• DR S KAMALA DEVI

India being a multi-racial, multi-lingual and multi-religious country, it should not surprise us with the fact that Indian society is not homogenous. The tribal groups, who live in big or small concentrations in the midst of forests or in areas which were largely inaccessible till recent times, occupy a prominent place among such groups. They are proud of their cultural heritage and lead a distinctive way of life. India has the second largest tribal population after Africa. Although they are minority in terms of the total population, they are significant in terms of their socio cultural and economic specificities in the South Indian history. The Malayali tribes who are living in Kolli hills, Pachamalai, Kalrayan hills, Shervaroyan hills and Jawathu hills are not the natives of these hills. The Malayalis who live in Shervaroy hills and Kalrayan hills are called Periya (Big) Malayali or the Kanchimandalam Malayalis. The inhabitants of the Kolli hills are known as China (Little) Malayalis. Those from the Pachamalai hills are called Nadu (Middle) Malayali .Their population as per the census of 1981 was 209.039. The Malayali tribes of Tamil Nadu, who reside mostly in the forest of kolli hills in Namakkal District have rich cultural and agricultural heritage. This paper aims at bringing out the Socio, Economic life of Malayali Tribe, and also the challenges they face in their day-to-day life.

Malayali tribes, Kolli hills, Pachamalai hills, Namakkal District, Marriages

"A STUDY ON SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC LIFE OF MALAYALI TRIBE IN KOLLI HILLS ", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.9, Issue 6, page no.i73-i82, June-2022, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2206810.pdf

"A STUDY ON SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC LIFE OF MALAYALI TRIBE IN KOLLI HILLS ", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.9, Issue 6, page no. ppi73-i82, June-2022, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2206810.pdf