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The cultural connotation of ecological parameters is one important dimension to evaluate the ethos of the people inhabiting in particular ecological niche. Where the conservation approach is a guiding mechanism to protect the pristine biodiversity, there is a need to analyse people-orientation towards this objective. This principle is relevant in the context of the evaluation of religious doctrine and worldview of the communities inhabiting in the “Biosphere Reserves” in India. On the basis of this theoretical proposition this article is based on emphasizing three major aspects viz. (a) society and ecological domain; (b) people’s understanding of non-human entity i.e. flora, fauna, nature, cosmology, and space (broadly the universe); (c) beliefs associated with the supernatural domain and conservation ethos. The present article intends to look towards the concepts of the people on two focal points empirical or real issues as well imagination or belief system belong to abstract level juxtaposed in supernatural domains. This study reveals that the socioreligious doctrines as well as worldview of the communities deeply embedded within the conservation ethos particularly in respect of the protection of flora, fauna and natural objects in a specific ecosystem. Thus, this is an attempt to understand the cultural context of the communities due to the hegemony of the conservation attitude of the administration.

Key words: Belief System, Biosphere Reserve, Cosmology, Ecological Domain, Religion, Worldview.

The name “Limbu” was derived from the words “Lingdong “meaning “bow and arrow, belonging to the bigger group ‘Kiranti’ or ‘Kirati’. The Limbu is one of the indigenous tribes and ancient inhabitants in the ‘Limbuwan’ kingdom of the Eastern Himalayas, identified with their own language, pertaining to Tibeto-Burman, nut now on the verge of extinction and only found existing in the remote and isolated villages. The community constitutes a peculiar ethnic group adopting a form of their traditional culture, language and religion which is quite distinct from other ethnic groups of Darjeeling and Sikkim Himalayas Once, they were transhumant and pastoralists, so, they probably took their cattle to higher altitudes in summer and came down to the middle hills during winter, But after the declaration of their living areas as protected areas, they started their settlement in the buffer areas, after being driven away or alienated from their original settlement. They were given lands and begun agricultural and horticultural practices at the lower foothills of Himalayas. Nowadays, primarily they are agriculturists by nature and give much attention on horticultural cash crops. They have been demanding ‘Tribal Status’ for a long. Central Government has granted ‘Scheduled Tribe’ status only to ‘Limbu’ along with ‘Tamang’ in 2003. The culture is now under the influence of Nepalese culture. This study intends to focus on the origin and ethno history, social, economic and religious & political life on the empirical data, with the application of social Anthropological tools and techniques in two districts of North Bengal.

Key words: Limbu, Transhumance, Tibeto-Burman, Eastern Himalayas, social anthropological.

The present article is the outcome of the primary investigation on prehistoric artifacts and associated quaternary deposits of two prehistoric sites in Dulung River valley, Jhargram district, West Bengal. Two sites namely Kukrakhonpi (22° 32’ N and 86° 48’E) and Sahari (22° 37’ N and 86° 47’E) are primarily studied by the author first-time in 2015 and later again in 2019 by means of the understanding surface features, sediments of natural and artificial sections and also the typo-technological attributes of lithic artifacts. For understanding the context of prehistoric cultural remains in Quaternary sedimentary units of the sites a mixed geochronological and archaeological approach is used in the present work. The result of this study shows that in both these sites prehistoric tools can be found from various sedimentary contexts like gravel deposit, ferricrete deposit, as well as in paleosol deposits. Tool types recovered from the sites mostly comprised of various Paleoliths and Microliths. The present study makes the addition of new data in the existing understandings of the Prehistoric culture of West Bengal.

Key words: Dulung River Valley, Quaternary Deposit, Paleolithic Culture, Microlithic Culture, West Bengal.

Malaria is a long-standing public health issue around the world. It is estimated that India contributes 4% of the world’s malaria cases and deaths. Out of this, north-east (NE) India contributes 15.2% of the country’s total malaria cases. High transmission in the aforementioned region is fuelled by several factors. NE India is often contemplated as the goldmine of immense flora, fauna as well as cultural diversity with many ethnic communities who predominantly rely on the traditional medicinal system for their primary health care. The present review addresses the application of zootherapy in case of malaria among different tribes residing in the north-eastern states of India. Documentation and evaluation of this indigenous remedial knowledge may be convenient in establishing new drugs for human health.

Key words: Malaria, zootherapy, ethnic groups, north-eastern India.

The belief on sickness, health and cure comprises a medical system and medical systems forming a part of a cultural system. The health of an individual or community is largely influenced by social and cultural factors which are deeply embedded in social life. The present study employed a qualitative ethnographic method focused to understand the health beliefs, traditional health care institutions, problems and practices and their impact on the communities of Siddis and Halakki Vokkalu of Uttara Kannada District of Karnataka. Anthropological techniques were used supplemented by Focus Group Discussion (FGD) and in-depth interviews conducted with key informants to enrich the knowledge on the belief system and healthcare practices. Collected information was analyzed thematically using narrative strategies. People of both communities tend towards modern medicine than traditional medicine. For minor ailments, they prefer traditional home remedies or locally available medicines. They visit the hospitals if illness persists for a longer time, which affects their daily labour and earning capacity. Recommended to create awareness among women regarding breastfeeding practices and consumption of food supplements.

Key words: Illness, Treatment; Tribe; Practices.

Poverty has been a part of the life of mankind throughout its history. It is one of the existential phenomena that confront humanity today. Poverty is described as the inability to attain the minimum standard of living, disadvantage compared to others in society and economic position in society. The anthropological view of poverty incorporates various social science disciplines as it seeks to explain the relationship between human behavior and the social environment as well as the relationships between human beings. Poverty in terms of economic deprivation leads to psychological distresses such as depression, anxiety and stress in the parents and ultimately dysfunction of the family. So, parental stress can directly affect the children as well. The stress of living in poverty and hardship can have a negative effect on relationships among the individuals in the family. The focus of this paper is on the impact of poverty on the relationship between individuals in the stone-crushing families of Balasan River Basin, Darjeeling district, West Bengal.

Key words: Poverty, Relationship, Family, Economic, Parents, Children, Conflict, Behaviour.