Jharkhand

• 17 Dec 2024

Birhor Tribe Joins Movement Against Child Marriage

Why in News? 

Recently, people belonging to the Birhor tribe, a particularly vulnerable tribal group in Jharkhand, have joined a movement against child marriage for the first time. 

 Key Points 

• Birhor Community: 
  • The Birhor people are a semi-nomadic tribal community, heavily forest-dependent, and economically and socially marginalized. 
  • For the first time, hundreds of Birhor community members in Jharkhand's Giridih district joined a movement against child marriage, a rampant practice within their community. 
• Awareness on Child Marriage Consequences: 
  • The Just Rights for Children Alliance (JRC) highlighted that the event marked the first awareness drive where the community was informed about the legalities and consequences of child marriage. 
  • Youth, children, women, and elders gathered under the glow of candles, taking a collective pledge to end child marriage and to report any such cases. 
• Support for Government Campaign: 
  • The marches were organized by Banvasi Vikas Ashram as part of the 'Bal Vivah Mukt Bharat' campaign, launched by the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development.  
    • Banvasi Vikas Ashram is one of 250 partner Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) under the JRC alliance. 
  • The ill effects of child marriage on children's health, education, and overall well-being were discussed to make the Birhor tribe aware of the social evil. 
    • JRC claimed to have stopped over 7,000 child marriages in Jharkhand between April and December 2024 through events in blocks, villages, and schools across all 24 districts. 
• High-Prevalence Districts: 
  • Jamtara, Deoghar, Godda, Giridih, Koderma, and Dumka were identified as districts with a higher prevalence of child marriage cases. 

 Birhor Tribe 

• Physical appearance: They are short, with long heads, wavy hair, and broad noses.  
• Language: Their language is similar to Santali, Mundari, and Ho.  
• Religion: They practice a combination of animism and Hinduism. The Sun God is their supreme deity, along with Lugu Buru and Budhimai.  
• Economy: The Birhor have a "primitive subsistence economy" based on hunting and gathering, but some have settled into agriculture. They make ropes from vine fibers to sell to nearby agricultural people.  
• Socioeconomic status: The Birhor are divided into two groups based on their socioeconomic status: the wandering Uthlus and the settled Janghis.