Chapter 3 Social Institutions: Continuity And Change

Caste And The Caste System

Caste is a unique and ancient institution in India, influencing Hindu society and extending to other religious communities. It is a rigid system of social stratification based on birth, characterized by strict rules regarding marriage (endogamy), food sharing, occupational hereditary transmission, and a hierarchical ranking of castes based on concepts of purity and pollution.

Caste In The Past

The caste system has evolved over millennia. Initially based on a four-fold varna system (Brahmana, Kshatriya, Vaishya, Shudra) that was less rigid and not strictly birth-determined, it became more elaborate and rigid in the post-Vedic period. The concept of jati, a more localized and complex classification of numerous sub-castes, often with hereditary occupations, forms the basis of the contemporary caste system. This hierarchical system, rooted in ideas of purity and pollution, historically led to significant inequality and immobility.

Key features include birth-based membership, endogamy, rules about food and social interaction, a hierarchical ranking, segmental organization (sub-castes), and hereditary occupations. Historical texts prescribed these rules, though their actual practice varied, and the system was inherently unequal.

Box 3.1 highlights the contributions of social reformers like Ayyankali and Jotirao Phule in challenging caste injustices.

Colonialism And Caste

Colonial rule significantly shaped the modern understanding and rigidity of caste. British administrators collected extensive data on castes through surveys and censuses (starting in the 1860s), seeking to understand and govern efficiently. The 1901 Census, in particular, attempted to officially record caste hierarchies, leading to claims for higher status and solidifying caste identities. Colonial land revenue policies and legal frameworks also recognized and reinforced customary caste-based rights, particularly for upper castes.

Towards the end of the colonial period, the administration also initiated welfare measures for 'depressed classes', leading to the legal categorization of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes through the Government of India Act of 1935.

Box 3.2 mentions the reformist work of Savitri Bai Phule and Periyar (E.V. Ramasami Naickar) in fighting caste discrimination.

Caste In The Present

Post-Independence India inherited a complex caste system. While the Constitution aimed to abolish caste distinctions, the state's approach was often contradictory, unable to enact radical reforms that would dismantle the economic basis of caste inequality. Policies like reservations for Scheduled Castes and Tribes acknowledged caste realities, while a general "caste-blind" approach in areas like job appointments inadvertently favored the already privileged upper castes.

Modernization, urbanization, and economic changes have impacted caste, making it less visible in the public lives of the urban upper-middle classes who benefited most from development. However, for lower castes and marginalized groups, caste identity has become more prominent as a collective asset and a basis for asserting rights and seeking protection through state policies like reservations. Caste remains central to electoral politics, with the emergence of explicitly caste-based political parties. Concepts like 'sanskritization' (lower castes adopting higher-caste practices) and 'dominant caste' (economically and politically powerful castes in rural areas) emerged to explain contemporary caste dynamics.

M.N. Srinivas is noted for his contributions on 'sanskritization' and 'dominant caste'.

Tribal Communities

'Tribe' is a modern term used for ancient communities, often defined by what they lacked (written religious texts, formal states, sharp class divisions, caste) rather than by their own characteristics. The term's introduction in the colonial era was largely for administrative convenience, grouping diverse communities under a single label.

Classifications Of Tribal Societies

Tribes have been classified based on:

• Permanent Traits: Region (concentrated in "middle India" and North-East), language (Austric, Tibeto-Burman being significant), physical characteristics (Negrito, Australoid, Mongoloid), and ecological habitat (hills, forests, plains).
• Acquired Traits: Mode of livelihood (fishermen, hunters, cultivators, industrial workers) and extent of assimilation into Hindu society (attitude towards Hinduism, status within Hindu hierarchy).

Permanent Traits

Tribal populations are concentrated in specific regions like "middle India" (Gujarat to West Bengal) and the North-East. They speak distinct language groups like Austric and Tibeto-Burman, and are categorized broadly under racial types like Negrito, Australoid, and Mongoloid.

Acquired Traits

Classifications based on acquired traits focus on livelihood patterns and the degree of assimilation into mainstream Hindu society. Assimilation can be viewed from the perspective of tribal self-definition or the dominant mainstream's categorization.

Tribe – The Career Of A Concept

The definition of 'tribe' has evolved. Initially debated as distinct from caste or part of a continuum, later analyses found the caste-tribe distinction flawed due to shared characteristics like size, isolation (often inaccurate), religion, and livelihood. The idea of pristine, isolated tribes is challenged by historical evidence of early contact, exploitation, and the creation of "tribalism" as an ideology arising from colonial encounters. Many tribal identities are now formed around resistance to mainstream dominance.

Box 3.1 discusses the emergence of tribal identities influenced by education and policies of reservation, alongside ongoing struggles for resource control and cultural recognition.

Mainstream Attitudes Towards Tribes

Colonial attitudes often viewed tribes as isolated and in need of protection from exploitation, or as backward Hindus requiring integration. Post-independence policies focused on controlled integration through welfare schemes, but often neglected tribal needs, leading to dispossession of land and disruption of communities in the name of national development.

National Development Versus Tribal Development

National development projects (dams, mines, industrialization) disproportionately impacted tribal areas, leading to loss of land, forests, and disruption of traditional livelihoods. In-migration of non-tribals in tribal regions further threatens tribal cultures and accelerates exploitation.

Tribal Identity Today

Contemporary tribal identities are shaped by interactions with the mainstream, often centering on resistance against non-tribal dominance. Issues like resource control (land, forests) and ethnic-cultural identity are paramount. The emergence of an educated tribal middle class, aided by education and reservation policies, plays a role in asserting tribal identity and rights, though challenges like state repression in the North-East and incomplete autonomy in newly formed states like Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh persist.

Family And Kinship

Family is a fundamental social unit, characterized by warmth, care, and intimacy, but also potential for conflict and injustice. Its structure and functioning are influenced by and influence other social institutions like the economy, polity, and culture.

Families can be defined by their internal structure (nuclear vs. extended, male-headed vs. female-headed, matrilineal vs. patrilineal descent) and their relationship to external structures (e.g., migration, changing work schedules impacting family composition).

Box 3.2 illustrates how economic opportunities (starting a karkhana) can lead to the transition from a complex household to simpler households.

Nuclear And Extended Family

A nuclear family consists of parents and their children. An extended (joint) family involves multiple couples and often multiple generations living together, though it was never the dominant form across all of India. The term 'joint family' itself is a translation of the English term.

The Diverse Forms Of The Family

Family structures vary across societies regarding residence rules (matrilocal vs. patrilocal), inheritance (matrilineal vs. patrilineal), and authority (patriarchal vs. theoretical matriarchal). Matrilineal societies, where descent and inheritance follow the female line (like the Khasi in Meghalaya), present structural tensions due to the separation of descent/inheritance from authority, often leading to role conflicts for both men and women.

Box 3.3: Khasi matrilineal family clarifies the distinction between matriliny (descent through women) and matriarchy (women's dominance), highlighting the contradictions in Khasi society where despite matriliny, men often hold the de facto power.