The research process illustrated in this book has tried to change the situation of the Katkari by engaging them in the analysis and interpretation of the constraints they face. Over a period of six years, from March 2005 to August 2011, research-in-action sought to secure a gaothan for 212 Katkari hamlets in three talukas at risk of enclosure and eviction. While the results of this effort seem fragile and uneven from hamlet to hamlet, we believe readers will agree that what emerged was also meaningful and significant.

This chapter highlights some of the observed changes related to the Katkari's vulnerability and the persistent constraints that they continue to face. A separate section contains the research team's recommendations to governments and civil society organizations committed to resolving this longstanding problem. Legal activism is at the forefront of these recommendations and rests on recognition of public responsibility for the failure in the past to secure Katkari village sites. While the Katkari are not just passive victims of this circumstance, politicians and government officials should see the Katkari claims as an urgent demand and ethical obligation that requires a concerted and immediate response.

Observed Change

Overall, Katkari hamlets in the area where the inquiry was active are now moderately more secure than when enclosures and evictions went unnoticed and unchallenged. Landholders are more cautious, due to the tangible risk of prosecution under the Prevention of Atrocities Act. Enclosure and full-scale evictions are on hold, at least for the time being. This improvement is a relief from the tidal wave of misery being unleashed on the Katkari by a relentless and well-resourced real-estate boom.