15 Tribal Communities in India

Facts (quote in exam)

• 700 ST under Article 342
• 2020-21 Annual Report of Ministry of Tribal Affairs
  • population of ST $=$ 104.5M (i.e. 8.6%)
• sex ratio $=$ 990
• literacy rate $=$ 59%
• $>$ 60% school dropout rate
• NSSO: ST poverty: 45.3% (rural) & 24.1% (urban)

Definitional Problems

• enormous diversity, complex contemporary developmental profile
  • $⟹$ no universal definition to capture identity
  • not all live in forest eg Dublas (Surat)
  • not all isolated eg Bhil Santhals
  • some tribes self sufficient, economically sound eg Khasi, Gond, Bhil

Caste & Tribe

• Srinivas’ Sanskritization model: tribals enter the caste system
• Ghurye: tribals $=$ backward hindus
  • classified tribes from hindu perspective
  • Hinduised tribes $\to$ partially hinduised tribes $\to$ hill section poeple
• DN Majumdar
  • Primitive tribes $\to$ tribes w/ degree of association $\to$ hinduised tribes
• Elwin
  • most primitive $\to$ individualistic $\to$ detribalised $\to$ tribal aristocrats
• modern understanding: caste $\ne$ tribe
  • caste $=$ social institution regulated by DoL, hierarchy, purity/pollution, civic/religious disabilities
  • tribe $=$ absence of features of caste
    • Herbert Risley: egalitarian social order
• exposure to mainstream society $⟹$ tribes borrowed certain caste like characteristics

During British Period

• no rigid distinction b/w caste & tribe
• viewed whole Indian society as largely inward looking
• after anthropological studies, acknowledged that tribals have distinctive lifestyle & religion
  • separate from caste groups
• used single term for very disparate set of communities for administrative convenience

Ethno centric assessment

• earlier viewed at par w/ stage of primitive bestiality
• classical evolutionary theories of anthropologists during 1790s - 1820s called them remnants of early stages of humanity w/ savagery and barbarism as defining features
• defective view, biased by European racial mindset
  • lacked subtle understanding of ethnic grps in India

Views of Indian scholars

More empirical, rooted in reality.

• SC Roy: jana (tribe) & jati (caste) existed side by side since long
• Mandelbaum: no strict cultural diff b/w caste & tribe
• SC Dube: Great Tradition of Hinduism & Little Tradition of tribes existed together since long
• AR Desai: classified tribes by degree of assimilation into mainstream society
• Beteille: differentiated tribal groups on basis of language, religion, degree of isolation

Present general definition

• group of individuals w/ shallow (recorded) history
• indigenous
• particular territory
• tied by close bonds of kinship
• endogamy
• distinct custom, ritual, beliefs
• simple social ranking / political organization
• common ownership of resources

Mandelbaum's 7 features of Tribals

1. Kinship: extends beyond conventional nuclear-joint binary
2. Lack of clearly defined hierarchy
3. absence of strong, complex, formal organization
4. communitarian basis of land holding; no concept of private property
5. little value on surplus, capital or market trading
6. segmentary character
7. lack of distinction b/w form & substance of religion
8. distinct psychological bent for enjoying life

SC Dube's 5 fold classification of Indian tribes

1. Aboriginals in seclusion
2. Association w/ neighboring non tribal society, but maintaining distinctiveness
3. Living in villages w/ caste, sects & religious groups but maintaining identity
4. Degraded to states of untouchables
5. Assimilated into mainstream & enjoy high socio, eco, pol status

Definition of what they are not

• no religion w/ written text
• no state/ political form
• no sharp class divisions
• no deep notions of history
• no caste

Positive Characteristics

Permanent Traits

Acquired Traits

Other parameters

• Language
  • Dravidian
  • Austric
  • Tibeto Chinese
• Race
  • Herbert Risley: The peoples of India 1908: classified in 7 races
• Geographical Spread
• Economic Activity
  • fishermen
  • food gatherers, hunters
  • shifting cultivators
  • peasants
  • industrial workers
• Degree of cultural contact
  • Verrier Elwin: 4 types

Geographical Assertion

• tribes consider themselves original settlers
  • emotional attachment w/ land
• territoriality the crux of most political mvmts
  • Munda Rebellion
  • Anti Mining protests 2009-10 by Dongria Kondh (Niyamgiri, Odisha)
• tri axis of mining projects
  • tribal interest
  • economic exploitation of resources
  • environmental cause
• geographical mapping can tap potential of tribal inhabited areas
  • organic farming
  • traditional herbal medicines
  • link tribal welfare with market

Colonial Policies & Tribes

Two major elements of British policy towards tribes

1. favored isolation from mainstream
2. 'civilizing' (refer: White Man’s Burden)

Followed policy of exploitation & alienation. Brought them under land revenue administration, exploited forests, tribal lands.

Colonial Rule & Tribal Distress

• Initial interference led to
  • Chaur Uprising 1832
  • Kol and Ho Uprising 1832 (Chota Nagpur)
  • Satara Revolt 1840
  • Santhal Rebellion 1856
• led to policy of isolating tribals from mainstream
• GoI Act 1870: provided some protection
• Scheduled Districts Act 1874: creation of certain backward tracts
• GoI Act 1919: created Excluded & Modified Excluded Areas w/ diff administrative structures
• GoI Act 1935: Excluded & Partially Excluded Areas

Brit policy had 2 extremes - either complete non interference or complete assimilation. Made land a market commodity, forests rapidly cleared, mineral belts exploited aggressively. Issues of bonded labour, forced taxation, artificial restrictions on mvmt. Missionaries targeted them for conversion

Brits wanted Tribals to settle down & become peasants $⟹$ income $⟹$ revenue.

• Late 19th century: tea, coffee plantations, mining
  • needed cheap labour $\to$ tribals

Proactive forest policy

• Forest Acts deprived traditional forest rights
  • very exhaustive $⟹$ Elwin: every tribe violated many of them in single day
    • eg Teak was state property
• acts like grazing cattle, collecting firewood were illegal
• Vidyarthi: alienation not just economic; emotional & cultural too
  • trees, rivers, mountains carried symbolic/ religious meanings

Tribal Integration & Autonomy Issues

• Developmental View: tribals living in condition of under development & be rightfully brought into mainstream
• Autonomy View: modern definitions of development should not be imposed onto tribals who have been living in harmony w/ nature since ages
• need balance b/w integration & autonomy
  • autonomy desired for developmental policies to organically evolve to suit tribal culture, lifestyle
  • development for basic health, education
• Cultural Integration Perspective
  • byproduct of Caste Continuum proposition
  • SC Roy: Jana-Jati
  • Ghurye: tribe $=$ backward hindus
• Political/ Economic Integration perspective
  • Surajit Sinha: understood integration in terms of economic necessity of farmers, miners to have cheap labour. Gave concept of tribe-peasant continuum

Post Independence issues

• integration directed from above, not below
  • Walter Fernandes (1991): 30M ppl displaced by developmental activities in past 50 yrs - 42% tribals
  • number of tribal labourers also inc during same priod
  • higher incidences of maternal mortality, child mortality
  • poverty 50% more than national average
• neglected their on needs/desires
• integration on terms/benefit of mainstream
• even today, land alienation, displacement happens, forests are taken away, mining/dam projects affect them
• Virginius Xaxa: tribal integration post independence only a constitutional prescription & not empirical reality

Tribal Integration & Autonomy in 21st Century India

• Tribal Panchsheel: approach adopted by Nehru
  • tribal dev be based on old genius of tribals
  • trained to participate in modern mainstream economic & political activities
  • tribal dev policies should receive inputs from needs of locals
    • no development project that alienates them

JL Nehru

Tribal areas have to progress and progress in their own way.

Memorize Tribal Panchshleel - CLTOR

• C: Culture (encourage them to promote)
• L: Land Rights (Respect)
• T: Team (their own)
• O: Over–administer (don’t)
• R: Results (not by money but by human character evolved)

• Narmada Bachao Andolan 1980s by Medha Patkar, Baba Amte
  • failed, but raised awareness about env issues, tribal displacement
• NC for ST
• ST & Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act 2006
• PESA
• Forest Rights Act
• 47 seats reserved in LS for ST
• Constitutional safeguards
  • Art 15(4) (refer Article 15)
  • Article 46 (refer Directive Principles of State Policy)
  • Article 339(1): President may appt commission to report on administration of Scheduled areas & welfare of SC/ST in a state

Persisting issues

• feeling of deprivation
• ineffective implementation of policies
• exploitation by money lenders, forest officials, merchants, traders, forest contractors
• low edu levels, healthcare access
• low pace of reforms
• Naxalite movements
• unrest due to mining projects
  • Anti Mining protests 2009-10 by Dongria Kondh (Niyamgiri, Odisha)

Recent Efforts

• Eklavya Model Residential Schools 1997
• Scholarships
• Vanbandhu Kalyan Yojna 2014: for holistic dev of tribals and instititutional mechanisms for delivery of g&s
• Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED) 1987: to sell tribal products in mainstream markets
• Van Dhan Scheme 2018: set up Van Dhan Kendras (community owned forest produce)

Virginius Xaxa Committee

• empower gram sabha for linear acquisition
• acquired but unused land be returned to tribals
• tribal co-ops for mining
• no big dams
• naxal killings be probed by judicial enquiry