First, the sustainability of Adivasi life is being eroded by mining, declining agricultural incomes, erratic rainfall and government apathy. Local records show Burhidangal and Ukhrapahari, for instance, have 65 and 42 households respectively. “But even the forest is disappearing from around us,” says Loveen Hembrom, an Ukhrapahari village leader. “I returned because I want to live close to my family, my village and the forest,” he says. And yet, with the forests under pressure, water still not reaching homes, and rain no longer keeping time, Murmu is worried.