Let's rethink tribal development | Neelam Khoba | TEDxSurat

Neelam Khoba has an MA in Rural economics and is a Gandhian. When he went to work in tribal areas for a project, he realised that tribal villages of India need attention and work urgently. He has been working in the tribal areas of Gujarat for more than a decade wherein he developed the whole ecosystem - From farming, to education, to banking, to employment - everything. He renounced his surname and adopted the name of village - Khoba - as his surname. He has dedicated his life to tribals and has very interesting insights on how tribal areas need a very sensitive approach for their development. Neelam’s journey so far has not been easy. He has decided to devote his life for the welfare of rural society. Neelam Patel, a post-graduate in Rural Economics from Ahmedabad’s Gujarat Vidyapith has travelled a distance of 400 kilometre to a remote village of Valsad district, called Khoba for the sole purpose of staying there and make efforts for its development. It took a lot of time for him to earn the trust and support of the villagers. He feels that only because of his adherence to Gandhian philosophy, he has been able to show this much of perseverance. Now, with the help of the villagers, he runs a primary school in Khoba, where he teaches children every day.

His works have been instrumental in developing the area’s agricultural, health and electricity facilities. He has built nurseries, rock-wells in the area as it is difficult to cultivate crops owing to its rugged topography. Neelam has also adopted new methods of rainwater harvesting to cultivate paddy. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx