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Home/Anthropology/Mains PYQ/2025/Paper II/Ethnicity, Tribal Movements & Social Change
UPSC MainsAnthropology Optional Paper II 2025 15 Marks Model Answer Available

Rising Ethnic Conflicts in India — 2025 Paper II

Question · 2025 · Paper II · 15 Marks

Discuss the rising ethnic conflicts in India and propose their possible remedial measures.

Model Answer

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Introduction

Ethnic conflict is organised contestation in which language, tribe, religion, descent or regional origin becomes the principal boundary of political mobilisation. Fredrik Barth showed that ethnic identities persist through boundary maintenance, while Paul Brass emphasised the role of elites and institutions in activating cultural symbols. Thus, current conflicts are not eruptions of timeless “tribal hatred.”

Why ethnic conflicts rise

  • Territorial and historical claims: Colonial borders and postcolonial state formation placed overlapping homelands within common administrative units.
  • Competition over land and resources: Forests, urban land, jobs, reservations and development funds turn identity into a claim to scarce entitlements.
  • Migration and demographic anxiety: Indigenous or “sons of the soil” narratives arise when communities fear loss of land, language or electoral weight.
  • Uneven development and relative deprivation: Neglected regions compare their opportunities with neighbouring groups and interpret disparity ethnically.
  • Political entrepreneurship: Parties, armed organisations and social-media networks simplify grievances into hostile group narratives.
  • Autonomy and representation: Disagreement over Scheduled Tribe status, district boundaries, councils and power-sharing can intensify majority-minority tensions.
  • Transnational illicit economies and weak institutions: In parts of the North-East, porous borders, arms flows and narcotics trafficking linked to the wider Golden Triangle can finance armed networks and intensify local competition. Delayed or partisan policing, impunity and unequal rehabilitation then deepen fear and cycles of retaliation. These external flows must be addressed without criminalising whole ethnic communities.

Indian illustrations

The Manipur violence involving Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities since 2023 shows the convergence of land, valley-hill institutions, representation and security failures. Bodo-non-Bodo tensions in Assam, Naga-Kuki contestations, Gorkhaland mobilisation and migration-related conflict in Assam demonstrate distinct combinations of territory, ethnicity and state policy. They should not be reduced to one cause.

Remedial measures

  1. Immediate protection and justice: impartial security, safe relief, prosecution of violence, recovery of displaced persons’ property and gender-sensitive rehabilitation.
  2. Inclusive dialogue: structured negotiations involving recognised leaders, women, youth, displaced persons and smaller minorities, not only armed or dominant elites.
  3. Constitutional accommodation: asymmetric federalism, autonomous councils, district reorganisation or power-sharing where suitable, with safeguards for minorities within autonomous regions.
  4. Land and resource settlement: transparent records, community tenure, inter-group access arrangements and fair sharing of royalties and public employment.
  5. Equitable development: regionally balanced infrastructure and education, but development must accompany recognition and justice rather than substitute for them.
  6. Institutional reform: representative policing, independent inquiries, early-warning systems, regulation of hate speech and time-bound implementation of peace accords.
  7. Interethnic civic space: multilingual education, common markets, student exchanges and professional bodies that create interests cutting across ethnic boundaries.

Critical perspective

Autonomy can reduce domination but may create new “minorities within minorities.” Security without political settlement freezes conflict, while elite settlements without local reconciliation lack legitimacy. Remedies must therefore combine protection, redistribution, recognition and everyday peace-building.

Conclusion

India’s ethnic diversity becomes conflictual when cultural boundaries coincide with insecure land, unequal power and unresponsive institutions. Democratic federalism can convert ethnicity from a zero-sum claim into negotiated coexistence, provided justice and internal pluralism are guaranteed.

Diagram to draw: Identity boundary + resource/representation competition + political mobilisation -> conflict; justice + autonomy + equitable institutions -> accommodation.

Selected authentic sources: Fredrik Barth, Ethnic Groups and Boundaries (1969); Paul Brass on elite mobilisation; Constitution of India and peace-accord documents; UNODC reports on drug-trafficking routes affecting North-East India; reports on Manipur, Bodo and Naga conflicts from official commissions and recognised research institutions.

2026 Tana Bhagat movement. 2026 Kumar Suresh Singh's contribution in studying tribal movements. 2026 Discuss the impact of Christianity on the tribal population of Jharkhand. 2025 Regionalism and Autonomy

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