Revision summary
Ambedkar stressed graded inequality, endogamy, and division of labourers. Untouchability is structural contempt, not a side custom. Ghurye catalogued traits; Dumont theorised purity. Sanskritization keeps the system; Ambedkar seeks exit. The difference is indictment plus a political programme.
Model answer
Copper italics in this answer — like this — are the key facts. Each one is unpacked in the Facts & figures rail.
Introduction
Ambedkar identified caste as a system of graded inequality, endogamy, and occupational closure that is a social order of contempt, not a harmony of functions. Mainstream catalogues listed traits; he named the mechanism and the wound.
Body
Ambedkar’s features
- Caste is not a division of labour only. It is a division of labourers, ranked and hereditary.
- Endogamy is the key that reproduces the system; sati, child marriage, and bans on widow remarriage police it.
- Graded inequality sets every rung against the one below, which blocks a simple class bloc of the oppressed.
- Untouchability is the extreme of contempt, not a small ritual extra.
Mainstream contrast
- G. S. Ghurye listed segmentation, hierarchy, commensality, disability, and occupation. The list is useful; it can sound like a civilisational inventory.
- Dumont placed purity ideology at the centre and encompassed power. Ambedkar placed humiliation and closed doors at the centre.
- Srinivas’s Sanskritization is mobility inside the ladder. Ambedkar wanted the ladder broken.
Difference that matters
- Mainstream often explains caste. Ambedkar indicts it and designs annihilation through law, conversion, and representation.
Flow diagram
flowchart TD AM[Ambedkar] --> GI[Graded inequality endogamy] GH[Ghurye list] --> FT[Features inventory] DU[Dumont] --> PU[Purity ideology] GI --> AN[Annihilation]
Conclusion
Ambedkar’s caste is graded, endogamous, and anti-democratic. Mainstream feature-lists describe the shell. He described the engine and demanded its destruction.
Quick related
Students also ask
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Discuss Andre Beteille account of the relationship between caste, class and power as a change from symmetrical to asymmetrical one.
Next question on this syllabus topic (2016 · Q2(b)). View answer →
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Did Ambedkar deny hierarchy as ideology?
He knew the sacred story. He refused to let ideology excuse disability.
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Is reservation a caste feature?
For him it is a democratic counter-feature, not a trait of the old system.
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.
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2021 · Q1(b) · Sociology GS 2 · 10 marks
What does Dr. B. R. Ambedkar mean by the concept of "Annihilation of caste" ? -
2018 · Q5(a) · Sociology GS 2 · 10 marks
Elaborate the concept of constitutional morality as given by B.R.Ambedkar. -
2015 · Q7(a) · Sociology GS 2 · 20 marks
Discuss B.R. Ambedkar as a wise democrat.
More from this topic
Q5(d) · UPSC Mains 2026 · Sociology GS 2 · 10 marks · Solution
How do Louis Dumont and André Beteille differ in their approaches in understanding caste system in India? Explain.
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Louis Dumont and André Beteille offer contrasting paradigms for studying the Indian caste system. Dumont applies a structuralist-ideological approach, viewing caste as a hierarchical system governed by the religious principle of purity and pollution, derived from classical texts. Conversely, Beteille adopts an empirical-sociological approach, focusing on village-level realities in Tamil Nadu to demonstrate how caste, class, and power often diverge, reflecting secular social stratification. While Dumont sees caste as an integrated whole of structural values, Beteille emphasizes structural pluralism and social mobility. Understanding both theorists is essential for analyzing the continuity and transformation of social inequality in contemporary India.
Q4(c) · UPSC Mains 2024 · Sociology GS 2 · 10 marks · Solution
What are the different forms of untouchability still practised in India? Discuss with suitable illustrations
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Untouchability is practised exclusion on grounds of hereditary pollution, abolished in Article 17 but not in social geography. Forms include water, food, temple, housing, school and marriage bans. Manual scavenging continues despite the 2013 Act. Urban cups, sewers and housing filters are contemporary illustrations. Guru’s humiliation and Ambedkar’s annihilation agenda still describe the structure.
Q2(c) · UPSC Mains 2024 · Sociology GS 2 · 10 marks · Solution
What, according to Andre Beteille, are the bases of agrarian class structure in India? Analyse
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Béteille based agrarian class on land property and labour, not on caste rank. Owners, tenants and agricultural labourers are the main classes in his Tanjore study. Caste, class and power are three interacting dimensions. Ownership, control and labour remain the operational bases. Corporate farming, reverse tenancy and public works modify the actors without cancelling the scheme.