VAID'S ICS – Best UPSC Anthropology Coaching in Delhi Since 1985

Comprehensive Classroom Course · Admissions openRegister now
+91 93113 37737
  • +91-93113 37737, +91-99999 46748
  • 73(FF), Old Rajender Nagar Market, Delhi - 110060
  • MON to SUN 9.00 am - 6.00 pm
Facebook Youtube Instagram
Menu
Enquire Now
Home/Anthropology/Mains PYQ/2017/Paper II/Tribal Problems & Displacement
UPSC MainsAnthropology Optional Paper II 2017 10 Marks Model Answer Available

Indebtedness Among Tribal Communities — 2017 Paper II

Question · 2017 · Paper II · 10 Marks

Indebtedness among tribal communities.

Model Answer

VAID ICS

Approach

  • Demand of Question:Explain tribal indebtedness as a structural outcome of land, market, credit and livelihood relations, not as individual financial irresponsibility.
  • Structuring the Response:Define debt dependence; identify causes and mechanisms; show consequences such as land alienation/bonded labour; conclude with rights-and-institutions based remedies.
  • Key Dimensions to Cover:moneylenders/traders, seasonal food deficit, ceremonial expenditure, land alienation, forest restrictions, adverse markets, migration, formal-credit exclusion; S.C. Roy/Xaxa Committee; cooperatives, FRA/PESA and livelihood security.

Model Answer

Introduction Tribal indebtedness is not merely an economic issue of financial "improvidence"; anthropologically, it is a structural condition where borrowing translates into long-term economic subordination and exploitation by outsiders (historically termed Dikus in central India).

Body (Draw a Cycle Diagram: Livelihood Insecurity ➔ Informal Loan from Moneylender ➔ High Interest/Adverse Sale of Produce ➔ Asset/Land Loss ➔ Wage Dependence ➔ Deeper Insecurity)

Causes and Mechanisms:

  • Structural Exclusion: A lack of collateral and complex paperwork excludes tribes from formal banking, forcing dependence on usurious moneylenders (e.g., Sahukars).
  • Interlocked Markets: Creditors often force tribals to sell Minor Forest Produce (MFP) or cash crops at distress prices to repay loans, a mechanism well documented among the Bhils and Gonds.
  • Socio-Cultural Factors: Anthropologist S.C. Roy noted that sudden cash needs for life-cycle rituals, bride price, or health crises precipitate distress borrowing.
  • Ecological Alienation: Displacement and restricted forest access under historical forest laws eroded traditional subsistence bases.

Consequences: It leads directly to land alienation, debt bondage (e.g., the Gothi system), and distress migration. It alters the egalitarian tribal social structure by introducing severe class stratification.

Conclusion As highlighted by the Xaxa Committee (2014), tribal debt is deeply tied to livelihood vulnerability. Sustainable remedies require moving beyond debt waivers to structural reforms: enforcing PESA and FRA for resource control, strengthening tribal cooperatives (like TRIFED), and ensuring localized, culturally accessible credit systems.

2026 Make a critical appraisal of Niyamgiri movement against mining-induced displacement. 2026 Write an account on the prevalence of sickle cell disease among the tribal populations of India. What are the initiatives undertaken by the affected states to tackle with this disease? 2026 What are the major challenges tribal communities are facing in contemporary India? 2025 Examine the environmental and biocultural factors influencing the health of tribals of India.

Want feedback on your answer?

Join the Anthropology workshop or get structured answer-writing guidance from VAID ICS.

Join Workshop Contact VAID ICS

UPSC Anthropology Optional 2017 — Paper II

28 questions

5(b) Ethnicity and regionalism.

10 Marks150 words
Syllabus: Paper II > 7.3 The concept of ethnicity > Regionalism and demand for autonomy
2017Paper IIEthnicity, Tribal Movements & Social ChangeModel answer available

1(d) Ethno-archaeology.

10 Marks150 words
Syllabus: Paper II > 1.3 Ethno-archaeology in India > The concept of ethno-archaeology
2017Paper IIPrehistoric ArchaeologyModel answer available

5(e) Impact of Christianity on Indian tribes.

10 Marks150 words
Syllabus: Paper II > 8.1 Impact of Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, Islam and other religions on tribal societies > Christianity
2017Paper IIEthnicity, Tribal Movements & Social ChangeModel answer available

1(e) Nature-man-spirit complex.

10 Marks150 words
Syllabus: Paper II > 3.3 Sacred Complex and Nature-Man-Spirit Complex
2017Paper IIIndian Society, Caste & CivilizationModel answer available

1(a) Neolithic cultures of South India.

10 Marks150 words
Syllabus: Paper II > 1.1 Evolution of Indian Culture and Civilization > Neolithic > South India
2017Paper IIPrehistoric ArchaeologyModel answer available

5(c) Other Backward Class.

10 Marks150 words
Syllabus: Paper II > 7.1 Problems of exploitation and deprivation of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes
2017Paper IIIndian Society, Caste & CivilizationModel answer available

1(c) Varnashram and the concept of Rina.

10 Marks150 words
Syllabus: Paper II > 3.1 Structure and nature of traditional Indian social system > Varnashram, Purushartha, Karma, Rina and Rebirth
2017Paper IIIndian Society, Caste & CivilizationModel answer available