Coping with Changing Sociocultural Environment in Sundarban Islands: A Study of Munda Identity

After the abolition of the landlord system in the Indian Sundarban islands, the Munda people have concentrated more on agricultural activities. The tribal people have gone through changing sociocultural and economic processes to cope with the socio-physical environment in the Indian Sundarban but do not wish to convert to Hinduism. The enrichment of tribal identity and the development of a strong social consciousness among tribal people have created a space for interaction and symbiotic relationships within the community. The social consciousness of tribal identity is mainly a characteristic of the middle class, rather than the tribal community at large, but economic dependency governs the interactions between tribal and non-tribal people rather than concepts of purity and pollution. The infrastructural development in the Sundarban islands increases the flow of resources and the mobility of outsiders. Tribal villages are facing challenges due to the presence of new communities and settlements near the tribal hamlets. They have realized that tribal communities cannot be isolated from the socio-economic and political changes in Sundarban islands. It allows them to assimilate more with non-tribal people to adjust and adapt to changes. Socio-economic adaptation of the Munda people is a way to adjust to socio-economic changes in the Sundarban region without compromising much with their sociocultural identity. However, sociocultural adaptation is more about individual choices than community choices.