Eminent folklorist and Director of Institute of Folklore, Thiruvananthapuram, N. Bhakthavatsala Reddy, on Saturday regretted that the treasure trove of tribal literature in the Telugu-speaking areas was lying unexplored and precious little was done to protect and preserve this intangible wealth.
Delivering keynote at the inaugural session of a two-day seminar on ‘Tribal Literature in Telugu-Speaking Areas’ here, Mr. Reddy said: “We have already lost valuable tribal literature. It is time the government woke up to the need of conducting folklore and linguistic surveys.”
The event was organised by the Sahitya Akademi in collaboration with the Department of Language and Culture, Government of Andhra Pradesh.
Eminent Telugu writer and recipient of Sahitya Akademi award K. Enoch said at events like this served as a reminder that the governments could not afford to leave behind the tribal population and there was a dire need to promote their languages and literature.
“It is like ‘leaving out’ 7-8 persons from a group of our own 100-odd people. The government’s efforts should aim at developing the communities in their habitats instead of depriving them of their homes in forests and hills. You cannot severe a branch of a tree and think of nurturing it to a full-fledged tree,” he said.
