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Home/Anthropology/Mains PYQ/2016/Paper II/Indian Society, Caste & Civilization
UPSC MainsAnthropology Optional Paper II 2016 15 Marks Model Answer Available

The ‘Negrito Problem’ in India — 2016 Paper II

Question · 2016 · Paper II · 15 Marks

Give a critical assessment of 'Negrito Problem' in India.

Model Answer

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Approach

Demand of Question: Explain the historical ‘Negrito problem’ as a debate over alleged Negrito ancestry in India, then critically evaluate morphological claims using modern population genetics and the rejection of typological race.

Structuring the Response: Define the historical problem -> classical evidence and Guha -> mainland/Andaman claims -> methodological weaknesses -> genomic reinterpretation -> balanced conclusion.

Key Dimensions to Cover: B.S. Guha; Andamanese, Onge and Jarawa; alleged mainland traces among Kadar/Irula etc.; frizzly hair and stature; convergent phenotype; Reich/Thangaraj/Narasimhan population genetics; AASI; rejection of discrete ‘Negrito race’.

Model Answer

Introduction

The ‘Negrito problem’ is a historical physical-anthropological debate about whether a distinct Negrito racial stratum formed an early component of India’s population. The question is important today mainly as an example of how typological race concepts have been revised by genetics.

Body

Classical formulation: B.S. Guha’s racial classification recognized a Negrito element principally among the Andamanese and suggested possible traces in some south Indian forest populations on traits such as short stature, dark pigmentation and frizzly hair. Earlier anthropologists therefore asked whether similar phenotypes in the Andamans, South India and Southeast Asia represented a common ancient racial layer.

Why it became a ‘problem’: The evidence was weak: small samples, reliance on a few visible traits, uncertain historical continuity and inconsistent identification of mainland groups. Hair form, stature and pigmentation are influenced by multiple genes and environments; similar traits can evolve independently. The category also conflated geographically distant populations under an externally imposed racial label.

Genomic reassessment: Genetic studies show that Andamanese populations are deeply differentiated South Asian lineages with long isolation, but they are not recent African remnants and do not validate a pan-Asian ‘Negrito race’. Mainland Indian populations are better explained through varying proportions of deep South Asian ancestry, later West Eurasian-related ancestry, Austroasiatic and Tibeto-Burman-associated movements, followed by extensive endogamy and drift.

Contemporary position: Modern biological anthropology therefore studies ancestry, population structure, gene flow and local adaptation rather than fixed races. Phenotypic resemblance alone is insufficient evidence of common descent.

Conclusion

The Negrito problem is best treated as a historically significant but scientifically outdated racial formulation. Its useful legacy is methodological: morphology must be tested against population history, genomics and convergent adaptation.

2026 What are the major debates related to the concept of jajmani system? 2026 Does caste as a social category exist among the non-Hindu communities in India? Illustrate your answer with suitable examples. 2025 Trace the history and describe the methods of formulating the lists of OBCs, both at the State and National levels. 2025 Caste domination, factionalism and political power

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