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Home/Anthropology/Mains PYQ/2019/Paper II/Indian Society, Caste & Civilization
UPSC MainsAnthropology Optional Paper II 2019 10 Marks Model Answer Available

Jajmani System and the Contemporary Market Economy — 2019 Paper II

Question · 2019 · Paper II · 10 Marks

The Jajmani system and contemporary market economy.

Model Answer

VAID ICS

Approach

  • Demand of Question: Explain the traditional Jajmani system and assess how contemporary market forces have transformed it.
  • Structuring the Response: Describe hereditary patron-service relations, contrast them with monetized exchange, and identify both decline and continuity.
  • Key Dimensions to Cover: William Wiser, jajman-kamin relations, caste occupation, customary payment, monetization, migration and occupational mobility.

Model Answer

Introduction: The Jajmani system refers to hereditary inter-caste relationships of service and exchange traditionally found in Indian villages. William H. Wiser, in The Hindu Jajmani System (1936), described enduring relations between patron households and occupational service groups.

Traditional pattern: The jajman, generally a cultivating household, received specialized services from groups such as:

  • barber;
  • washerman;
  • carpenter;
  • potter;
  • blacksmith;
  • priest.

In return, service groups received grain, produce, customary gifts or other entitlements.

Thus:

Hereditary occupation → Customary service → Reciprocal payment → Inter-caste dependence

The relationship was embedded in caste and custom rather than determined purely by market price.

Impact of contemporary market economy:

  1. Monetization has replaced many payments in kind.
  2. Migration and education provide alternative employment.
  3. Mechanization reduces dependence on traditional specialists.
  4. Occupational mobility weakens hereditary caste obligations.
  5. Services are increasingly obtained through contractual cash transactions.

Hence:

Customary obligation → Market exchange → Cash-based service

The system also involved unequal power relations and dependency of lower service groups.

Conclusion: Contemporary market forces have substantially weakened the Jajmani system, replacing hereditary reciprocity with monetized and individualized exchange, though remnants survive in some ritual and ceremonial contexts.

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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