Tribal Health Care Research Program

Abstract

Introduction: Tribal Health Care Research Program (THCRP) was initiated by the Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS) in 1982. The core objective of the program is to study the living conditions of tribal people, which includes health-related demography, documentation of folk claims, local health traditions (LHTs), use of common medicinal plants and their availability, propagation of knowledge about personnel hygiene, and prevention of diseases besides extending medical aid at their doorsteps. The program has been implemented in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and Andaman and Nicobar at different years from 1982 to 2016. During this period, five independent Tribal Health Care Research units have been relocated through reorganization, which came into force in the year 2000. Further, during the year 2014 to 2015 and 2016 to 2017 the program has been extended in 10 more states, viz., Rajasthan, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim, and Telangana. Currently, the THCRP is being executed in 14 states through 15 peripheral institutes of CCRAS under tribal subplan (TSP). Materials and methods: The gross physical achievements including the beneficiaries of health care services, details of villages, tribal pockets covered, documentation of disease prevalence, and LHTs during the period 1982 to 2016 were compiled, summarized, and presented based on the information available in the published monographs, technical reports, and annual reports. Conclusion: A critical appraisal of THCRP revealed that from 1982 up to March 2016, CCRAS has extended health care services at 1,358 villages/tribal pockets that represent around 50 tribes across 14 states covering a population of 947,587. Apart from propagation of knowledge about hygiene and prevention of diseases, medical aid was provided to 336,015 seekers. In addition to this, through this program about 734 folklore claims, LHTs, use of common medicinal plants and their availability were documented and also the prevalence of different diseases in the tribal pockets was recorded.