Paliyar Tribe

Paliyar Tribe Latest News

18 families having patta in Nochiodai, a remote settlement of the Paliyar tribe located 32 km inside the Srivilliputhur-Megamalai Tiger Reserve (SMTR), recently received solar power supply.

About Paliyar Tribe

• They are one of the many ethnic Dravidian (ethnolinguistic and cultural) tribes in Southern India. 
• They are a Scheduled Tribe primarily located in the South Western Ghats montane rain forests of Tamil Nadu and eastern Kerala. 
• They are and have been known by multiple names, such as the Paliyans, Palaiyars, Pazhaiyares, and Panaiyars. 
• Language: They primarily speak a dialect related to Tamil, reflecting their Dravidian linguistic heritage.
• Occupation: 
  • Traditionally, the Paliyars were hunters and gatherers.
  • Many have transitioned into traders of forest products, food cultivators, and beekeepers.
  • Some work as wage laborers on plantations or in nearby towns. 
• Their major source of food is yams.  
• They are recognized for their extensive knowledge and traditional practices pertaining to the use of medicinal plants.  
• Palliyars have small communities called kudis, sometimes living in caves or mud shelters. 
• They bury their dead near their homes.  
• Their festivals involve nature-based rituals, dancing, and music.
• They have a special ceremony to invoke rain and protect the forest spirits.

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Key Facts about Srivilliputhur-Megamalai Tiger Reserve 

• It is located in the state of Tamil Nadu.
• It lies in the ecologically sensitive Western Ghats region.
• It was formed in February 2021 by combining Grizzled Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary and Megamalai Wildlife Sanctuary.
• It functions as a connecting link between Kerala’s Periyar Tiger Reserve and Tamil Nadu’s Southern Kalakkad-Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve.
• Rivers: The area primarily relies on three perennial rivers: Vaigai, Suruliyaru, and Shanmuganathi.
• The climate of the reserve is influenced by both the southwest and northeast monsoons.
• Vegetation: It’s a blend of tropical evergreen and semi-evergreen forests, dry deciduous and moist mixed deciduous woods, and grasslands.
• Flora: Some notable plant species in the reserve include Teak, Indian Rosewood, Bamboo species, Wild fig trees, Evergreen shrubs, and medicinal plants.
• Fauna:
  • Mammals: Elephants, Tiger, Leopard, Nilgiri Tahr, Gaur, Spotted Deer, Barking Deer, Sambar Deer, Wild Boar, Porcupine, Nilgiri Langur, Lion-Tailed Macaque, etc.
  • It is particularly celebrated as the last known stronghold of the Grizzled Giant Squirrel (Ratufa macroura), a spectacular arboreal mammal found only in a handful of locations in peninsular India and Sri Lanka. 
  • Birds: Red-Whiskered Bulbul, Common Iora, White-Browed Wagtail, Grey Wagtail, Pied Bush Chat etc.
  • Reptiles: Wood Snake, Monitor Lizard, Chameleon, etc.

News: NIE