Journal Press India^®

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The Constitution of India seeks to secure for all its citizens, among other things, social and economic justice, equality of status and opportunity and the dignity of the individual. Several provisions have been incorporated in the constitution for safeguarding and promoting the interests of the Scheduled Tribes in various spheres so as to enable them to the join the national mainstream. The areas of tribal concentration have been generally described as the forest and hilly areas of the country. This paper analyses the socio-economic status of Scheduled Tribes in the study area. In the sample, majority of the households are the tribes of Bhagatha. We find that cultivation is the primary occupation of all the sample households. About 51 percent of the households are earning up to Rs.20,000. Still 21 per cent of households are not having any land and about 74 per cent of sample households are having the land 1-2 acres. Most of the households are spending more amount on food items. About 58 per cent of the households are indebted in the range of Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 10,000 and 67 per cent depends on money lenders for their credit source. About 96 percent of the households expressed that they are not getting sufficient income for livelihood. The Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA) and the Girijan Cooperative Corporation are the two main institutions slated for the development of scheduled tribes. So, it is imperative to make the functioning of the ITDA / GCC more people oriented by adopting participatory approach.

Keywords

Socio-economic status, Tribes, Households, Income

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