Chapter 5: Tribal community of Rajasthan

In sociology, the Tribal community of Rajasthan Bhil, Mina (Meena), and Garasia—hold a significant place in the state’s social fabric. This chapter explores their unique cultural identity, the challenges they face, and the welfare initiatives aimed at their development.

Previous Years Questions

YearQuestionMarks
2023Present the socio-economic profile of the Garasia Tribe.5 M
2021Write five major problems of the tribal community of Rajasthan.5 M
2018What are the Constitutional efforts to solve the problems of tribes in Rajasthan ?5 M
2018)What is ‘Sagari Custom’ Prohibition Act ?2 M
2016Name four districts of Rajasthan where tribal population is concentrated.2 M
2016 SpecialIdentify four major problems which the tribals in Rajasthan are facing2 M

Bhils

  • Ranks second in Rajasthan’s tribal population.
  • Socially patrilineal
  • They are primarily farmers and renowned archers traditionally.
  • Location : Banswara, Dungarpur, and Udaipur districts. 
  • Habitat and Housing : Houses are called Ku and villages Tapra,constructed using bamboo and wood.
  • Social and Cultural Life:
    • Marriage Types: 
      • Vidhisar na lagan – Marriage ceremony with full approval of both the parties
      • Marriage by escape
      • Child Marriage
    • Family Structure: Nuclear families with the father as the head.
    • Divorce: called cheda fadna
    • Fairs: Beneshwar Fair
    • Dances: Gair, Gavri, Dvichakri, Hathimna etc
    • Dress and Appearance: Men wear kameez or Angrakhi, tight-fitted dhoti called hepada, and a turban called Potya. Females wear ghagra, lugdi, and choli.
    • Religion: Worship Hindu gods and goddesses,also worship local deities Govind Guru.
  • Economic Status of Bhils: Traditionally Nomadic Lifestyle, Forest-based Livelihood, Transition to Farming (Chimata , Dajiya) , Animal husbandry and  Wage Labor.

Mina (Meena)

The Meena is the largest, most literate tribal group in Rajasthan, with its origins linked to the word ‘Meen’, which represents the 10th incarnation of Lord Vishnu.

  • Location : Mainly Alwar, Jaipur, Dausa districts. 
  • Habitat and Housing : Houses are called jopadi and villages Pals and leaders are called Patel.
  • Two types:
    • Zamidar– Engaged in agriculture and animal husbandry
    • Chowkidar– Watchman or guards
  • Social and Cultural Life:
    • Marriage Types: Meena marriage is endogamy. Biyah,Padna and Nata.
    • Nukta (Death Feast)
    • Family Structure: Patrilineal Nuclear families.
    • Fairs: Gotameshwar, Bhuria baba on vaishakh purnima
    • Dress and Appearance: Mina woman- odhna, ghagra, kanchli-kurti and lugda. Meena man- ​​dhoti, kurta.
  • Economic Status of Meena: The Meena tribe in Rajasthan mainly depends on agriculture, with some members in government jobs. However, they face economic challenges due to limited resources and opportunities.

Garasia

Location : Predominantly found in Abu Road and Pindwara tehsil of Sirohi, Bali of Pali district, and Gogunda and Kotra tehsil of Udaipur in Rajasthan.

  • Village and Housing: Houses are called ‘Gher’ and villages ‘Faliya.’
  • Social and Cultural Life:
    • Marriage Types: Mor Badhiya, Peharawana,Tadana marriage (Bride price is paid by the groom’s family). Widow marriage, love marriage are also prevalent in them. 
    • Family Structure: Live in nuclear families with the father as the head.
    • Social Divisions: Divided into three sections: Moti nyat, Nenki Nyat, and Nichli Nyat.
    • Fairs: Koteshwar fair near Ambaji, Chetar Vichitar fair near Devla, and Gangaur fair of Gogunda.
    • Dances: Main dances include Valar, Garba, Gair, Moriya, and Gaur.
    • Dialect: A mix of Gujarati, Bhili, Mewari, and Marwari.
    • Dress and Appearance: Males wear dhoti, kameez, and a head towel. Tradition of tattoo making, with tattoos on females’ foreheads and chins.
    • Religion: Worship Shiva, Bhairav, and Durga.
    • Economy:
      • Based on agriculture, animal husbandry, wood-cutting, and forest product collection.
      • Increasingly involved in labor work in towns and cities.
      • Practise ‘Hari Bhawri,‘ a form of community farming.
      • Store food grains in ‘Sohri’ (Kothi).

Problems Faced by Tribes in Rajasthan

Economic Challenges

  1. Poverty:
    • Many tribal communities live below the poverty line due to limited access to stable livelihoods and resources.
  2. Unemployment
    • Lack of skill-based training and education limits employment opportunities.
    • Adivasis often depend on unskilled daily wage labour, seasonal farming or subsistence-level activities.
  3. Landlessness
    • A significant portion of tribal households do not own agricultural land, forcing them to engage in wage labour or shifting cultivation (slash and burn agriculture).
  4. Exploitation
    • Adivasis are often exploited by moneylenders, landlords and middlemen, trapping them in a cycle of debt and economic vulnerability.

Educational Challenges

  1. Low Literacy Rate:
    • Literacy levels among the tribal population are significantly lower than the state and national averages, especially among women.
  2. Lack of Infrastructure:
    • Many tribal areas lack proper schools, teachers and educational facilities.
  3. Language barrier:
    • Tribal dialects are different from mainstream languages, making formal education less accessible.
  4. High dropout rate:
    • Economic constraints and the need to contribute to household income force many tribal children to drop out of school.

 Social challenges

  1. Discrimination and stigma:
    • Adivasis often face social exclusion and discrimination from mainstream society due to historical prejudices and stereotypes.
    • Migration → atrocities by outside states (e.g. Bhil migrants).
  2. Cultural marginalization:
    • Tribal customs, traditions and languages ​​are often ignored or undermined, leading to cultural isolation.
    • Disruption of traditional nomadic lifestyle, cultural loss.
  3. Gender inequality:
    • Tribal women are doubly marginalized due to their gender and tribal identity, resulting in limited access to education, healthcare and employment.
    • Discriminatory practices, gender bias (e.g. chhedna phadna, kukdi).
  4. Violence against tribals:
    • High crime rate against scheduled tribes, Rajasthan ranks second in India.

Health challenges

  1. Poor access to healthcare:
    • Tribal areas lack adequate healthcare infrastructure, leading to high mortality rates and poor health outcomes.
    • High maternal mortality rate (MMR), high infant mortality rate (IMR).
  2. Malnutrition
    • Poor dietary intake and lack of awareness about nutrition leads to widespread malnutrition, especially among children and women.
  3. Prevalence of diseases:
    • Diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis and diarrhoea are common due to unhygienic living conditions and lack of medical facilities.
  4. Dependence on traditional medicine:
    • Tribals often rely on traditional healers (Bhopa ji) due to the unavailability of modern healthcare, which can delay proper treatment.

Infrastructure challenges

  1. Remote location:
    • Many tribal settlements are in remote and inaccessible areas, making it difficult to provide essential services such as education, healthcare and connectivity.
  2. Lack of basic amenities:
    • Many tribal villages lack clean drinking water, electricity, sanitation and proper roads.
  3. Housing problems:
    • Poor housing conditions are common, with many families living in temporary or semi-permanent structures.

Environmental challenges

  1. Degradation of natural resources:
    • Excessive use of forest resources, deforestation and loss of biodiversity directly affect access to forest produce, the livelihoods of tribes dependent on these resources.
  2. Conflicts over land:
    • Encroachment and large-scale projects such as dams and mining often lead to displacement of tribal community.
  3. Climate change:
    • Changing weather patterns and unpredictable rainfall affect agriculture and forest-based livelihoods.

Political and administrative challenges

  1. Lack of representation:
    • Adivasis are often not adequately represented in local governance and decision-making processes.
  2. Ineffective implementation of policies:
    • Welfare schemes and programmes for tribal development are often poorly implemented due to corruption, lack of awareness or administrative inefficiencies.
  3. Displacement and Rehabilitation:
    • Large-scale development projects have displaced many tribal families without proper rehabilitation, leaving them vulnerable.
  4. Weak implementation of Forest Rights Act, 2006: Inadequate land and community rights.

Cultural Challenges

  1. Loss of Traditional Knowledge:
    • Modernisation and migration have led to the loss of traditional skills, crafts and medicinal practices.
  2. Impact of Urbanisation:
    • The advent of urban culture in tribal areas threatens their distinct cultural identity and values

Steps Taken by the Government of India and Rajasthan to Address the Challenges of Tribes

The Government of India and the Government of Rajasthan have implemented several initiatives and policies to address the challenges faced by tribal communities. These measures focus on improving socio-economic conditions, preserving cultural heritage, and ensuring their overall development and empowerment.

Constitutional and Legal Provisions

  1. Recognition of Scheduled Tribes:
    • Tribal communities have been recognised as Scheduled Tribes (STs) under the Constitution of India, ensuring special protection and affirmative action.
  2. Reservation policies:
    • Reservation in education, employment and political representation at state and central level to ensure tribal inclusion.
  3. Fifth Schedule of the Constitution:
    • In Rajasthan: Banswara,Dungarpur, Pratapgarh (fully tribal districts), Udaipur, Rajsamand Chittaurgarh, Sirohi, Pali partly tribal areas) have been declared part of Schedule V areas.
    • The Fifth Schedule of the Constitution provides for the establishment of a Tribal Advisory Council in each State having Scheduled Areas.
  4. Sixth Schedule of the Constitution:
    • Provides for the administration of tribal areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram and for the protection of the rights of the tribal population in these States
  5. Forest Rights Act, 2006 (FRA):
    • Recognises the rights of forest-dwelling tribal communities to land and other resources traditionally used by them.
  6. Political safeguards:
    • Article 330: Reservation of seats for Scheduled Tribes in Lok Sabha
    • Article 332: Reservation of seats for Scheduled Tribes in State Legislative Assemblies
    • Article 243: Reservation of seats in Panchayats
  7. Administrative safeguards:
    • Article 275: It provides for the provision of special funds by the Central Government to the State Government to promote the welfare of Scheduled Tribes and to provide better administration to them.
    • The Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA):
    • Extends the provisions of the Panchayati Raj Act to the Scheduled Areas,
    • Empowers local tribes
    • Recognises traditional rights and customs of tribal people
    • Provides autonomy to local governance structures.

Economic empowerment

  1. Van Dhan Vikas Yojana:
    • Promotes tribal entrepreneurship by creating Van Dhan Kendras for value addition of forest produce.
  2. Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP):
    • A strategy to allocate a part of the state and central budget for tribal welfare and development projects.
  3. MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act):
    • Provides guaranteed employment to tribal communities, thereby increasing their economic stability.
  4. Livelihood Development Schemes:
    • Initiatives like Skill India Mission and Start-up India to encourage skill development and entrepreneurship among tribal youth.
  5. ST and other tribal forest dwellers (Forest Rights Recognition Act (FRA), 2006:
    • Recognises the rights of Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest dwellers over forest lands and resources.

Educational Initiatives

  1. Educational and Cultural Safeguards:
    • Article 15(4): Special provision for the advancement of other backward classes (includes Scheduled Tribes)
    • Article 29: Protection of interests of minorities (includes Scheduled Tribes)
    • Article 46: The State shall promote with special care the educational and economic interests of the weaker sections and in particular of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes and shall protect them against all forms of social injustice and exploitation.
    • Article 350: Right to preserve specific language, script or culture
  2. Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS):
    • Residential schools for ST students that provide quality education and skill development.
  3. Post-Matric Scholarship for ST Students:
    • Financial assistance to tribal students pursuing higher education.
  4. Ashram Schools:
    • To promote basic education in tribal areas and schools to reduce dropout rates.
  5. Special Coaching and Hostels:
    • Hostels and coaching centres for tribal students preparing for competitive exams.

Health and Nutrition

  1. Tribal Health Initiative:
    • Mobile health units and tribal health centres providing affordable healthcare in remote tribal areas.
    • Maa-Badi centres
  2. Poshan Abhiyaan:
    • Aims to eliminate malnutrition among tribal children and women through awareness campaigns and supplementary nutrition programmes.
  3. National Health Mission (NHM):
    • Focuses on improving maternal and child healthcare services in tribal areas.
  4. Ayushman Bharat – Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY):
    • Provides health insurance coverage to tribal families, ensuring access to quality healthcare.

Infrastructure Development

  1. Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY):
    • Affordable housing for tribal families in rural and urban areas.
  2. Rural Connectivity:
    • Construction of roads and infrastructure in tribal areas under schemes like PMGSY (Pradhan Mantri Gramin Sadak Yojana).
  3. Electrification and Water Supply:
    • Programmes like Saubhagya Yojana and Jal Jeevan Mission to ensure electricity and clean water supply in tribal areas.
  4. Electrification and Water Supply:
    • Programmes like Saubhagya Yojana and Jal Jeevan Mission to ensure electricity and clean water supply in tribal areas.

Cultural and Social Protection

  1. Tribal Research Institute (TRI):
    • To document and promote cultural heritage, arts and crafts of tribal communities.
  2. Support to Tribal Artisans:
    • Schemes like Tribes India to market and promote tribal handicrafts and products nationally and internationally.
  3. Celebration of Tribal Festivals:
    • Support for organising tribal fairs, festivals and cultural programmes to preserve and promote tribal identity.

Other Provisions

  1. Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955
  2. SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989
  3. Abolition of Bonded Labour System Act, 1976

Special Provisions by Rajasthan Government

  • Sahariya Vikas Karyakram: Special welfare schemes targeting the Sahariya tribe, one of the most vulnerable tribal groups in Rajasthan.
  • Rajasthan Tribal Area Development Programme (TADP):
    • Focuses on integrated development of tribal areas including education, health and infrastructure.
  • RajasthanSkill Development Programme:
    • Provides skill training and employment opportunities to tribal youth in Rajasthan.
  • Rajasthan Tribal Cultural Heritage Conservation Programme:
    • Dedicated efforts to preserve and promote the rich cultural traditions of the tribes of Rajasthan.
  • Rajas Sangh
    • Rajasthan Janjati Kshetriya Vikas Sahakari Sangh.
    • Objective To save the tribals from the clutches of money lenders and to provide consumer products at reasonable prices.
  • Anuja Nigam
    • Rajasthan SC/ST Finance and Development Cooperative Corporation Limited
    • Provide loans and grants
    • Improvement in living standards
  • Manikya Lal Verma Tribal Research and Training Institute
    • Bringing tribals into the mainstream
    • Training tribals
    • Promoting research and training to study tribal life
  • Tribal Advisory Council (TAC):
    • Under Article 244(1) of the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution of India,
    • To advise the State Government on matters relating to tribal welfare, development and protection.
  • Rajasthan Scheduled Tribes Commission-2016
  • Tribal Area Development Department
    • Established for the upliftment of tribals
    • Removal of backwardness existing under Article 46 of the Constitution of India
  • Rajasthan State SC, ST Development Fund Act, 2022
    • Allocation of funds in proportion to population → 14.82 percent of state budget for STs.
  • Scheduled Tribes Development Fund (STDF).
  • For skill development → Samarth Yojana
  • Udaipur + Jodhpur → Pilot Project > Mission Sickle Cell Anaemia
  • TB Mukt Banswara: For TB elimination – Contact tracing by ASHA, ANM etc.
  • Poshan Swaraj Abhiyan → First screening of children → Focus on local cuisine → Balance their nutrition in a diet like Lapsi, Chikki, Dal etc.
  • Anuprati coaching yojana.
  • Babasaheb Ambedkar Integrated Village Development Scheme: ₹200 crore allocated to develop rural infrastructure, education, and healthcare facilities in ST-dominated areas
  • SCSP and TSP Funds: ₹1,500 crore reserved for SC/ST communities, offering financial aid, employment, and educational benefits .  
  • Women Entrepreneur Scheme: ST women can avail loans up to ₹5 lakh for businesses, targeting 5 lakh beneficiaries over five years .  
  • Mukhyamantri Rajshri Yojana: Provides ₹50,000 in installments to ST girls from birth until Class 12, including health checkups and skill development .  
  • Lado Protsahan Yojana:- Providing an amount of 1 lakh in 7 installments.
  • Kalibai Bhil Medhavi Chhatra Scooty Yojana: Offers scooties to meritorious ST girls to encourage education .  
  • Ayushman Model Health Centers: ₹125 crore allocated to strengthen healthcare in tribal areas .  
  • Dang, Magra, and Mewat Regional Development Schemes: ₹50 crore each for infrastructure and welfare in ST-majority regions.

Tribal community of Rajasthan / Tribal community of Rajasthan/ Tribal community of Rajasthan Tribal community of Rajasthan/ Tribal community of Rajasthan/ Tribal community of Rajasthan/ Tribal community of Rajasthan

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