (2021) A Sociolinguistic Survey among the Vaagri Booli Speakers of South India 3. Dhivya L N, Prabhu D, Raj Mohan.(2019) Accessibility and barriers to oral health care among gypsy tribes in Chennai: a cross sectional study. Indian J Public Health Res Dev. 10:233–237. 4. Dragoir C L, Zafiu M. (2019)Vulnerable populations’ access to health care: a study of the nomadic ‘gypsy’ Narikuravars in Tamil Nadu, India. International Journal of Roma Studies. 1:58–83.

"Reviews of the Narikuravar in South India", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.10, Issue 10, page no.g173-g176, October-2023, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2310519.pdf

"Reviews of the Narikuravar in South India", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.10, Issue 10, page no. ppg173-g176, October-2023, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2310519.pdf