How 31 Tribals From Karnataka's Hakki Pikki Tribe Were Stranded Amid Sudan Crisis???| South Connect

At least 31 people belonging to the Hakki-Pikki tribal community from Karnataka are stranded in Al-ashir, 1,000km from Sudanese capital Khartoum, where rival factions of the ruling military regime have been battling for control of the African nation. With appeals for help pouring in, the Indian embassy in Sudan has advised Indian nationals not to step out, ration their supplies and seek help from neighbours, as the situation seemed unlikely to change in the next few days. The stranded Indians have issued appeals for help. They have said that food is running out and they are not even getting water to drink. Hakki-Pikki’ is one of the major tribal communities in Karnataka. In Kannada, the word ‘Hakki’ stands for ‘bird' and ‘Pikki’ stands for the verb ‘to catch’. Therefore, the community is known as the ‘bird catcher,’ which is their traditional occupation. The Hakki-Pikki community migrated from the northern India population. According to the 2011 census, the population of Hakki-Pikki is 11,892. After their trade of bird hunting was outlawed, they were rehabilitated in the 1970s. They began doing odd jobs like working in fields and sharpening knives and sickles by riding around towns on bicycles after bird-hunting was banned. They also sell the herbal remedies they extract. The tribe is predominantly found in Shivamogga, Davanagere and Mysuru districts of Karnataka. In Karnataka, the Hakki-Pikkis are renowned for their indigenous medicines. The community resided in the dense jungles for a long time and created its own plant and herb-based medicine systems. The Hakki-Pikkis have traditional medical knowledge that is in demand in several African countries. Therefore, community members have been travelling to the continent for the last many years. Meanwhile, war of words broke out between former Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah and External affairs minister S jaishankar. Siddaramaiah tagged PM Modi, HM Amit shah, EAM S Jaishankar and CM Bommai on twitter and urged them for the safe return of stranded Indians from Hakki pikki tribe. He also blamed the union govt for not initiating a safe return of the tribals stuck in the African nation. Replying to it S Jaishankar said that he was ""appalled"" at these tweets. Responding to this, Siddaramaiah said if Jaishankar was appalled at appeals, then he can redirect the appeal to someone else. As per the updates, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday held a high-level to review the situation related to Indians who are stuck in Sudan. PM Modi has also directed the preparation of contingency evacuation plans. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices