About the Muthuvan tribe:
- These people live in the border hill forests of Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
- They speak slightly different dialects and call each other Malayalam Muthuvan and Pandi Muthuvan.
- They are animists and spirit worshippers and also worship the forest gods.
- They believe that the spirits of their ancestors were the first migrants to the hill forests.
- They are known for coexisting with wildlife with their traditional knowledge.
- These tribal people follow a unique system of governance called the 'Kani System'.
- Under this system, each village is headed by a 'Kani', who is responsible for the administration of the village.
- They are experts in traditional medicines, which are extremely effective, and the medicine is kept confidentially and passed down through generations.
- Occupation: Agriculture is the main occupation of these Muthuvan tribes, producing quite a number of products like ragi, cardamom and lemon grass.
What is Project Tahr?
- Under this project, the Tamil Nadu government plans to develop a better understanding of the Nilgiri Tahr population through surveys and radio telemetry studies
- Reintroduce the Tahrs to their historical habitat
- Address proximate threats.
- Increase public awareness of the species
- Time period: The project is to be implemented for 5 year period from 2022 to 2027.
