The Bonda people, living in hilltop villages on the Kondakamberu mountain range in Odisha, are one of the 13 Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) in the state.Rising temperatures and deforestation, along with poor development and insurgency by radical groups, have impacted the traditional practices and lifestyle of the Bonda tribal community.Community members are abandoning their ancestral villages and migrating in search of a livelihood. The Bonda people, scattered across 32 remote hilltop villages on the Kondakamberu mountain range of the Eastern Ghats in the Malkangiri district of Odisha, are one of the 13 particularly vulnerable tribal groups (PVTGs) in Odisha. They are believed to be part of the first wave of migration out of Africa about 60,000 years ago. They were the first forest settlers in India. As per the 2011 census, the population of the Bonda community was 12,231 in which females outnumbered the males. But over the past few years, this group has been impacted by climate change, changing agricultural and hunting practices, rising temperature and water scarcity across the Bonda hills. Bonda Hills at Khairput block of Malkangiri district of Odisha. Photo by Tanmoy Bhaduri. As you enter through Khairput roughly 60 kms from Malkangiri district, multiple footpaths leading towards Bonda villages with thatch and clay tile huts. The Bonda hills have their dwellers at various heights, and those residing near the foothill region are known as the Lower Bondas who are relatively more mainstreamed than their counterparts in the upper regions. The Upper Bondas are more disadvantaged. The Bondas maintain their traditional customs and their language, Remo, though many are getting familiar with Odia as well. Tangible development still eludes the tribe, though the government claims that huge sums of money have been spent for the socio-economic uplift of the community. Typical Bonda settlement at Mudulipada panchayat in Bonda hills. Photo by Tanmoy Bhaduri. Sambari Kirshani, a member of the Bonda tribe from the Mudulipada village of Odisha, has to walk a long distance downhill to get to the nearest Chuyanh (small stream). If she does not, she and her family will have to go without water. So is the case with Budai Dora and Gurbani Kirshani. For these Bonda women, these streams located far from their habitat flowing down the Bonda hill, are the only sources of drinking water in the area. But what has made their problem even more severe is the rising temperature. With the heat at its peak and water sources drying up fast, almost all villages located on the hill-top are facing acute water shortage.
