Indigenous Animal Husbandry practices among tribes of Attappady, India

Tribes constitute about 1.14 per cent of the total population of Kerala (2001 census report). Attappady, the location of the present study, is the largest tribal settlement area of Kerala. The tribal folk of Attappady are the most backward among vulnerable ethnic groups of the state. They have a traditional economy depending mainly on land, livestock and forest. The population of (2001 Census) Attappady was 66,171 of which 27,121 belong to scheduled tribes. Tribes constitute about 41% of total population of Attappady, which comprises mainly of three ethnic groups, viz., "Irula", "Kurumba" and "Muduga". These tribes live in hamlets, which are a collection of a few families of the same community in a place. In the local language this is called as 'Ooru'. There are a total of 183 hamlets in Attappady, of which 140 belong to "Irulas", 24 belong to "Mudugas" and the remaining 19 hamlets belong to "Kurumbas". "Irulas" possess 84% of the hamlets, followed by "Mudugas" (10%) and "Kurumbas" (6%) the least number. This study is intended to explore the indigenous animal husbandry practices among tribes and there documentation which is the need of the hour for preservation of these folklores.