Marginalisation - class-IX

The Forest Rights Act, 2006 recognizes the rights of Adivasis to their homestead, cultivable and grazing land. This Act grants legal recognition to the rights of traditional forest dwelling communities, partially correcting the injustice caused by the forest laws. It also gives the opportunity to the public to conserve forests.

Article 17 of the Indian constitution says that the untouchability is abolished and its practice in any form is forbiddable. The main goal of this article is to remove caste discrimination which is prevalent still in the country. Discrimination on grounds of caste is punishable by the court of law.

In order to indicate to the government that untouchability was still being practiced and in a hideous manner, Dalit group demanded a new law that would list the various sorts of violence against Dalits and prescribe stringent punishment for those who indulge in them.  For that The Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes Act, 1989 was passed by the Government of India to safeguard Dalits from humiliation. The law seeks to both punish as well as influence the way people think.

Prevention of Atrocities Act 1989 has come to rescue of marginalized groups when they were treated badly by majority communities. The SC and ST (prevention of atrocities) Act was passed in the year 1989. This was enacted to prevent atrocities against scheduled castes and scheduled tribes.

Adivasis – the term literally means ‘original inhabitants’ – are communities who lived, and often continue to live, in close association with forests. Around 8 per cent of India’s population is Adivasi.

Adivasi societies are particularly prominent in Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and some north-eastern states, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Many smaller tribal groups are quite sensitive to ecological degradation caused by modernisation.

Scheduled Tribes are also known as Adivasis. These are the designated group of people who are disadvantaged indigenous people in India. Scheduled Tribes comprise about  8.6 percent of India’s population. 

Marginalized and discriminated groups organize and fight against the systemic structures and societal conditions that perpetuate injustice. While they may interact with governments or the rich, the core target of their struggle is the injustice itself.

Abolition of untouchability (Article 17) was mentioned under Fundamental Rights which are included in Part-III of Indian constitution. The article says that the untouchability is abolished and its practice in any form is forbiddable. The main goal of this article is to remove caste discrimination which is prevalent still in the country. Discrimination on grounds of caste is punishable by the court of law.

Article 330 provided that seats shall be reserved in Lok Sabha for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes and article 332 provides reservation of seats for them in the State Assemblies. Initially, this reservation was to last for ten years only. Article 334, as originally enacted, provided that these provisions relating to the reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes shall cease to have an effect on the expiry of a period of ten years from the commencement of the Constitution. The period fixed by this article was extended after every ten years through constitutional amendments in 1960, 1969, 1980 and 1990.

Scheduled tribes are also called as Adivasis. These people mostly depend on forests for their survival especially by selling forest products like honey, gum, fruits etc. Present day, problems faced by Adivasis are militarization, urbanisation, construction of dams, industrialisation which cause deforestation. Unlawful grabbing of tribal lands has been reduced these days. 

The Niyamgiri is a hill range situated in the districts of Kalahandi and Rayagada in Odisha. These hills are home to Dongria Kondh indigenous people also known as Adivasi. The hills have one of India's most pristine forests in the interiors.

The Environment and Forest ministry of Govt. of India scrapped a forest clearance given to a mining firm, Vedanta Resources, to mine bauxite in the area and the mining project was scrapped. In 2013, the Supreme Court of India asked the tribal people to take the decision, in which Bauxite Mining Process was rejected in all village council meetings.

From the 1830s onward, Adivasis from Jharkhand and adjoining areas moved in very large numbers to various plantations in India and the world - Mauritius, the Caribbean and even Australia. India’s tea industry became possible with their labour in Assam.

Groups of people or communities may have the experience of being excluded. Their marginalization can be because they speak a different language, follow different customs or belong to a different religious group from the majority community. They may also feel marginalized because they are poor, considered to be of low social status and viewed as being less human than others. The government releases various schemes to gain profit through the influence of these people and groups.

Around 8 per cent of India’s population is Adivasi and many of India’s most important mining and industrial centres are located in Adivasi areas – Jamshedpur, Rourkela, Bokaro and Bhilai among others. Adivasis are not a homogeneous population: there are over 500 different Adivasi groups in India. Adivasis are particularly numerous in states like Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and in the north-eastern states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura.

In India, we usually showcase Adivasi communities in particular ways. Adivasis are becoming increasingly marginalized and the people often wrongly believe that Adivasis are exotic, primitive and backward. Often Adivasis are blamed for their lack of advancement as they are believed to be resistant to change or new ideas.

Adivasis practise a range of tribal religions that are different from Islam, Hinduism and Christianity. These often involve the worship of ancestors, village and nature spirits, the last associated with and residing in various sites in the landscape – ‘mountain-spirits’, ‘river-spirits’, ‘animal-spirits’, etc. 

In the social environment too, groups of people or communities may have the experience of being excluded. Their marginalisation can be because they speak a different language, follow different customs or belong to a different religious group from the majority community. They may also feel marginalised because they are poor, considered to be of low social status and viewed as being less human than others.

Losing their lands and access to the forest means that tribal lose their main sources of livelihood and food. Having gradually lost access to their traditional homelands, many Adivasis have migrated to cities in search of work where they are employed for very low wages in local industries or at building or construction sites. They, thus, get caught in a cycle of poverty and deprivation. 45 per cent of tribal groups in rural areas and 35 per cent in urban areas live below the poverty line. This leads to deprivation in other areas. Many tribal children are malnourished. Literacy rates among tribal are also very low.

Muslims are 13.4 percent of India’s population and are considered to be a marginalised community in India today because, in comparison to other communities, they have over the years been deprived of the benefits of socio-economic development. 

Literacy rates point to demographic shifts in the years to come. The 2001 Census showed Jains, with a literacy rate of 94.1%, the most educated. They were followed by Christians at 80.3%, Buddhists at 72.7%, Sikhs at 69.4%, Hindus at 65.1% and Muslims at 59.1%. 

The Constitution provides safeguards because it is committed to protecting India’s cultural diversity and promoting equality as well as justice. The judiciary plays a crucial role in upholding the law and enforcing Fundamental Rights. Every citizen of India can approach the courts if they believe that their Fundamental Rights have been violated. 

The term minority is most commonly used to refer to communities that are numerically small in relation to the rest of the population. However, it is a concept that goes well beyond numbers. It encompasses issues of power, access to resources and has social and cultural dimensions. The Indian Constitution recognized that the culture of the majority influences the way in which society and government might express themselves. In such cases, size can be a disadvantage and lead to the marginalization of the relatively smaller communities. 

Thus, safeguards are needed to protect minority communities against the possibility of being culturally dominated by the majority. The Constitution provides these safeguards because it is committed to protecting India’s cultural diversity and promoting equality as well as justice.

Adivasis means original inhabitants are communities who lived, and often continue to live, in close association with forests. Around 8 per cent of India’s population is Adivasi and many of India’s most important mining and industrial centers are located in Adivasi areas.

Forests covered the major part of our country till the nineteenth century and the Adivasis had a deep knowledge of, access to, as well as control over most of these vast tracts at least till the middle of the nineteenth century. This meant that they were not ruled by large states and empires. Instead, often empires heavily depended on Adivasis for the crucial access to forest resources.

The Constitution provides safeguards to religious and linguistic minorities as part of our Fundamental Rights. Though the Constitution of India does not define the word minority and only refers to minorities and speaks of those based on religion or language, the rights of the minorities have been spelt out in the Constitution in detail. 

Houses made of mud, thatch or other low-quality materials are called kutcha houses. Data is disaggregated by Social Groups and major religious communities.

Kutcha houses:

• 63.6% of Muslims live in kutcha houses.
• 55.2% of Hindus live in kutcha houses.

Courts take decisions on a very large number of issues. Broadly speaking, the work that the judiciary is to uphold the Law and Enforcing Fundamental Rights. Every citizen of India can approach the Supreme Court or the High Court if they believe that their Fundamental Rights have been violated.

Niyamgiri Hill located in Kalahandi district of Orissa. This area is inhabited by Dongarria Konds, an Adivasi community. Niyamgiri is the sacred mountain of this community. 

Literacy rates point to demographic shifts in the years to come. The 2001 Census showed Jains, with a literacy rate of 94.1%, the most educated. They were followed by Christians at 80.3%, Buddhists at 72.7%, Sikhs at 69.4%, Hindus at 65.1% and Muslims at 59.1%. 

Militarised in the context of marginalisation refers to an area where the presence of the armed forces is considerable.

Displaced in the context of Marginalisation refers to people who are forced or compelled to move from their homes for big development projects including dams, mining etc.

The word marginalization simply means exclusion from the mainstream. Marginalization of any community or a person can be because of many reasons like -

• Speaking a different language,
• Following different customs,
• Belonging to different religious group from the majority community etc.

Marginalization is linked to experiencing disadvantage, prejudice, poverty and powerlessness. It is a complex phenomenon which results into a low social status, not having equal access to education and other resources.

In the social environment groups of people or communities may have the experience of being excluded. Their marginalization can be because they speak a different language, follow different customs or belong to a different religious group from the majority community. They may also feel marginalized because they are poor, considered to be of low social status and viewed as being less human than others. Sometimes, marginalized groups are viewed with hostility and fear.

Indian Constitution recognized that the culture of the majority influences the way in which society and government might express themselves. In such cases, size can be a disadvantage and lead to the marginalization of the relatively smaller communities. Thus, safeguards are needed to protect minority communities against the possibility of being culturally dominated by the majority. They also protect them against any discrimination and disadvantage that they may face. The Constitution provides these safeguards because it is committed to protecting India’s cultural diversity and promoting equality as well as justice.

Malnourished means a person who does not get adequate nutrition or food. Many Adivasis have migrated to cities in search of work where they are employed for very low wages in local industries or at building or construction sites. They, thus, get caught in a cycle of poverty and deprivation. 45 percent of tribal groups in rural areas and 35 percent in urban areas live below the poverty line. Many tribal children are malnourished.

Muslims prefer to send their kids to Madarsa when primary education in India is free for all because Madrasas are also a kind of school and education is free there. However, there is class distinction among people following the same religion. A middle class educated Muslim will most probably send their kids to a secular school. However, if the quality of education in Madrasa is improved, they would become popular like convent or missionary schools where people from all religions send their children to study.

Marginalization results in having a low social status and not having equal access to education and other resources. The Adivasis have been marginalized as their forest-lands were taken over for development and they have been side-lined. The Muslims have been marginalized as they have different customs and traditions as compared to the majority of the citizens. Different communities have been marginalized for different reasons, yet all the communities that have been marginalized experience disadvantage, prejudice and powerlessness.

Hierarchy is a graded system or arrangement of persons or things. Usually persons at the bottom of the hierarchy are those who have the least power. The caste system is a hierarchical system and Dalits are considered to be at the lowest end.

Muslims are considered to be a marginalised community in India today because in comparison to other communities, they have over the years deprived of the benefits of socio-economic development. Muslim women are the important part of the women movement in India. Muslims in India were lagging behind in terms of various development indicators. Economic and social marginalisation experienced by Muslims has other dimensions as well. Muslims women started the women's movement against the discrimination and unfair treatment to them in schools, colleges, hospitals and every part of the nation.

25 percent of Muslim children in the 6-14 year age group have either never been enrolled in school or have dropped out. This percentage is much higher than that of any other socio-religious community. 

Article 17 of the Indian constitution says that the untouchability is abolished and its practice in any form is forbiddable. The main goal of this article is to remove caste discrimination which is prevalent still in the country. Discrimination on grounds of caste is punishable by the court of law. It includes following provisions: No one should prevent Dalits from educating themselves, Dalits could enter temples and public facilities like wells, they could fight against any discrimination and seek equality.

Reservation policy ensures that the marginalized groups have equal opportunity in education and employment. Reservations are provided to disadvantaged indigenous people in India who underwent a huge number of atrocities and remained backward for ages. The main aim of this policy is the upliftment of scheduled castes and tribes.

Marginalization is the treatment of a person, group, or concept as insignificant or peripheral. In Muslim population there is link between economic & social marginalization. That is people are valued socially according to the economic status.

Article 17 of the Indian constitution abolishes the practice of untouchability. According to this article, untouchability is abolished and its practice in any form is forbidden. The enforcement of any disability arising out of untouchability shall be an offence punishable in accordance with law.

The Scheduled Castes and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 or the SC/ST Act protects the marginalised communities against discrimination and atrocities. The Act lists 22 offences relating to various patterns or behaviours inflicting criminal offences and breaking the self-esteem of the Scheduled Castes and Tribes community. This includes denial of economic, democratic and social rights, discrimination, exploitation, and abuse of the legal process. The prime object of the SC/ST Act is to deliver justice to marginalised through proactive efforts, giving them a life of dignity, self-esteem and a life without fear, violence or suppression from the dominant Castes.

Both State and Central Government make explicit schemes for implementation in tribal areas or in those areas that have a high Dalit populace. For example, the administration accommodates free or financed lodgings for students of Dalit and Adivasi communities with the goal that they can avail education facilities that are not accessible in their territories. Government's reservation approach is an exceptionally critical approach to advance social equity among Dalits and Adivasi. Under this scheme, seats are saved in education and government employment for them.