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GS Paper: GS1-06.Salient features of Indian Society

 

  • Tribes in news: Mundapota Kela

    Members of the Mundapota Kela community in Odisha perform an unthinkable act of their head buried in soil, which requires exceptional breath control, for a living.

    Mundapota Kela

    • The community — Mundapota Kela (a denotified tribe) — is left with few members who earn a livelihood with this bizarre act.
    • It is believed to have migrated to Odisha from Rayalaseema area of Andhra Pradesh decades ago.
    • Being street performers, they travel from one village to another and bury their heads in soil for several minutes.
    • They collect rice, vegetables and money from villagers for putting up the show.

    Try answering this PYQ:

    Q.Consider the following statements about Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) in India:

    1. PVTGs reside in 18 States and one Union Territory.
    2. A stagnant or declining population is one of the criteria for determining PVTG status.
    3. There are 95 PVTGs officially notified in the country so far.
    4. Irular and Konda Reddi tribes are included in the list of PVTGs.

    Which of the statements given above are correct?

    (a) 1, 2 and 3

    (b) 2, 3 and 4

    (c) 1, 2 and 4

    (d) 1, 3 and 4

     

    [wpdiscuz-feedback id=”b9k5ymz91z” question=”Please leave a feedback on this” opened=”1″]Post your answers here:[/wpdiscuz-feedback]

     

    Back2Basics: De-Notified Tribes

    • Denotified Tribes (DNTs), also known as Vimukta Jati are the tribes that were listed originally under the Criminal Tribes Act of 1871 as Criminal Tribes.
    • Once a tribe became “notified” as criminal, all its members were required to register with the local magistrate, failing which they would be charged with a “crime” under the Indian Penal Code.
    • The Criminal Tribes Act was repealed in 1949 and thus ‘de-notified’ the tribal communities.
    • The denotified tribes were reclassified as “habitual offenders” in 1959.
    • The UN’s anti-discrimination body Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) asked India to repeal the Habitual Offenders Act (1952) and effectively rehabilitate the denotified and nomadic tribes on 9 March 2007.
    • A National Commission for Denotified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Tribes (NCDNSNT) was setup in 2003 to study various developmental aspects under the chairmanship of Shri. Balkrishna Renke.

     

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  • Complex count: On caste census

    These days, many states are urging the Centre to include a caste-wise census in the Census of India to have substantial data for reservations of certain dominant caste groups.

    Background

    Caste census of Backward Classes difficult: Centre

    Reaction by the Centre

    • In this backdrop, the Union government’s assertion in the Supreme Court that a census of the backward castes is “administratively difficult and cumbersome” may evoke varying responses.
    • There are two components to the Government’s stand:
    1. Jeopardizing the Census: It asserts that it is a policy decision not to have caste as part of the regular census and that, administratively, the enumeration would be rendered so complex that it may jeopardise the decennial census itself.
    2. Adding more vagueness: It cites the difficulties and complexities inherent in getting an accurate count of castes, given the mind-boggling numbers of castes and sub-castes, with phonetic variations and similarities.

    This is the reason that the data from the 2011 SECC were not acted upon because of “several infirmities” that rendered them unusable.

    Why is caste census not feasible?

    • Hurdle to casteless society: The idea of a national caste census is abhorrent when the stated policy is to strive for a casteless society.
    • Political polarization: Political parties with their base in particular social groups may find a caste enumeration useful, if their favoured groups are established as dominant in specific geographies.
    • Electoral impact: Politicians may find the outcome inconvenient, if the precise count turns out to be lower and has a negative bearing on perceptions about their electoral importance.

    Limitations of SECC, 2011

    • Completeness and Accuracy: Even in the Censuses up to 1931, when caste details were collected, they were wanting in completeness and accuracy.
    • Lakhs of Caste: Further, the data contained 46 lakh different caste names, and if subcastes were considered, the ultimate number may be exponentially high.

    Need for such census

    • Quantifiable data: It may also be a legal imperative, considering that courts want ‘quantifiable data’ to support the existing levels of reservation.
    • Basis for Affirmative actions: It will be useful to establish statistical justification for preserving caste-based affirmative action programmes.

    These points do merit consideration, and even those clamouring for a caste census cannot easily brush them aside.

    Way forward

    • A caste census need not necessarily mean caste in the census.
    • It may be an independent exercise, but one that needs adequate thought and preparation, if its ultimate goal is not for political or electoral purposes, but for equity in distribution of opportunities.
    • A preliminary socio-anthropological study can be done at the State and district levels to establish all sects and sub-castes present in the population.
    • These can be tabulated under caste names that have wider recognition based on synonymity and equivalence among the appellations that people use to denote themselves.
    • Thereafter, it may be possible to do a field enumeration that can mark any group under castes found in the available OBC/BC lists.

    Conclusion

    • A caste census may not sit well with the goal of a casteless society, but it may serve, in the interim, as a useful, even if not entirely flawless, means of addressing inequities in society.

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  • Festival in news: Nuakhai

    In Odisha, Nuakhai, an important agrarian festival in the State is being celebrated today.

    Nuakhai

    • Nuakhai or is an agricultural festival mainly observed by people of Western Odisha and Southern Chhattisgarh in India.
    • It is observed to welcome the new rice of the season.
    • As per the customary practice, people offer the new grains of crops to the deities before their own consumption.
    • According to the calendar it is observed on Panchami tithi (the fifth day) of the lunar fortnight of the month of Bhadrapada or Bhadraba (August–September), the day after the Ganesh Chaturthi festival.
    • This is the most important social festival of Western Odisha and adjoining areas of Simdega in Jharkhand, where the culture of Western Odisha is much predominant.
    • It is also a festival of social cohesion as all the members of the family come together to celebrate Nuakhai.

    Try this PYQ:

    Consider the following pairs:

    Tradition                                    State

    1. Chapchar Kut Festival   —  Mizoram
    2. Khongjom Parba ballad —  Manipur
    3. Thang-Ta Dance           —   Sikkim

    Which of the pairs given above is/are correct?

    (a) 1 only

    (b) 1 and 2

    (c) 1 and 2

    (d) 2 and 3

     

    [wpdiscuz-feedback id=”dqep2sq3fg” question=”Please leave a feedback on this” opened=”1″]Post your answers here.[/wpdiscuz-feedback]

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  • Is a caste census desirable?

    With the 2021 Census coming up, several political parties have demanded a nationwide caste census.

    What is Caste Census?

    • Every Census in independent India from 1951 to 2011 has published data on Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, but not on other castes.
    • Before that, every Census until 1931 had data on caste.
    • However, in 1941, caste-based data was collected but not published.
    • In the absence of such a census, there is no proper estimate for the population of OBCs, various groups within the OBCs, and others.
    • The Mandal Commission estimated the OBC population at 52%, some other estimates have been based on National Sample Survey data.
    • Some political parties make their own estimates in states and Lok Sabha and Assembly seats during elections.

    Arguments for caste census

    A caste census is not merely geared to the reservation issue.

    • Enumerating the marginalized: A caste census would actually bring to the particular the number of people who are at the margins, or who are deprived, or the kind of occupations they pursue, or the kind of hold that institutions like caste have on them.
    • Data for Policymaking: This information is absolutely necessary for any democratic policymaking.
    • Judicial backing: The courts in India have often emphatically said that it is important to have adequate data with regard to the reservation.
    • Caste offers privilege: Caste is not only a source of disadvantage; it is also a very important source of privilege and advantage in our society.
    • Caste doesn’t marginalize: We need to do away with the idea of caste being applicable to only disadvantaged people, poor people, people who are somehow lacking.
    • Rids away caste rigidities: Counting of caste doesn’t necessarily perpetuate caste or the caste system. Myths of caste elitisms can be debunked through a caste census.

    Arguments against caste census

    • 50% breach: It is argued that a Socio-Economic Caste Census is the only way to make a case to breach the 50% cap on reservation and rationalize the reservation matrix in the country.
    • Rising assertiveness: More the State ignores out caste, the more is the tendency to preserve caste, protect it. This has been observed in many states.
    • Chaos: Data gathering itself is a big problem because it can become very, very invasive. But we need to actually balance it with enabling people and asserting citizen equality.
    • Social friction: Caste identification can lead to friction amongst various classes.

    Breaching the 50% cap

    • Judicial Substantiation: The 50% cap, as introduced by the court, has not really been argued through.
    • Questioning the sacrosanctity: Some feel that nothing sacrosanct about the 50% limit − it can be exceeded, if necessary, but a clear argument should be given for why this is being done.

    Inefficacy of reservations

    • Fractional benefits: The way reservation is practiced has invariably led to elites among castes and communities.
    • Domination: These elites within the castes have tended to exercise their dominance over their very communities and not let them exercise the kind of freedoms, or search for equality, which any democratic polity deserves.
    • Welfare isn’t reservation: The state has helped privileged communities far more, even though this help has not taken the explicit form of programs like reservation.

    Why is a caste census always controversial?

    • Data manipulation: This is a manifestation of the principle that those in power control data and information.
    • Censoring of data: We have had instances where this data has been collected but has not been made public.
    • Relative deprivation: Since a caste census is a necessity, it is not a happy thing, it is not a great achievement, it is just something that the State has to do circumstantially.
    • Vote bank politics: Vested interests of particular state governments in hunt for vote banks are also visible these days.

    SECC has the solution

    • We have got locked into a mindset where we think only those communities which want welfare benefits from the state must be enumerated.
    • Many have argued that a Socio-Economic Caste Census would be the best way to rationalize reservation based on data and make a strong case for breaching this gap.
    • Earlier governments argued that counting caste will perpetuate it.

    Conclusion

    • Favoring one caste becomes a disfavor for others. This is an undeniable fact of Indian society.
    • It seems that the caste census will happen unless something extraordinary happens in our polity.
    • There are also important questions of demands coming up because of mismatches between the numbers that we come out with and the share in resources that different communities have.
    • This is a kind of nightmare that all governments fear. So, they would much rather leave things vague.
    • The Backward Classes are more than 50% of the population. And this dispensation knows that it cannot afford to lose the support of the Backward Classes.

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  • Arunachal Pradesh ST List

    The Parliament has passed a bill that seeks to amend the nomenclature of certain tribes from Arunachal Pradesh mentioned in the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950.

    What does the Bill amend?

    • The Bill seeks to modify Part-XVIII of the Schedule to the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950.
    • Part-XVIII lists 16 tribes of Arunachal, in order: Abor, Aka, Apatani, Nyishi, Galong, Khampti, Khowa, Mishmi [Idu, Taroon], Momba, Any Naga tribes, Sherdukpen, Singpho, Hrusso, Tagin, Khamba, and Adi.
    • The Bill corrects the names of tribes spelled incorrectly and adds names of a few tribes that were either named ambiguously or had their parent group named only.

    Why is it significant?

    • Self-identification: It is an essence for much-needed respect for small indigenous communities in the Northeast.
    • Indigenous nomenclature of tribes: This has been a long-standing demand in Arunachal Pradesh for two reasons: for the recognition of individual identity and to do away with the ambiguity as a result of errors in their names.
    • Identity assertion: For long, communities — whether civil society members or student leaders — have demanded that they must be known by their respective names.

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  • [pib] Definition of Minority

    The Ministry of Minority Affairs has provided some useful information about various initiatives for minorities.

    A very interesting fact found in the article is that Minorities are identified by the States and not the Centre!

    Defining a minority community

    • The Central has notified minority communities at the national level in consultation with various stakeholders under Section 2 (c) of the National Commission for Minorities (NCM), Act,
    • The six communities notified as minority communities under Section 2(c) of the NCM Act, 1992 are Christians, Sikhs, Muslims, Buddhists, Parsis, and Jains.
    • Notification of any community-specific to a State as a minority community within a State comes under the purview of the State
    • Article 29 and 30 of the Constitution provide for the protection of interest of minorities which includes linguistic minorities also.

    Who are linguistic minorities?

    • Linguistic Minorities are group or collectivities of individuals residing in the territory of India or any part thereof having a distinct language or script of their own.
    • The language of the minority group need not be one of the twenty-two languages mentioned in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution.
    • In other words, linguistic minorities at the State level mean any group or groups of people whose mother tongues are different from the principal language of the State, and at the district and taluka/tehsil levels, different from the principal language of the district or taluka/tehsil concerned.
    • The linguistic minorities are therefore identified by the respective States/UTs.
    • The State/UT wise, broad linguistic profile is available in the 52nd Report of the Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities(CLM).

    National Commission for Minorities

    • The Government has already enacted the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) Act, 1992 to constitute a National Commission for Minorities.
    • The NCM receives petitions/grievances from the aggrieved persons and the said petitions/grievances being received by Commission.
    • They are dealt with by calling for reports from the concerned authorities under the Union and State Governments.
    • On receipt of the reports, the Commission makes appropriate recommendations to the respective authorities for redressal of the grievances.

  • The Caste Census Debate

    The Ministry of Home Affairs has informed that it was decided as a matter of policy not to enumerate caste-wise population other than SCs and STs in Census.

    What kind of caste data is published in the Census?

    • Every Census in independent India from 1951 to 2011 has published data on Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, but not on other castes.
    • Before that, every Census until 1931 had data on caste.
    • However, in 1941, caste-based data was collected but not published.

    Why is there a demand for caste census?

    • In the absence of such a census, there is no proper estimate for the population of OBCs, various groups within the OBCs, and others.
    • The Mandal Commission estimated the OBC population at 52%, some other estimates have been based on National Sample Survey data.
    • Some political parties make their own estimates in states and Lok Sabha and Assembly seats during elections.

    How often has the demand for a caste census been made?

    • It comes up before almost every Census, as records of debates and questions raised in Parliament show.
    • The demand usually come from among those belonging to Other Backward Classes (OBC) and other deprived sections, while sections from the upper castes oppose the idea.
    • On April 1, the constitutional body National Commission for Backward Classes urged the government to collect data on the population of OBCs “as part of Census of India 2021 exercise”.

    Need for caste census

    • There is a central list of OBCs and a State-specific list of OBCs.
    • Some states do not have a list of OBCs; some States have a list of OBCs and a sub-set called Most Backward Classes.
    • There are certain open-ended categories in the lists such as orphans and destitute children.
    • Names of some castes are found in both the list of Scheduled Castes and the list of OBCs.
    • Scheduled Castes converted to Christianity or Islam are also treated differently in different States.
    • The status of a migrant from one State to another and the status of children of inter-caste marriage, in terms of caste classification, are also vexed questions.”

    Back2Basics: Census of India

    • The decennial Census of India has been conducted 15 times, as of 2011.
    • While it has been undertaken every 10 years, beginning in 1872 under British Viceroy Lord Mayo, the first complete census was taken in 1881.
    • Post-1949, it has been conducted by the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India under the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India.
    • All the censuses since 1951 were conducted under the 1948 Census of India Act.
    • The last census was held in 2011, whilst the next was scheduled to be held in 2021.

  • Explained: Conjugal rights before Supreme Court

    The Supreme Court is expected to begin hearing a fresh challenge to the provision allowing restitution of conjugal rights under Hindu personal laws.

    What is the provision under challenge?

    • Section 9 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, which deals with restitution of conjugal rights.

    What are conjugal rights?

    • Conjugal rights are rights created by marriage, i.e. the right of the husband or the wife to the society of the other spouse.
    • The law recognizes these rights— both in personal laws dealing with marriage, divorce etc and in criminal law requiring payment of maintenance and alimony to a spouse.
    • The concept of restitution of conjugal rights is codified in Hindu personal law now, but has colonial origins and has genesis in ecclesiastical law.
    • Similar provisions exist in Muslim personal law as well as the Divorce Act, 1869, which governs Christian family law.
    • Incidentally, in 1970, the United Kingdom repealed the law on restitution of conjugal rights.

    How can a case under Section 9 be filed?

    • If a spouse refuses cohabitation, the other spouse can move the family court seeking a decree for cohabitation.
    • If the order of the court is not complied with, the court can attach property.
    • However, the decision can be appealed before a High Court and the Supreme Court.
    • Normally, when a spouse files for divorce unilaterally, the other spouse files for restitution of conjugal rights if he or she is not in agreement with the divorce.
    • The provision is seen to be an intervention through legislation to strike a conciliatory note between sparring spouses.

    Why has the law being challenged?

    • The law is being challenged now on the main grounds that is violative of the fundamental right to privacy.
    • The plea argues that court-mandated restitution of conjugal rights amounted to a “coercive action” on the part of the state, which violates one’s sexual and decisional autonomy, and right to privacy and dignity.
    • In 2019, a nine-judge Bench of the Supreme Court recognised the right to privacy as a fundamental right.
    • The verdict in the privacy case set the stage for potential challenges to several laws such as the criminalization of homosexuality, marital rape, restitution of conjugal rights, the two-finger test in rape investigations.

    Question over gender-neutrality

    • Although the law is ex-facie (‘on the face if it’) gender-neutral since it allows both wife and husband to seek restitution of conjugal rights, the provision disproportionately affects women.
    • Women are often called back to marital homes under the provision and given that marital rape is not a crime, leaves them susceptible to such coerced cohabitation.
    • It will also be argued whether the state can have such a compelling interest in protecting the institution of marriage that it allows legislation to enforce the cohabitation of spouses.

    What has the court said about the law earlier?

    Supreme Court:

    • In 1984, the Supreme Court had upheld Section 9 holding that the provision “serves a social purpose as an aid to the prevention of break-up of marriage”.
    • Leading up to the Supreme Court intervention, two High Courts — those of Andhra Pradesh and Delhi — had ruled differently on the issue.

    AP High Court:

    • In 1983, AP High Court had for the first time struck down the provision and declared it null and void. It cited the right to privacy among other reasons.
    • The court also held that in “a matter so intimately concerned the wife or the husband the parties are better left alone without state interference”.
    • The court had, most importantly, also recognised that compelling “sexual cohabitation” would be of “grave consequences for women”.

    Delhi High Court:

    • In the same year, a single-judge Bench of the Delhi High Court took a diametrically opposite view of the law and upheld the provision.
    • From the definitions of cohabitation and consortium, it appears that sexual intercourse is one of the elements that go to make up the marriage.
    • But it is not the summum bonum (the ultimate aim). As if marriage consists of nothing else except sex.

  • Adoption of COVID-19-orphaned children

    The Supreme Court has directed the States and Union Territories (UTs) to take stringent action against private individuals and NGOs who invite people to illegally adopt children orphaned by the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Also read

    Legal issues involved in adoption pleas for Covid-19 orphans

    SC ruling against illegal adoption

    • The court ordered the government to step in and prevent private entities from revealing the identities of COVID-19 affected children, usually on social media and inviting people to adopt them.
    • No adoption of affected children should be permitted contrary to the provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 the court-ordered.
    • It was illegal to invite strangers to adopt children, already traumatized by their personal losses, without the involvement of the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA).

    About CARA

    • Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) is an autonomous and statutory body of the Ministry of Women and Child Development. It was set up in 1990.
    • It functions as the nodal body for the adoption of Indian children and is mandated to monitor and regulate in-country and inter-country adoptions.
    • CARA is designated as the Central Authority to deal with inter-country adoptions in accordance with the provisions of the 1993 Hague Convention on Inter-country Adoption, ratified India in 2003.
    • It primarily deals with the adoption of orphaned, abandoned and surrendered children through its associated and recognized adoption agencies.
    • In 2018, CARA has allowed individuals in a live-in relationship to adopt children from and within India.

  • LinkedIn Opportunity Index 2021

    The Opportunity Index 2021 highlights the difference in perception of available opportunities in the market for men and women in India.

    LinkedIn Opportunity Index 2021

    • The report seeks to understand how people perceive opportunities and the barriers that stand in the way of achieving them.
    • This year’s report dives deep to understand how women perceive opportunities, and how the gender gap is further slowing down career progress for working women in India amid the pandemic.

    LinkedIn is an American business and employment-oriented online service that operates via websites and mobile apps. Launched on May 5, 2003, the platform is mainly used for professional networking and allows job seekers to post their CVs and employers to post jobs

    Highlights of the report

    India’s working women still face the strongest gender bias across Asia Pacific countries.

    • Covid impact: Nine in 10 (89%) women state they were negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
    • General Bias: 1 in 5 (22%) working women in India said their company’s exhibit a ‘favourable bias’ towards men at work when compared to the regional average of 16%.
    • Work opportunity: While 37% of India’s working women say they get fewer opportunities than men, only 25% of men agree with this.
    • Pay: This disparity in perception is also seen in conversations about equal pay, as more women (37%) say they get less pay than men, while only 21% of men share this sentiment.
    • Promotion: In India, more than 4 in 5 working women (85%) claim to have missed out on a raise, promotion, or work offer because of their gender, compared to the regional average of 60%.
    • Family burden: Lack of time and family care stop 7 in 10 Indian women from progressing in their careers.
    • Maternity: Consumer sentiment from the report shows that more than 7 in 10 working women (71%) and working mothers (77%) feel that managing familial responsibilities often come in their way of career development.

    Scope for equality

    • The report shows that even though 66% of people in India feel that gender equality has improved compared to their parents’ age.
    • In India, the top three job opportunities sought by both men and women are job security, a job that they love, and a good work-life balance.
    • But despite having similar goals, more women (63%) think a person’s gender is important to get ahead in life when compared to men (54%).

    Barriers faced by Indian women

    • Lack of required professional skills and a lack of guidance through networks and connections are also some of the other barriers that get in the way of career development for working women in India.

    What next?

    • Organisations should step up to provide robust maternity policies and flexibility programs.
    • Reduced and flexible schedules, more sabbaticals, and new opportunities to upskill and learn are critical offerings that can help organizations attract, hire, and retain more female talent.