Jāti is the term traditionally used to describe a cohesive group of people in the Indian subcontinent, like a tribe, community, clan, sub-clan, or a religious sect. Each Jāti typically has an association with an occupation, geography or tribe. Different intrareligious beliefs or linguistic groupings may also define some Jātis. The term is often translated approximately in English as caste.
Meena is a tribe from western India which is sometimes considered a sub-group of the Bhil community. It used to be claimed they speak Mina language, a spurious language. Its name is also transliterated as Meenanda or Mina. They got the status of Scheduled Tribe by the Government of India in 1954.
The Other Backward Class (OBC) is a collective term used by the Government of India to classify castes which are educationally or socially backward. It is one of several official classifications of the population of India, along with general castes, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (SCs and STs). The OBCs were found to comprise 52% of the country's population by the Mandal Commission report of 1980, and were determined to be 41% in 2006 when the National Sample Survey Organisation took place. There is substantial debate over the exact number of OBCs in India; it is generally estimated to be sizable, but many believe that it is higher than the figures quoted by either the Mandal Commission or the National Sample Survey.
The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. The terms are recognized in the Constitution of India and the groups are designated in one or other of the categories. For much of the period of British rule in the Indian subcontinent, they were known as the Depressed Classes.
Pardhi is a Hindu tribe in India. The tribe is found mostly in Maharashtra and parts of Madhya Pradesh however small numbers can be found in Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh. The word Pardhi is derived from the Marathi word ‘Paradh’ which means hunting and Sanskrit word ‘papardhi’ which means hunting or the game to be hunted. In some parts of India Pardhis are known as Meywarees. They also have various other names like Advichincher, Phans Pardhi, Phanse Pardhi, Langoli Pardhi, Bahelia, Bahellia, Chita Pardhi, Shikari, Takankar, Takia Pardhi. Pardhi tribe is divided in groups like Vaghri Pardhi and Phase Pardhi. These are further divided into subgroups like Pal Pardhi, Gav Pardhi, Takankar, Takari. Widely found surnames among them include Chauhan (Chavan), Rathod and Solanki.
The Dhangars are a herding caste of people found in the Indian states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Goa, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. They are referred as Gavli in southern Maharashtra, Goa and northern Karnataka, Golla in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka and Ahir in northern Maharashtra. Some Gavlis live in forested hill tracts of India's Western Ghats. Gavli, also known as Dange or Mhaske, and Ahir are a sub-caste of Dhangar. However, there are many distinct Gavli castes in Maharashtra and Dhangar Gavli is one of them.
Denotified Tribes are the tribes in India that were listed originally under the Criminal Tribes Act of 1871, as Criminal Tribes and "addicted to the systematic commission of non-bailable offences." Once a tribe became "notified" as criminal, all its members were required to register with the local magistrate, failing which they would be charged with a crime under the Indian Penal Code.
Reservation is a system of affirmative action in India that provides historically disadvantaged groups representation in education, employment, government schemes, scholarships and politics. Based on provisions in the Indian Constitution, it allows the Union Government and the States and Territories of India to set reserved quotas or seats, at particular percentage in Education Admissions, Employments, Political Bodies, Promotions, etc, for "socially and educationally backward citizens."
The caste system in India is the paradigmatic ethnographic instance of social classification based on castes. It has its origins in ancient India, and was transformed by various ruling elites in medieval, early-modern, and modern India, especially the Mughal Empire and the British Raj. It is today the basis of affirmative action programmes in India as enforced through its constitution. The caste system consists of two different concepts, varna and jati, which may be regarded as different levels of analysis of this system.
Gurjar is an Indo-Aryan agricultural ethnic community, residing mainly in India, Pakistan and Afghanistan, divided internally into various clan groups. They were traditionally involved in agriculture, pastoral and nomadic activities and formed a large heterogeneous group. The historical role of Gurjars has been quite diverse in society: at one end they have been founders of several kingdoms and dynasties and, at the other end, some are still nomads with no land of their own.
The Banjara are an ethnic trading group which may have origins in the Mewar region of what is now the state of Rajasthan, India
Adhering to Article 340 of the Constitution of India, the First Backward Classes Commission was set up by a presidential order on 29 January 1953 under the chairmanship of Kaka Kalelkar. It is also known as the First Backward Classes Commission, 1955 or the Kaka Kalelkar Commission.
Kanjar is a tribe with significant populations in India and Pakistan.
The National Commission for Denotified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Tribes (NCDNSNT) is a national commission set under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India, to study various developmental aspects of denotified and nomadic or semi-nomadic tribes in India.
Since the 1870s, various pieces of colonial legislation in India during British rule were collectively called the Criminal Tribes Act (CTA), which criminalized entire communities by designating them as habitual criminals. Under these acts, ethnic or social communities in India were defined as "addicted to the systematic commission of non-bailable offences" such as thefts, and were registered by the government. Adult males of the groups were forced to report weekly to local police, and had restrictions on their movement imposed.
The Vagri are a tribe and caste found in the states of Rajasthan and Gujarat in India, and in the province of Sindh in Pakistan.
Babaria are a Hindu community found mainly in the Indian states of Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Uttar Pradesh. They are also known as "Rajbohra" in Rajasthani history.
The Koli is an Indian caste found in Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Odisha and Jammu and Kashmir states in India. Koli is an agriculturist caste of Gujarat but in coastal areas they also work as fishermen along with agriculture. In the beginning of 20th century, the Koli caste was recognised as a Criminal Tribe under Criminal Tribes Act by the Indian Government because of their anti-social activities during World War I.
The Kaikadi are a community found in the Indian states of Maharashtra and Karnataka. their name derived from kai and kade, while the community derives its name from kai and kadi. Traditionally they were nomadic, mainly wandering in the Vidarbha region of the state, but most have now settled down. They speak Kaikadi, a Dravidian language closely related to Tamil with significant Indo-Aryan admixture.They practice the puberty function like other Tamil communities.
