Disclaimer

We are Centre for Knowledge Alternatives ("CKA"), a research centre of FLAME University. FLAME University ("the University") has been established as state private university, vide the FLAME University Act 2014 (Maharashtra Act No. II of 2015) passed by the Government of Maharashtra. The registered address of FLAME University is FLAME University, Gat No. 1270, Lavale, Pune 412115.

The www.indiandistricts.in ("Portal") is a project ("Project") of CKA.

Methodology and Data Sources 

Statistics: All statistics displayed on the Portal are sourced from various sources of the Government of India and/or its affiliates. Where applicable, explicit references to the sources are provided. In instances where such references are not mentioned, users are encouraged to bring this to our attention.

While reasonable efforts are made to ensure the reliability of statistical sources, CKA makes no warranties, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, completeness, adequacy, reliability, fitness for a particular purpose, or legal validity of the information provided on the Portal. Despite an internal auditing process, errors in statistical data may still occur. Additionally, the data published by government sources may contain inaccuracies, errors, or inconsistencies. CKA disclaims liability for any such discrepancies.

Cultures: The qualitative information on this Portal draws on fieldwork conducted by CKA; narratives shared by residents of the respective districts, as well as community members; and secondary sources, including district gazetteers, historical archives and vernacular literature. As part of this effort, CKA’s District Fellowship Program (see here) helps document districts through on-ground research, site visits, conversations with residents, and the collection of oral histories, images, and other ethnographic materials.

This content on the Portal is not an academic or exhaustive account. It is intended to convey a broad overview of place and culture rather than to provide definitive or verified facts. We do not cite every detail, nor do we (or can we) independently fact-check each attribute. Cultural narratives often vary across time, sources, and tellings, and such variations are both natural and expected. In India’s plural society, multiple versions of the same story may coexist; we do not privilege one version over another, nor do we interpret any as more reliable or authentic. What we present here is drawn from what we have received intelligibly.

Sources: The Portal cannot be considered an academic or a research project. Select secondary sources are listed at the end of each page. If a reference appears to be missing or unclear, we encourage users to bring this to our attention. Note that we do not make specific reference to every line or information given in the chapters (we often refer to it in the text itself), given the eclectic nature of information excavation and multiple sources we adopt. Picking up oral narratives which can't be explicitly cited is another reason for us to avoid giving specific line-by-line references. The sources mentioned at the bottom is an overview of various sources we may have relied upon, in addition to orally transmitted stories. We expect users to undertake their own fact checking before confirming any statement in the Portal. We encourage users to tell us if they would like us to add or use more resources to enrich or revise the content.

Translations

For certain native words and phrases for which we believe we do not have an appropriate or equivalent translation in English, we have chosen to retain them in the original native language, or Hindi. This decision is made at the discretion of the researcher or editor working on the respective section and does not reflect the official views or opinions of CKA or the University. We believe that problems in translations are not semantic in nature, rather, they are problems in accessing one’s experience. Certain words simply do not carry the meaning of an experience, since experience is cultural in nature, and some cultures will simply have no words to convey the meaning of the experience. In retaining some words in native language, we want to reflect our commitment towards people whose experience we are documenting. In some ways therefore, we shed our ‘anthropological’ or ‘scholarly’ lens in doing this work.

The Project works extensively with native-language materials, many of which have been translated for inclusion in the Portal. While we have made reasonable efforts to ensure the accuracy of these translations, we do not assume any responsibility for errors, omissions, or misinterpretations that may have occurred. We encourage users to notify us of any translation errors they encounter so that corrections can be made where necessary.

Photographs and Visual Content

Most of the photographs used in the Project have been collected by our staff, researchers, and District Fellows during fieldwork, or obtained from local residents and other contributors. When collected from third party on the internet, we mention the source of the photo below the image (if not mentioned, it implies the image is collected by us). While we have made every reasonable effort to ensure that the images used on the Portal are copyright-free, some photographs may have originated from various sources. If you believe that any photograph displayed on the Portal is copyrighted or has been used without proper authorization, please bring it to our attention. CKA is committed to addressing such concerns and will take appropriate action, including removing the content or providing proper attribution if necessary.

Disclaimer of Opinions

The views, narratives, explanations, and documentation presented on the Portal are based on contributions from various sources and do not reflect the opinions, viewpoints, or endorsements of CKA, FLAME University, or any affiliated personnel. Users are encouraged to report any errors, inconsistencies, discrepancies, or omissions identified within the Project.

User Participation and Content Caution 

The Project is collaborative and user-driven. Accordingly, certain content available on the Portal is, or may in the future be, contributed by users or individuals volunteering as contributors (“User Content”). Users acknowledge and agree that they may be exposed to content that is inaccurate, misleading, objectionable, offensive, or misclassified.

CKA does not pre-screen, approve, or endorse User Content and expressly disclaims any responsibility or liability arising therefrom. The publication of any material on the Portal shall not be construed as CKA’s endorsement, approval, or validation of such material or of any entity referenced therein.

CKA reserves the right, but not the obligation, to review, monitor, and remove content at its sole discretion. CKA does not guarantee the removal of any material, regardless of whether it is flagged or reported.

Users are solely responsible for their engagement with the Portal and are advised to exercise their own independent judgment, discretion, and caution when accessing or relying upon any content. In no event shall we be liable for any damages, whether direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive, arising from the use or inability to use the Portal. We assume no liability for any investment, policy, scholarly or any material decisions made based on the information provided on the Portal. The content on the Portal is provided for general informational purposes only and is not to be construed as professional, legal, financial, or any other form of expert advice. The Portal is not exhaustive and should not be construed to represent a complete or authoritative repository of information about certain regions, people or associated aspect. Users are solely responsible for evaluating the accuracy and utility of the information and are strongly advised to consult with qualified professionals before making any decisions with material consequences.

Contributors

The Project is a collaborative, research-driven initiative that depends on the voluntary contributions of individuals and partners to enrich its content. CKA deeply values these contributions and will make reasonable efforts to acknowledge contributors where appropriate.

By submitting any content, information, or material (“Contribution”) to the Portal, contributors consent to its use by CKA for academic, educational, and public-interest purposes related to the Project. This may include reproducing, adapting, publishing, or sharing the material, in whole or in part, across print or digital platforms. Contributors understand that such submissions are made voluntarily and without expectation of ownership, royalties, or compensation.

Contributors confirm that their submissions are original, do not infringe upon the rights of any third party, and that they have the authority to share such materials. CKA assumes no responsibility or liability arising from any user-provided content.

For detailed information on CKA’s relationship with Contributors, please refer to Terms and Conditions.

Republishing Guidelines

CKA is committed to foster freedom of information and encourages creating new knowledge and its dissemination without any cost. We promote the ideas of Creative Commons. The Portal is an effort to build meaningful and huge data and culture repositories of Indian districts, and CKA encourages the use of the Portal for various purposes in creating knowledge and advancing societies.

Users are free to use, download, copy, extract, print and republish (online or print) the content from the Portal as long as CKA and the Portal is expressly cited and credited for the respective Users are required to add the hyperlink of the original page on the Portal which is the source of the content being used or imported. For any image, appropriate credits to CKA must be given in full and not abbreviated form.

Material and content from the Portal, whether in full or part, direct or derivative cannot be sold or used for any commercial or monetary gains without the express, written permission from the CKA. Material and content from the Portal cannot be put behind a paywall anywhere.

Users cannot systematically republish the Portal elsewhere.

If the original page in the Portal contains authorship details, the same should be cited and credited whenever part of whole of the content on that page or its idea or ideas are being reproduced elsewhere in exact or different words. The same applies to non-text media.

We encourage users to inform us when they use our work for their purposes. All requests for commercial use and translation rights should be submitted to us by email (cka@flame.edu.in)