The Mishmi Case

Environmental Paradoxes in the ‘Spirit’ of Indigenous Belief Systems

Abstract

Given the often deep-rooted connection between tribes and nature, they are regarded as harbingers of environmental conservation in today's day and age. While this is true for the most part, many of their contemporary practices are misaligned with the values they behold or beheld historically. The Mishmi, descendants of a mongoloid stock occupying the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh,  have recently protested the creation of the Dibang Tiger Reserve which has brought tribal paradox to the forefront. This paper examines Mishmi’s nature resource consumption and conservation from the late 19th century up to contemporary times and attempts to highlight the other side of the story. The sources used are colonial travelogues, articles, government websites and IUCN lists with qualitative assessment done in most cases. Besides, vlogs are also used to understand contemporary conditions in the absence of field visits. The findings of this paper raise the question if tribes like Mishmi actually exploit nature or is it our “civilised” environmental ethics that compel us to make such remarks. It also reveals the urgency for a community-led conservation strategy which harnesses tribal myths and hunting taboos—an approach which can only be successful if diversification and stability in means of income are introduced.