Introduction

The Adivasi Academy at Tejgadh, Gujarat, has been the signature project of Bhasha Research and Publication Centre, Vadodara. The Bhasha Centre was established in 1996 as a Public Trust for conservation and study of Adivasi languages and culture. The Bhasha Trust’s brief for itself was to establish a premier institution of national excellence for creating Tribal Studies as a field of serious intellectual and social-action field. It was desired that the scope of activities of the proposed institution would extend to all Adivasi and Nomadic communities in India, and if possible, to indigenous peoples in other continents as well. The institute was visualized as a combination of a university, a research centre, an activist-centre, a laboratory for experiments in development and a cultural expression forum, addressing all aspects of adivasi culture, history, society, rights and development.

The institution conceptualized by the Bhasha Trust started developing as a People’s Institution, and is given the name Adivasi Academy by the community of scholars and activists associated with it. The Academy was given a formal structure in 1999, and the first batch of Diploma students commenced on 15th August 2000, to mark the first Independence Day of the new millennium.

It was natural for the Bhasha Trust to choose an adivasi village for locating the Adivasi Academy. Tejgadh, situated on the borders between Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, was identified for this purpose. With its multidisciplinary approach to the field, and related activities aimed at Adivasi development, the Adivasi Academy is striving to combine research and academic excellence with development interventions. Since its inception in 1999, it has come to be seen by scholars involved in Tribal Studies and Tribal Development, as well as Adivasis and Nomadic Communities of India, as an eminent forum for study, analysis, policy intervention and advocacy.

With its unique approach to education and development, the Adivasi Academy, established by Bhasha Trust, has been recognized as a Center of Excellence by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. The Adivasi Academy is viewed by adivasi communities as a space for intellectual dialogue, imaginative expression and hope for a dignified future.