Relevance: Sociology: Tribal communities in India: Definitional problems.
Geographical spread. Colonial policies and tribes. Issues of integration and autonomy.
- With the introduction of a system of democratic decentralization to take the place of paternalism characteristic of traditional form of Indian government, a new element has entered the relations between tribes and the more advanced majority communities. The ability to vote in general elections for the Parliament in Delhi and the Legislative Assembly of their respective States did not make much difference to tribals, because they did not understand the implication of the franchise, but the local elections aroused their interest to a much greater extent.
- The very fact, that some of the most powerful people of the district approached the poorest villagers for their votes and tried to gain their confidence, convinced them of a fundamental change. The very idea that they could choose their representatives was novel. At first, tribals only voted, for non-tribals, for very few were sufficiently educated to stand for election. Even in areas with a preponderance of tribals, the elected representatives were often non-tribes and abused their powers by exploiting those who had voted for them. But as time passed and the tribes gained experience, they have become shrewder in the choice of their representatives.
- The Government of India has adopted a policy of integration of tribals with the mainstream aiming at developing a creative adjustment between the tribes and non tribes leading to a responsible partnership. By adopting the policy of integration or progressive acculturation the Government has laid the foundation for the uninhibited march of the tribals towards equality, upward mobility, and economic viability and assured proximity to the national mainstream.
- The constitution has committed the nation to two courses of action in respect of scheduled tribes,viz
(1) Giving protection to their distinctive way of life
(2) Protecting them from social injustice and all forms of exploitation and discrimination and bringing them at par with the rest of the nation so that they may be integrated with the national life.
- Thus by the Constitution Order 1950 issued by the President of India in exercise of powers conferred by Clause9 (i) of Article 342 of the Constitution of India 255 tribes in 17 states were declared to be scheduled tribes. Besides enjoying the rights that all citizens and minorities have the member of the Scheduled Tribes have been provided with special safeguards as follows:
- Protective Safeguards
(1) Educational safeguards-Article 15(4) and 29
(2) Safeguards for employment -Articles 16(4), 320(4) and 333
(3) Economic safeguards -Article 19
(4) Abolition of bonded labour -Article 23
(5) Protection from social injustice and all forms of exploitation -Article 46
- Political Safeguards
(1) Reservation of seats for ST in LokSabha and Assemblies-Article 330,332,164
(2) Appointment of Minister in charge of Tribal welfare
(3) Special provisions in respect of Nagaland, Assam and Manipur -Articles-371(A),371(B) and 371
- Developmental Safeguards
(1) Promoting the educational and economic interests of the Scheduled Tribes-Articles 46
(2) Grants from Central Government to the states for welfare of Scheduled Tribes and raising the level of administration of Scheduled Areas-Article 75.
- Following the reorganization of states, the list of STs was modified by the Scheduled Castes and Tribes List (Modification) order, 1956 on the recommendations of the Backward Classes Commission. In the revised list 414 tribes were declared STs. Since the revision of the list in 1956 there have been several proposals for fresh inclusions and deletion from the lists of the SC and STs
- Forced incorporation of tribal communities into mainstream has had its impact on tribal culture and society as much as its economy. Tribal identities today are formed by this interactional process rather than any primordial (original, ancient) characteristics peculiar to tribes. Because the interaction with the mainstream has generally been on terms unfavourable to the tribal communities, many tribal identities today are centered on ideas of resistance and opposition to the overwhelming force of the non-tribal world.
- The positive impact of successes – such as the achievement of statehood for Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh after a long struggle – is moderated by continuing problems. Many of the states of the North-East, for example, have been living for decades under special laws that limit the civil liberties of citizens.
Thus, citizens of states like Manipur or Nagaland don’t have the same rights as other citizens of India because their states have been declared as ‘disturbed areas’. The vicious circle of armed rebellions provoking state repression which in turn fuels further rebellions has taken a heavy toll on the economy, culture and society of the North-eastern states.
In another part of the country, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh are yet to make full use of their new-found statehood, and the political system there is still not autonomous of larger structures in which tribals are powerless.
- Another significant development is the gradual emergence of an educated middle class among tribal communities. Most visible in the North eastern states, this is now a segment beginning to be seen in the rest of the country as well, particularly among members of the larger tribal communities. In conjunction with policies of reservation, education is creating an urbanized professional class. As tribal societies get more differentiated, i.e., develop class and other divisions within themselves, different bases are growing for the assertion of tribal identity.
- Two broad sets of issues have been most important in giving rise to tribal movements. These are :
(1) issues relating to control over vital economic resources like land and specially forests,
(2) issues relating to matters of ethnic-cultural identity.
- The two can often go together, but with differentiation of tribal society they may also diverge. The reasons why the middle classes within tribal societies may assert their tribal identity may be different from the reasons why poor and uneducated tribals join tribal movements. As with any other community, it is the relationship between these kinds of internal dynamics and external forces that will shape the future.
- Tribes are faced with the problem of preserving their cultural identity and their social existence. Each tribe has three alternatives:
(1) to exist side by side with the majority,
(2) to absorb itself in the dominant group, and
(3) to secede and seek political independence on the basis of equality.
- Different tribes have adopted different processes from amongst the above mentioned three processes. For example,
(1) the Bhils and the Meenas have adopted the first process of co-existence,
(2) the Oraon and the Khond tribes have adopted the second process of absorbing themselves in the Hindu society,
(3) the Nagas and the Mizos have adopted the third process of secession.
- Our government has not adopted a uniform policy of cultural integration of all tribes because different tribes are at different stages of development and have different goals and aspirations. Naturally we find different levels of integration of different tribes. We can only hold that tribes arte gradually being drawn into the wider economic framework of the country and they are getting themselves involved in the market economy.
- Agriculture has come to occupy a central place in the economic activity of many tribes. According to the 2001 census figures, about three-fourth of the tribals in the country work as cultivators and about one-fifth as agricultural labourers and the rest as labourers in mines, forests or are engaged in other services.
The fact that the tribal cultivators are responding positively to modern methods of cultivation points out a positive change in tribal’s economic system. The economic integration of the tribes, however, does not necessarily mean that all tribes have achieved a high level of income. Many are still living below the poverty line.
- Tribals are also being integrated in the political system of the country. The introduction of the Panchayati Raj has offered them opportunity for an increased involvement in the political activities. By contesting elections, they have started acquiring power at Panchayat Samiti and state levels. This has also resulted in educational and social development of tribals.
- In social life too, because of the reservation policy, they now occupy important social positions. Though clan panchayats have not become altogether irrelevant for them, yet their role is confined to marital and land conflicts. The tribal councils have thus weakened now.
- It may be averred that on the one hand, the tribals have maintained their cultural identity and on the other hand, they have integrated themselves in the broader economic, Social, political and religious systems of the country. This integration has enabled the tribals to bridge the social distance that existed between tribals and non-tribals, though they have not succeeded in achieving social equality.
- While analyzing the tribal integration in larger society, would it be relevant to adopt Ghurye’s model of labeling tribals as ‘backward Hindus’, or Majumdar’s model of adopting Hindu ideas by tribals through contacts with caste Hindus, or Srinivas’s model of sanskritisation, i.e., tribes emulating high caste practices, or Bailey’s model of postulating a continuum at the two ends of which stand a tribe and a caste, is a matter of discussion. Lutz and Munda criticizing Ghurye and Srinivas models have suggested ‘modernization model’ for understanding tribal change.