About Tribal Communities:
- Tribes are also called Adivasis - the word Adivasi literally means 'original inhabitants.
- Tribal communities are the oldest inhabitants of the Indian subcontinent.
- Tribal communities have no written religion.
- They do not have any particular class division, they have no caste, and they are neither Hindus nor farmers.
- The tribes have always maintained their freedoms and to maintain the distinct culture they usually lived in forests, hills, deserts, and difficult places.
- The tribal people have preserved rich customs and oral traditions.
- The total population of tribes is about 8.6% (8.2 in 2001) of India's population.
- There are about 104 million (82 million in 2001) tribes living in India.
- There are 593 notified tribal districts in India.
- The population of the Gond tribe is the largest in India.
- Bhil tribe is the second largest tribe in India.
- The Gonds, Bhils, Santhals, Oraons, Minas, Bodos, and Mundas all have a population of at least one million.
Tribal languages in India:
In terms of categories, tribes are categorized into four categories.
- Indo-Aryan
- Dravidian
- Austric Language
- Tibeto-Burman Language Family
Races of Indian tribes:
In terms of physical racial terms, Indian tribes can be categorized into the following categories:
- Negrito
- Australoid
- Mongoloid
- Dravidian
- Aryan
The Geographical Distribution of Tribes in India :
The tribal population in India is widely spread, and their distribution is not uniform.
85% of India's tribal population is in "Middle India"; It is spread over a wide belt from Gujarat and Rajasthan in the west to West Bengal and Odisha in the east. Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, part of Maharashtra, and parts of Andhra Pradesh form the heart of the tribal region of central India.
Descending order of the state with the largest tribal population::
- Madhya Pradesh
- Maharashtra
- Odisha
- Rajasthan
- Gujarat
11 % of the tribal population of India are in Northern states, northeastern states have the highest concentration(density) of the tribal population except Assam
Descending order of State with Tribal Population Ratio:
- Lakshadweep( 95%)
- Mizoram (94.4 %)
- Nagaland (86.5)
- Meghalaya (86%)
- Arunachal Pradesh (68%)
Ascending order states with tribal population ratio:
- Uttar Pradesh; 0.6 %
- Tamil Nadu: 1.1 %
- Bihar: 1.3 %
- Kerala: 1.5 %
- Uttaranchal: 2.9 %
No notified tribal population in Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Puducherry, and Delhi.
Tribal regions of India:
The following are two major classifications of tribal regions in India:
- S Guha's classification
- B K Roy Burman classification
S Guha's classification of the tribal region of India:
Based on the geographical distribution of the tribal population in India, Guha made the following three tribal regions:
- North and North-Eastern region
- Central tribal region or Middle India
- The Southern tribal region of South India
B K Roy Burman's classification of the tribal region:
Indian geographer and scholar, B K Roy Burman divided the tribal population of India into five tribal regions based on ethnic and social-cultural relations.
The following are five tribal regions of India:
- North East India
- Sub-Himalayan region of North and Northwestern India.
- Western India tribal region
- Central and Easter tribal region.
- South India and Islands.
North-East tribal region:
Territories:
- Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Meghalaya, Assam, and Sikkim.
Some chief tribs:
- Ahoms, Nagas, Mismi, Mizos, Garo, Khasi, Jaintiya, Kukis, etc.
Sub-Himalayan tribal region;
Territories:
- Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand.
Chief Tribes:
- Gujjar, Bodh, Kinnours, Swanglia, etc.
Western India tribal region:
Territories:
- Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Maharashtra.
Tribes:
- Bhils, Mina, Kumbis, Gonds, Kolis, Saharia, Dhodi, Chaudhari, etc.
- Bhils'population is the second largest tribal population in India after Gonds.
Central and eastern India tribal region:
Territories:
- Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Bihar, Orissa, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh.
Tribes:
- Gonds, Santhal, Munda, Orain, Chenchu, Kolam, Munda, Chero, Oraon, Baiga, Kond, Banjara, Bhotoro, Majhi, Kharwar, Agaria, etc.
- The population of Gonds tribes is the largest in India.
The tribal population of South India:
Territories:
- Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Telangana.
Tribes:
- Toda, Irulu, Kadar, Kurumbas, Malasar, Chalanaikkans, Paniyas, Koli Dhar, etc.
Prospects of tribes in India:
- Adivasi or tribal has deep knowledge about forest and their products.
- All the major empires in the different periods were heavily dependent on tribes for iron ore, copper ore, timber, elephants, lac, wax, honey, etc.
- Prior to colonization, they were free and owners of all the forest.
Problems in the tribal area
Migration problems:
Due to the introduction of forest laws during the colonial era and later due to rapid population growth and technological development, socio-economic interventions in the tribal area have increased significantly.
- Mining (Most of the mines are located in tribal areas. It is estimated that more than 50% of the people displaced due to mines are from the tribal communities).
- Agriculture and Plantation (Forests are cleared for large-scale plantations, for which the tribal people have to bear the problems)
- Dam construction (large areas of tribals get submerged due to the construction of dams)
- National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries (Most areas of National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries are from tribal areas and tribal people are prohibited from entering this area)
Tribal people lost their homeland because of the above activities. As we know that losing lands means losing the source of income. They are forced to work in plantations, construction sites, as industrial labor, or as domestic workers as they are lacking in other professional skills.
Socio-economic problems:
The following are socio-economic problems of the tribal population:
Poverty in tribal areas:
- As per an estimate, about 45 % of tribal groups in the rural area and 35 % of tribal groups in urban areas lives below the poverty line.
- Many tribal children are malnourished and the literacy rate amongst tribes is very low.
Low literacy rate of schedule tribes:
The following are the literacy trends of scheduled tribes.
- 1961: 8.53 %
- 1971: 11.3 %
- 1981: 16.35 %
- 1991: 29.6%
- 2001: 47.10 %
- 2011: 58.96 %
Weak Health sector in tribal region:
Lackness of primary Health infrastructure in tribal areas and lack of awareness about TB, AIDS, and other diseases.- Infant mortality rate: 66.4
- Neo-Natal rate: 46.3
- Under-five child mortality rate: 88.1
- Malnourishment problem in children and women.
Steps were taken by Government for tribal area development:
The followings are some steps taken by the government to improve the conditions of the tribal population.
Recognition of forest rights act 2006.
- Tribal rights such as cultivation, grazing, collecting non-timber products, and conservation of biodiversity are restored under the law.
Education Sectors reforms:
- The various Scholarship program at the state and central level
- Eklavya Model Residential School
- Ashram School
Livelihood Support:
- Institutional support for the development of marketing of tribal produce
- MSP for minor forest produce
Try to solve the following questions:
- Write short notes on, Planning and development of "Tribal Regions" in India. (UPSC 2013, 10 Marks)
- Describe the major tribal regions of India and their problems. ( UPSC 2016, 200 words)
- Discuss the problems of tribal areas in India. (UPSC)
- Critically examine the problems and prospects of tribal areas in India. (UPSC)
- Give an account of the geographical distribution of the tribal population in India. ( 66th BPSC)
- How have tribes been classified in India? (NCERT)
- What evidence would you offer against the view that ‘tribes are primitive communities living isolated lives untouched by civilization’?(NCERT)
- Identify the tribal areas and their problems in India and suggest measures to overcome problems. ( 60-62nd BPSC geography)
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