Tribes
There is no record the valley has ever been settled, but the Mudugar and Irula tribal people are indigenous to the area and do live in the adjacent valley of Attappady Reserved Forest. Also, the Kurumbar people occupy the highest range outside the park bordering on the Nilgiris.
Many of the Mudugar and Irula and kurumbar now work as day laborers and porters. Some work for the Forest Department in the park as forest guards and visitor guides. 16 out of 21 tribal colonies in the Attappady range are notorious for ganja cultivation. Many Mudugar are in abject poverty and easily recruited by the so-called ganja mafia, There is a plan to employ 50 additional men from these 21 tribal settlements as forest guards for Rs.500/man/month.
Read more about this topic: Silent Valley National Park
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