They are no longer criminalised by the law. But nomadic and denotified tribal communities continue to be harassed by the police and neglected by the state.
New Delhi [India], October 31 (ANI/PNN): Around 200 disadvantaged children and their families from Jahora village in Rajasthan were given the opportunity to enjoy the festival of lights, Diwali, with great zeal. Thanks to Deana Uppal, a British Indian and the founder of DKU Kindness Diaries Trust, for delivering sweets, firecrackers, basics, and educational kits to children from the financially deprived section to make their Diwali unforgettable. A former Miss India UK and director of 'India's Forgotten People' film on Netflix, Deana established the charitable trust to help underprivileged children with access to education, food, medical supplies, and skill upgradation and to make them 'Aatmanirbhar' (self-dependent). Deana said, "I always love coming to India and spending time with the families we have been supporting, I am always welcomed with so much affection. I like to see how the families we have been supporting are progressing and improving year by year.
Mental Justice of the NT-DNTs in Context of the Pandemic
Mental justice of Nomadic and Denotified Tribes (NT-DNTs) should be the most important aspect of their overall access to social justice. Mental health needs to be redefined as a justice issue, especially in the context of marginalised communities. The NT-DNTs being perhaps one of the earliest communities worldwide to be criminalised for dissenting, the ramifications have acutely affected their mental justice over the last 150 years. This has worsened during the current pandemic. The article puts forth recommendations for the mental and therefore overall justice of NT-DNTs.
The author belongs to the Gadiya Lohar Ghisadi nomadic tribe, one of the many Nomadic and Denotified Tribes (NT-DNTs) of India, who form 15% of the total population. Despite this large population, there is very little cultural or administrative understanding of these communities that goes beyond the false and offensive view of them being “criminals.”