The Forest Rights Act and Adivasi Landlessness in Kerala.

This article is an attempt to understand the Adivasi landlessness in the context of the implementation of the Forest Rights Act (FRA) in Kerala. Kerala has been projected as a model of development so far as social development indicators are concerned. Based on in-depth personal interviews with 72 Adivasis and three Adivasi and human rights activists in eight districts of Kerala, this article examines whose landholding has been a topic of debate in various political platforms. The study was carried out to explore whether the State's development initiatives and economic growth trajectory had any space for the Adivasis of Kerala. Adivasi landlessness and lack of efficient land distribution may be attributed to the so-called State-led development narratives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]