Q5(e) · UPSC Civil Services Mains 2021 · Anthropology GS 2 · 10 marks · 1 min read

← Q5(d) Q7(c) →

Politics of recognition and deprivation.

Topic: Evolution of the Indian Culture and Civilization. Syllabus: 1.1 Evolution of the Indian Culture and Civilization—Prehistoric (Palaeolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic and Neolithic-Chalcolithic), Protohistoric (Indus Civilization). Pre-Harappan, Harappan and post-Harappan cultures. Contributions of the tribal cultures to Indian civilization. Same official PYQ from year-wise 2021 and Evolution of the Indian Culture and Civilization.

Revision summary

Recognition is the demand to be named with dignity and rights. Deprivation is the claim of material exclusion. ST lists, minority articles, and new states are recognition tools. Land and school gaps are the deprivation file. A name without a share is an incomplete politics.

Model answer

Copper italics in this answer — like this — are the key facts. Each one is unpacked in the Facts & figures rail.

Introduction

Politics of recognition is the demand to be named as a people with dignity and rights. Politics of deprivation is the claim that the same people are materially shut out. In India the two usually travel together.

Body

Recognition

  • ST, SC, linguistic minority, and religious minority are names that unlock Articles 15, 16, 29, and 30.
  • Movements for a new state, a Sixth Schedule council, or a language in the Eighth Schedule are recognition fights.
  • Charles Taylor’s language of recognition fits, but Indian cases are also census and list politics, not only cultural honour.

Deprivation

  • Land alienation, poor schools, and job queues are the material file. Recognition without land is a flag without a field.
  • Ambedkar treated caste as graded inequality, which is deprivation built into recognition of a ranked name.

The twist

  • Groups already recognised still claim deprivation. Groups demanding recognition may already hold local dominance.
  • Policy has to test both: is the name missing, or is the share missing?

Flow diagram

flowchart TD
  R[Recognition name] --> L[ST minority list]
  D[Deprivation share] --> M[Land school job]
  R --> P[Politics]
  D[D] --> P[P]

Conclusion

Recognition names the group. Deprivation measures the share. Indian ethnic politics works when the two are joined, and it sours when a name is won without a livelihood.

Quick related

Students also ask

Same topic · past papers

UPSC has asked this before

These previous-year questions sit on the same topic. Open one to practise the earlier ask.

  1. 2021 · Q1(e) · Anthropology GS 2 · 10 marks

    Factionalism and politics in rural India.

    View answer →

More from this topic

Q5(e) · UPSC Mains 2026 · Anthropology GS 2 · 10 marks · Solution

Contribution of L. K. Ananthakrishna Iyer in Anthropology.

Evolution of the Indian Culture and Civilization

L. K. Ananthakrishna Iyer is a pioneering figure in Indian anthropology, known for his monumental ethnographic surveys like The Cochin Tribes and Castes and The Mysore Tribes and Castes. Working during the colonial era, he bridged western anthropological methods with indigenous scholarship. His documentation of social stratification, material culture, and folklore laid the empirical foundation for Indian sociology and anthropology. Iyer also established the first department of anthropology in India at the University of Calcutta, shaping institutional teaching and research.

Q5(c) · UPSC Mains 2026 · Anthropology GS 2 · 10 marks · Solution

Article 371A of the Indian Constitution.

Evolution of the Indian Culture and Civilization

Article 371A of the Indian Constitution grants special autonomous status to Nagaland, protecting its traditional socio-religious practices, customary laws, and land ownership rights. Enacted via the 13th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1962, following the 16-point Agreement, it reflects the asymmetrical federal framework of India. The article places a special responsibility on the Governor regarding law and order and regional financial allocations. It balances tribal autonomy with national integration, though it faces implementation challenges in modern governance.

PDF