National Tribal Literary Festival opens in New Delhi

The two-day National Tribal Literary Festival begins Thursday in Delhi, organized by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs to showcase indigenous literary traditions and promote tribal languages. The event takes place at Silver Oak in the India Habitat Centre as part of celebrations for Janjatiya Gaurav Divas 2026, which marks the birth anniversary of tribal freedom fighter Bhagwan Birsa Munda.

Attendees and Goals

Union tribal affairs minister Jual Oram, minister of state Durgadas Uikey, NITI Aayog member Joram Aniya, Bharatiya Bhasha Samiti chairman Chamu Krishna Shastri, and tribal affairs ministry secretary Ranjana Chopra will attend the opening session. A senior ministry official stated that the event aims to give a national platform to tribal literary voices and link language preservation with the Centre's Viksit Bharat@2047 vision.

Sessions and Themes

Thematic sessions will cover folklore, ritual songs, myths, folktales, riddles, proverbs, seasonal narratives, children's traditions, and women's oral traditions. Dedicated poetry and storytelling sessions will let tribal authors share their work in native languages, while scholars discuss oral traditions in education and the transmission of values.

Context

Literary festivals celebrating indigenous and regional languages play a key role in documenting oral histories that might otherwise be lost over time. This event brings together writers and scholars to address ongoing challenges in preserving and passing down tribal languages to younger generations.