NEW DELHI, Dec 19: India’s tribal communities are being driven from their homes in disproportionate numbers by large development and industrial projects, global anti-poverty group ActionAid said on Wednesday.

“Displacement induced by India’s dogged pursuit of economic growth is ousting adivasis (tribals) from land, livelihood, ancestral homes and places of worship,” ActionAid’s tribal rights expert Bratindi Jena told reporters.

“Tribal communities are increasingly under attack from projects in the name of development.”

In the four Indian states the group looked at, 10.2 million acres (four million hectares) of land has been forcefully acquired in the past decade for projects including mines, dams and industrial plants, the group said.—AFP