Scheduled tribes are defined in Article 366 (25) of the Indian Constitution as "those tribes or tribal communities, or sections of or groups within such tribes or tribal communities, as are regarded to be Scheduled Tribes for the purposes of this constitution". The tribes are the land's autochthonous or indigenous peoples, who are said to be the Indian Peninsula's first residents. They are commonly referred to as Adivasis, which means "original occupants." A significant number of tribes existing in India are mentioned in ancient and mediaeval literature. This article will explain to you the Schedule Tribes in India which will be helpful in Geography preparation for the UPSC Civil service exam.

Scheduled Tribes in India

• The Scheduled Tribes are tribes or tribal communities, or parts of or groups within these tribes and tribal communities, that have been proclaimed as such by the President by a public announcement, according to Article 342 of the Constitution.
• The tribal population of the country, as per 2011 census, is 10.43 crore, constituting 8.6% of the total population.
• The following are the fundamental characteristics of these communities:
  • Primitive Characteristics
  • Isolation due to geography
  • Culture that is distinct
  • apprehensive of interacting with the general public
  • Backwards in terms of economics

Classification of Scheduled Tribes in India

• Race and location have been used to classify India's Scheduled Tribes.

Tribes are classified depending on their race:

Classification of Tribes based on Location

• India's tribal population is dispersed across the country. However, there is relatively little tribal population in Haryana, Punjab, Chandigarh, Delhi, Goa, and Puducherry.
• The remaining states and union territories have a sizable tribal population. Madhya Pradesh had the most tribes registered.
• They are separated into four zones based on their location.
  • Zone 1: Northern and North-Eastern Zones
  • Zone 2: The Central
  • Zone 3: Southwest
  • Zone 4: Andaman and Nicobar Scattered Tribes.

Northern and North-Eastern Zones

• Indian tribes in the mountain valleys and other parts of the North-East are predominantly of Mongolian social background.
• It includes Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura, Manipur, and Mizoram, Eastern Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh's Terai districts, and hilly West Bengal.
• Assam has Paro-Boro, Kachari, Miri, and Mizo people.
• Manipur has the following districts: Anal, Kabui, Gangte, Zarao, and Moyan-Mansang.
• Khasis, Garos, and Jaintias of Meghalaya
• Mizoram has Mizos, Pawis, and Lakhers.
• Nagaland is a tribal state home to the Naga tribes.
• Himachal Pradesh is home to tribes like Gaddi, Kinner, Pangwal, and Lahuli.
• Tribes of Uttar Pradesh include the Jaunsari, Bhotia, and Raji.
• Bhotias are a late addition to the scheduled tribes, having suffered a setback following the Indo-China war.
• Tharu and Buxa tribes inhabit the Tarai Bhabar area.

The Central

• They are Proto-Australoid in origin.
• Many tribal people, including the Bhumij, Gond, Ho, Oraon, Munda, Santhal, Bhil, and others, dwell on the Chota Nagpur Plateau, which separates peninsular India from the Indo-Gangetic basin.
• This tribe inhabits the mountain belt between Narmada and the Godavari — the core barrier that separates the north from Peninsular India has given a haven for these people from very ancient times.
• Bihar includes the districts of Oraon, Munda, Chero, Parchaiya, Santhal, and Asuras.
• Banjaras, Moghias, and Sathiyas of Rajasthan
• Bhil – Gujarat
• Anal, Chiru, and Konkanas are three districts of Maharashtra.
• Muria, Dorla, and Bhil are all in Madhya Pradesh.
• Orissa and West Bengal
• Mala and Savara tribes of West Bengal
• Bhuiya, Baiga, Dharua, Gaaro, Ho, Koli, and Lodha in Odisha.

Southwest

• Chenchus, Irulas, Kadars, Ketas, Kurumbas, Jedas, and other Negrito, Caucasoid, and proto-Australoid people reside in the hills and converging line of the Western Ghats.
• This group is mostly found in the southernmost reaches of the Western Ghats, from Vindhyas to Cape Comorin.
• Andhra Pradesh-Chenchus and Lambadi Karnataka-Koragas, Kuruba Kerala-Koragas

Andaman and Nicobar Scattered Tribes

• The aborigines of the Andaman Islands can be classified as a race in its own right, and are separated into two divisions, namely, Subgroups.
• The Onges, the Sentinelese, and the Negrito-Andamanese.
• This group is located in the Andaman Islands.
• Mongoloid- People from the Nicobar group of islands, including the Shorn Pens and the Nicobarese.
• Jarawa is located in the southern, middle, and northern Andaman Islands.
• Sentinelese – Found on Sentinel island. Onge – Found on the small Andaman and Rutland islands.
• Shorn Pens – limited to Great Nicobar Island's eastern and southern coasts. They have also been reported from the banks of the Dagmar, Alexandra, and Galatea rivers.
• Nicobarese (Holchu) - the people who live on these little islands are extremely dispersed and only on two of them, Car Nicobar and Chowra.

Scheduled Tribes - Population Distribution

• The five states of Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Bihar, Gujarat, and Maharashtra account for around two-thirds of the entire tribal population in the country.
• India has over 550 tribes. According to the 1951 Census, tribal people made up 5.6% of the total population.
• According to the 2011 census, the country's scheduled tribal population is 10,42,81,034 people, accounting for 8.6 percent of the overall population.
• Scheduled tribes make up almost 11.3 percent of India's overall rural population, while they make up roughly 2.8 percent of the country's urban population.
• Between the 2001 and 2011 censuses, the scheduled tribe's decadal population growth rate was 23.7%.
• The urban and rural growth rates of scheduled tribes were 49.7 and 21.3 percent respectively.
• There are no scheduled tribes in Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, or Puducherry.
• Sarchhip in Mizoram state has the greatest proportion of Scheduled Tribes, accounting for 98.1 percent of the tribal population.
• According to the 2011 census, the sex ratio in India is 943, but it is 990 in scheduled tribes.
• Goa (1046), Kerala (1025), Arunachal Pradesh (1032), Odisha (1029), and Chhattisgarh, the sex ratio in scheduled tribes is in favour of females (1020). The sex ratio of Jammu & Kashmir (924) is the lowest in the country.
• According to the 2011 census, India's literacy rate is 72.99 percent, whereas its scheduled tribal literacy rate is 59%.
• Mizoram has the greatest percentage of literacy among scheduled tribes (91.7%), while Andhra Pradesh has the lowest rate (49.2%).

Schedule Tribes - Population Distribution

Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs)

• PVTGs (Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Tribes) are among the most vulnerable tribal groups.
• As a result of this aspect, more established and aggressive tribal groups receive a disproportionate share of tribal development money, implying that PVTGs require more monies devoted to their growth.
  • The Indian Government designated 52 tribal tribes as PVTGs in 1975.
  • The list was expanded by 23 groups in 1993.
  • As a result, out of 705 Scheduled Tribes, there are 75 PVTGs.
  • The state with the most PVTGs is Odisha.
• The Odisha government designated an additional 888 villages/hamlets inhabited by PVTGs in 2020.
• The PVTGs are located in 18 states and one Union Territory (UT) across the country (2011 census).

Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups - Characteristics

• The Dhebar Commission established Primitive Tribal Tribes (PTGs) as a distinct category of tribal groups in 1973.
• The PTGs were renamed Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups by the Government of India in 2006. (PVTGs).
• PVTGs have several fundamental features, such as being essentially homogeneous, having a tiny population, being somewhat geographically isolated, having social institutes cast in a simple mould, not having written language, having relatively rudimentary technology, and having a slower rate of development, and so on.
• PVTG cultural customs, structures, self-government, and livelihood practices vary greatly according to the group and location. Culturally, these tribal groupings are vastly distinct.
• Inequalities in social and economic situations are quite prevalent among PVTGs.
• Their issues are also extremely diverse from one another.
• In comparison to overall population growth, the population of PVTGs is either stagnant or dropping, notably in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, where the declining rate is quite significant.

National Commission for Scheduled Tribes

• The Constitution (89th Amendment) Act of 2003 created the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes as a constitutional authority.
• The Commission is an authority in India that works to promote the economic growth of Scheduled Tribes. Article 338 deals with the NCST.
• NCST examines and supervises all concerns concerning the preservation of the Constitution's provisions for Scheduled Tribes, as well as the effectiveness of such safeguards.
• The NCST will investigate particular complaints concerning the infringement of ST rights and protections.
• The commission participates in and advises on the planning process for the socioeconomic development of the STs, as well as assessing the progress of different developmental initiatives.
• An yearly report on the effectiveness of such measures will be delivered to the President. Aside from yearly reports, further reports will be presented to the President as needed.

Conclusion

Tribal groups are frequently defined by certain characteristics such as primitive qualities, distinctive culture, geographical isolation, reluctance to contact with the larger population, and backwardness. Along with this, certain tribal communities have distinct characteristics such as reliance on hunting and gathering for sustenance, pre-agriculture technologies, zero or negative population growth, and an exceptionally low level of literacy. These are known as Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups.