Advocacy for Environmental Justice and Indigenous Rights in Jacinta Kerketta’s Poetry

Abstract

Jacinta Kerketta was originally a Hindi poet from the Oraon community residing in the heart of Jharkhand. As an activist and courageous journalist, she chronicles the plight of the dispossessed Adivasi people. With honest portrayals of stark truths, Jacinta has earned recognition in literary circles for her unique style of depicting the hardships faced by the Adivasi community. She fiercely advocates for the existential fears and marginalization faced by Indigenous peoples experiencing oppression, deprivation, injustice, othering, and unimaginable misery due to unsustainable development, ruthless industrialization, uncontrolled urbanization, and unprecedented environmental degradation threatening their lands and livelihoods. Her poetry expresses their ongoing struggles and trauma alongside the chaos within Saranda Forest. In collections such as ‘Angor’, ‘Jadon Ki Jameen (Land of the Roots)’ and ‘Ishwar aur Bazaar’, she vigorously speaks out against the looting and destruction of the natural resources and means of sustenance relied upon by the Adivasi community. This research aims to highlight how Jacinta seeks environmental justice for Adivasi people through her verse. It also advocates for protecting their inherent rights regarding jal-jangal-jameen. Furthermore, it explores how her poetry exposes the constant exploitation of the ecologically sensitive Saranda Forest and the authorities’ indifference to addressing these important issues.