Why an Indigenous community in Arunachal blacklisted four researchers

In mid-August, an organisation that represents an indigenous community in Arunachal Pradesh blacklisted four researchers from carrying out research in the Dibang Valley.

The organisation, the Idu Mishmi Cultural and Literary Society, or IMCLS, is the “apex body” of the Idu Mishmi community in the valley. It stated in a press release that the researchers were blacklisted for violating the community’s “code of research ethics”, which it first published in 2024.

In an emailed statement to Scroll, the society said that the researchers “resorted to discriminatory practices and ventured into community areas despite final consent and approval pending” from the community’s Research and Ethics Review Board, or RERB.

The researchers were Rajkamal Goswami, affiliated with the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment, or ATREE, Aavika Dhanda, who was formerly affiliated with the same organisation, Krushnamegh Kunte from the National Centre for Biological Sciences, and Fahim Khan, from the Indian Foundation for Butterflies Trust.

In a text message response to queries from Scroll, Goswami said, “We hold ethical research practices in the highest regard, and fully support the IMCLS code in spirit and intent.” He added that ATREE “had taken cognisance” of the body’s decision, and were “seeking to understand the circumstances and events that led to this action”.

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