Numbers Matter: Raji Tribe and Their (Limited) Interaction(s) with State Institutions

Abstract

With ethnographic documentation, the present study aims to portray the everyday life and social concerns of the Raji tribe, one of the particularly vulnerable tribal groups residing in Uttarakhand, India. The Raji community with their unique historicity, peculiar spatiality and uncommon understanding of their identity makes them very offbeat compared to other tribal communities. The narrations were documented from six villages ( Bhagichaura, Altadi, Kimkhola, Ganagaon, Bhagtiwara and Kutakumaonchaurani) in the Pithoragarh district, Uttarakhand. The immersive fieldwork in the Central Himalayas, Kumaon, was conducted from April 2021 to August 2022. The results of the study uncovered the structure of proxy politics, which hinders the efficient involvement of Rajis in the larger political sphere. This article also documents the narratives around changes in cultural landscapes due to forest management regulations. This article ends with a critical gaze on tribal policies, considering the precarious situation of the Raji community as its mainstay. The constraining lived worlds of the Raji community are the result of intersections of discrete presuppositions, institutions and social factors. In order to mitigate the existing challenges, Raji’s are continuously adjusting their social in accordance with the capitals they hold.