Anthropology and development

Development and tribal development programmes.

Anthropology5 questions
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The essentials

Development means planned change to improve people's well-being, including income, health, education and freedom, not just economic growth. Anthropologists contribute by studying local cultures, needs and institutions so that programmes fit the people they are meant for, and by documenting the social costs of projects such as displacement.

Key points

  • Approaches to tribal policy: isolation (keeping tribes apart, linked with Verrier Elwin's early "national park" idea), assimilation (merging tribes into mainstream society), and integration (development while respecting tribal culture).
  • Panchsheel for tribal development (Jawaharlal Nehru, with Verrier Elwin's influence): development along the lines of people's own genius; respect for tribal rights in land and forests; training tribal people for administration; not over-administering tribal areas; judging results by quality of human character rather than money spent.
  • Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP) strategy introduced in the Fifth Five-Year Plan to channel funds to tribal areas.
  • Integrated Tribal Development Projects (ITDPs) implement programmes in tribal areas.
  • PESA Act, 1996 (Panchayats Extension to Scheduled Areas) gives gram sabhas in Scheduled Areas powers over local resources and customs.
  • Forest Rights Act, 2006 recognises individual and community rights of forest-dwelling tribes and other traditional forest dwellers.
  • Displacement: dams, mines and industries have displaced many tribal communities; rehabilitation is often inadequate.
  • Participatory development: involving local people in planning; anthropologists use methods like participant observation and participatory rural appraisal.
  • A ministry of Tribal Affairs exists at the Union level.

Exam tips

  • Learn Nehru's Panchsheel principles and the three policy approaches.
  • Connect PESA and Forest Rights Act to self-governance and resource rights.

Common mistakes

  • Equating development with economic growth alone.
  • Confusing PESA (1996) with the Forest Rights Act (2006).

Practice questions

The Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, known as PESA, was passed inEasy
Which law recognises the rights of forest-dwelling communities over forest land and resources?Easy
Nehru's Panchsheel for tribal development emphasised that tribal people should developMedium
A government builds a school in a tribal village, but attendance is poor because classes are held during the harvest se…Medium
A dam submerges forest villages, and families receive only cash compensation and are moved to a town. Why might such re…Hard
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