Shompen Tribe
PVTG and Consent Framework
The Shompen are a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) — the most vulnerable sub-category of Scheduled Tribes, identified by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs as having declining or stagnant population, pre-agricultural technology, and extreme social and economic backwardness.
- The Shompen are a primarily uncontacted community; no non-Shompen speakers of their language exist outside the community.
- Approximately 1,761 individuals from Shompen and Nicobarese communities inhabit the island.
- Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) is both an ethical obligation under international norms (ILO Convention 169) and a legal requirement under the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (Forest Rights Act).
- The project proponent states no displacement is planned and that tribal reserve area will increase through re-notification measures; critics counter that intensified human activity near Shompen territory constitutes de facto intrusion.
● Tracked since May 03, 2026 · last seen June 09, 2026 · updates as the daily brief publishes
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