LEGAL AID CAMP AT PACHAMALAI HILLS, TRICHY

Forests maintain ecological balance and are necessary for the human existence. They shelter wild animals, preserve gene pools, maintain biodiversity, protect the tribal people and exhibit cultural diversity. Pachaimalai Hills is home for many Tribal groups in the low mountain range in the Eastern Ghats, located in Trichy district, Tamil Nadu. As this area is geographically and socially secluded from the society, it is mostly under-developed. With an aim of providing Legal Awareness to such Tribal Community, Saveetha School of Law arranged a Legal Camp with 16 students and 4 faculties on 19th March, 2021 to educate them about their Constitutional, Legal and Property rights.

Farming which includes cultivation of castor oil seeds, seasonal crops and vegetables is the main sources of income for the people of Pachamalai hills. Although the younger generation are educated up to post-graduation, they still lack in communication skills. Some major problems faced by the tribes have been identified to be poverty, economic and technological backwardness, socio-cultural handicaps and problems of assimilation with the non-tribal population. Other everyday problems include drinking water scarcity, lack of internet facility and proper roads and having no fuel station nearby. Among the 550 responses the students of Saveetha School of Law collected, 30% were not aware of the Coronavirus Pandemic and only 10% of them got vaccinated through the aid of government while the others had no knowledge about it. Their only desire is to develop their locality into a tourist spot which would in turn fetch those jobs locally and they hope it will be a solution to the everyday problems they face.