Part – I Chapter-4 Integration of Tribals & Regional Inequality "The growth and development of people is the highest calling of leadership." - Harvey S.Firestone. Introduction A tribe comprises people who live and work together in a shared geographical area. A tribe has a common culture, dialect, and religion. They also have a strong sense of unity. A chief usually heads the tribe. A tribal society is a group of tribes organized around kinships. Tribes represent a part of social evolution between bands and nations. A tribe can be a group of families or individuals people living together. A tribe usually divides up the jobs that need to be done. Most tribes have special customs or traditions. The majority of the states in India have tribes. In India after independence, integrating the tribal people into the mainstream was an extremely complex process given the varied conditions under which they lived in different parts of the country. The tribals had their different languages and distinct cultures. In many parts of the country, colonialism brought radical transformations of the tribes as their relative isolation was eroded by market penetration. They were also integrated with the British and Princely administrations. Many moneylenders, traders, revenue farmers, and other intermediaries and petty officials invaded the tribal areas and disputed the tribal way of traditional living. Tribals were increasingly engulfed in debt and lost their lands to outsiders, often being reduced to the position of agricultural labourers and sharecroppers. Loss of land in debt, exploitation by the middleman, denial of access to forest and forest products, constant oppression, and extortion were rampant and common. Roots of India's Tribal Policy The preservation of tribal people and their rich social and cultural heritage was at the heart of the government policy of tribal integration. Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru was the main influence in shaping the government policy towards the tribes. The first step was to instil confidence and to make them feel at one with the nation and at the same time to signify the state as not only a protecting force but a liberating one also. Nehru favoured integrating the tribal people in the Indian society and making them an integral part of the nation by also maintaining their district identity and culture. Thus, the two basic parameters of Nehru's approach to Tribal Policy were – (1) The tribal areas should progress. (ii) They have to progress in their own way. The Nature of Tribal Development The tribals In the nation should develop along the lines of their genus; there should be no imposition or compulsion from outside. There should be an understanding that they have an equal contribution to independent India and make the nation grow and help originate a common culture and healthy sociopolitical life. • Tribal rights in lands and forests should be respected, and no outsider should be able to take possession of tribal lands, tribal languages must be given all possible support, and the conditions in which they can flourish must be safeguarded. The administration should be placed on the tribal people themselves, and administrators should be recruited from amongst them and trained. • There should not be an excessive influence of administration in the tribal areas. The efforts should be to administer and develop the tribals through their own social and cultural institutions, and self-governance should be the motive. • To give shape to the government's policy, Article 46 was inserted in the constitution to promote with special care the educational and economic interests of the tribal people and protect them from social injustice and other forms of exploitation. • Also, the Tribal Advisory Councils were constituted in all States containing tribal areas to advise on matters concerning the welfare of tribals. • Later, The Schedule – V and Schedule-VI in the Constitution were introduced to administer scheduled tribal areas and scheduled tribes, also under Schedule-6 provisions to the administration of tribal areas in the States of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram have been made. • In 2003, the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes, a constitutional body, was constituted by the 89th Amendment Act. • Also, Under Article 338 of the Indian Constitution, a Special Officer for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, has been established. The article mentions that there shall be a Special Officer for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes to be appointed by the President. It shall be the duty of the Special Officer to investigate all matters relating to the safeguards provided for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes under (1) the constitution and report to the President upon the status of those safeguards at such time as the President may direct. The President shall cause all such reports to be laid before each House of the Parliament. (2) Also, under Article 330 and 332 of the Constitution, seats have been reserved for STs to promote their educational and economic interests, seats have been reserved in Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha for them; also reservations in services have been made for them in Central government Services and State government services. The Challenges Legislative and State Governments have taken executive action to prevent the loss of tribal lands to nontribal peoples. However, constitutional safeguards and the efforts of the Central and State Governments have also not reaped the desired results; the tribal progress and welfare have been plodding and even dismal in some areas as health, education, and human development. • The problem often lies in the ineffective execution of laws and measures, which are focused in the government's policy. Also, there is a incompatibility between central and state government policies in some areas. • Also, the State administration has been relatively ineffective in implementing the favourable policies and laws laid down by the Union Government or by the state government. • A significant impediment from which tribals suffer is the denial of justice, often because of being unfamiliar of the laws and the legal system. • Rapid extraction of mines and industries has worsened their conditions; unsympathetic and often corrupt forest officials also use forest laws and regulations to harass and exploit the tribal people. • Education, health, and social mobility are also quite poor among the tribals. With time, the growing tribal antagonism towards the non-tribal people or outsiders living in tribal areas has been an unfortunate development. • Demand for and creation of some of the States in the past was basically in the wake of popular agitation, based on perceived neglect of certain backward regions in some of the bigger states such as the creation of Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat in the fifties and creation of Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh in the sixties. • In each State, specific reasons exist for the backwardness of regions within states, e.g., the major cause of backwardness of Vidarbha and Marathwada in Maharashtra and Northern Karnataka is the scarcity of water. • The Backwardness of certain regions in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, and Orissa can be associated with the different way of living of the inhabitants, mostly tribals, and the neglect of such regions by the ruling elite. • Regional disparity in development causes challenges like violent conflicts, unplanned and haphazard migration, e.g., Insurgency in the northeast and Left-wing extremism in large parts of central and eastern states of India. Regions and Regional Inequality The uneven distribution of income or other significant variables across different locations and differences in living standards and opportunities for work between regions cause regional inequalities. It can often be seen that some regions within a nation-state are relatively wealthy than other regions, having a more significant share of well-paid employment and provision of services. Other regions, usually in peripheral locations, lag behind. India's different areas and regions have had full cultural and social autonomy. They have been enabled to satisfy their legitimate aspirations fully, but still, some regions have lagged behind, and some have surged forward. The linguistic reorganization of the nation and the resolution of the official language controversy has played a significant role in eliminating a potent cause of the cultural loss or cultural domination and, therefore, inter-regional conflict. • Economic inequality among different States and regions is one of the causes of major socio-economic movements, rebellions. • Recognizing the importance of regional balance in economic development is a positive factor in promoting National integration. • The national integration council of 1961 recommended that rapid development of the economically backward regions in any State should be given priority in the National and State plans • From the beginning, the Central Government has adopted a whole range of policies to influence the rates of growth in poorer states, a primary government instrument in bringing this about was the transfer of financial resources to the poor states • Planning was seen as a powerful instrument used to remove regional inequality; government incentives have also been made available to the private sector to invest in backward regions and areas through ways of subsidies and concessional banking. • Economic mobility of people through migration of unskilled labour from the backward regions to the cities has also contributed to lessening regional inequality. • There has been a marginal improvement, but still regional inequality, particularly in terms of per capita income, continues to remain a significant feature of the Indian economy • Backward states have a lower level of infrastructure facilities, such as power, irrigation, roads, sanitation, and education. Further development of infrastructure, including electricity, water, roads, has been riddled with inefficiency and corruption. • Administrative efficiency, transparent governance, and human development also play a significant role in reducing inequalities; states such as Tamil Nadu, Kerela, Gujarat, which have done better than others, are examples. Fig: 1.4.1 Tribals performing the Paika folk dance in Jharkhand Credits: Travelogy What Factors Influence Growth of a Region. Geographical location and terrain of the area. Rural and urban population composition. Infrastructure and administrative efficiency. Political perspective and the leadership potential, management & implementation of government policies on the ground level. Levels of health and education facilities also play a very determined and essential role in regional inequalities. Minerals and deposits and their use are an essential aspect of the economy of any State or an area. The agricultural development, efficiency, and biodiversity of a region play an essential role as Indian agriculture employs a large workforce section. Way Forward In Modern times India's geographical diversity and different levels of development across regions mean that location-specific targeted action will be required in the less prosperous regions and areas to ensure that a minimum acceptable level of prosperity is attained. There is a need to invigorate civil society in these areas. It is now a well-accepted fact that the region with higher social and capital prospects tends to develop more rapidly and sustainably. Within democratic polity, growth and prosperity must exhibit regional balance. Thus a democratic government striving to achieve such balance is axiomatic. India is subdivided into 29 states differing in terms of their productive potential and the type of industry they can support. (3) The realization of their potential holds the key to increasing the nation's competitiveness as a whole. The sustainability of the growth rate and the goal of the country to achieve its development target will be challenging to meet unless India develops as an integrated paradigm of regional competency. References 1. Special Officer for Linguistic Minorities. https://www.jagranjosh.com/special-officer-for-linguisticminorities. 2. "India: Development Of Linguistic Minorities." Mena Report, Albawaba (London) Ltd., Mar. 2016, p. n/a. 3. Competitiveness: Social Progress And Shared Value https://www.svai.africa/wpcontent/uploads/2019/07/SVAI19-Breakaway-Report_01a_Final.pdf
