The study focused on Livelihood Problems of Irula tribe of the Nilgiri District of Tamil Nadu lives in the dark jungles of the lower elevation of the mountains. This tribe is called as Irulas which means ‘one who comes from the darkness’. Another reason is that these people are dark-skinned, so the neighbors may have addressed them thus. (Irula- in Tamil means black or dark). There are 36 scheduled Tribes in Tamil Nadu. Among the 36 scheduled tribes, 6 groups are primitive tribes settled in Nilgiri District of Tamil Nadu. The main objective of the study is to understand the livelihood problems faced by the Irulas of Nilgiri District of Tamil Nadu, those who are highly disadvantaged among the 6 primitive groups in the state and vulnerable to numerous livelihood problem
Edgar Thurston wrote the seven volumes of Castes and Tribes of Southern India, published in 1909 as part of the Ethnographic Survey of India. In that work he was assisted by K. Rangachari, a colleague from the Madras museum who had also assisted him in a 1906 ethnographic study, Ethnographic Notes in Southern India.
This study is significant to understand their problems and bring them to mainstream of development. The study is based on field work and primary data collection. It is descriptive in nature. Majority of the Irulas (74%) are facing livelihood problem, 61% of them are working in brick industries, 12% in rice mills and 9% in construction works. Still, the Irulas are living in the forests and maintaining a system of mild interdependence with the neighboring villages for the past three to four decades. They used to sell honey, honey wax, firewood, etc. and in return get village products for their use. Their foods are obtained mainly within the forests - the vegetation and wild animals.
