Hello,

You have likely heard of the Asur community. It is classified as a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group, and its members largely live in villages in Jharkhand. Every once in a while, the community receives attention in the media because of a particular cultural belief – while mainstream Hinduism regards the figure of Mahishasur as a demon, Asurs traditionally worship him.

But this longstanding interest in the community has done little to benefit it. Most of its members live in abject poverty, even as their lands are taken over by mining corporations who extract resources from them, and leave them carved up and unfertile.

“Before I began reporting this story I knew little about the Asurs except for the fact that they worshipped Mahishasur,” said Nolina Minj, who wrote about the community for Common Ground. “While reporting, it was saddening to find out that what they’re most known for forms only a minute part of their existence.”

She observed that in Gumla district, the Asurs “have a rich and dynamic culture but are also undergoing large-scale changes due to mining and modernity”.

The community’s lack of access to basic civic services, such as health and education was “glaring”, Minj said. She added that it “goes to show how little access to the benefits of industrialisation they’ve had, even as their land is mined for bauxite”.

You can read the story here

For Jharkhand’s Asurs, the present matters more than a mythic past

Though some of their cultural beliefs are widely known, the community’s extreme deprivation receives little attention.

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Ajay Krishnan,
Senior Editor