Accessibility, development and contentment: A critical study of the kanis of the Kottur forest ecosystem, Kerala, southern India

The tribals are an integral component of forests and their socioeconomic upliftment has been a perpetual topic of discussion for the last few decades. Tribal societies in contemporary India are heading towards a paradigm shift with respect to their increasing exposure to the arena of development and related changes, which enflames the conflict of interest between development and ecological conservation. Sustainable development calls for uniform development of all societies, but even basic infrastructures like adequate roads and bridges are denied for many tribal communities in the name of ecological conservation. The study analyses whether the present status of accessibility has any role in socioeconomic development and forest dependency of Kanis, a tribal group residing in forested areas of Thiruvananthapuram district and evaluates whether the life of Kanis is enhanced through improvements in accessibility. The study points out that the four factors (Accessibility, Socioeconomic progress, Reliance on Forest and Inhabitant’s content on the living system) are related to each other in some way. The quality of the tribal living system should be maintained in order to conserve the forest ecosystem.