Q.62 How did the colonial rule affect the tribals in India and what was the tribal response to the colonial oppression? GS-I: HISTORY (UPSC CSE 2023) (250 Words/15 Marks)

Answer:

INTRODUCTION:

It has often been assumed that tribal people and their societies lived in insulated and secluded enclaves before the advent of the British in India. Their economies and culture was relatively untouched by outside markets and therefore were relatively closed, egalitarian and prosperous communities. These economies were free of exploitation because they had no private property and were not guided by profit motive, rather their relationships was based on the notion of exchange.

BODY:

Given the vast expanse of the Indian subcontinent, the penetration and impact of colonialism variegated in nature. These differences led to diverse types of impacts on and protests from tribal people. They also had a variegated impact on the identity politics of the regions. Generally speaking, there has been a tendency to regard colonialism as both, an economic and ecological watershed in the history of tribal economies.

There were broadly three processes of colonial expansion that affected the tribal people:

1. The process of reclamation of lands for cultivation led to severe land alienation amongst the tribal people. This made the tribals more and more dependent on labour, as they could not pursue any other occupations because they were ‘educationally and politically backward’.

2. Complete ban on shifting cultivation in government forests seriously affected the patterns of tribal livelihood. The poor tribal people depended on different forms of shifting cultivation for a large part of their nutritional needs. But with the government take-over of forests and the ban over this form of cultivation the tribals were once again forced to depend on labour for their livelihood.

3. The penetration of industrial capitalism in forested areas affected tribal economies. Here the focus was not only on felling of timber but more importantly on the non-timber forest produce which was an important supplement to tribal income. Increasing demand for minor forest produce in the international market led to the influx of European capital into forested areas. It changed the very nature of production relations.

The second major impact of colonial intervention was on tribal identity and the nature of tribal polity.

• • The loss of land coupled with the lack of income or exploitation induced migration to mining areas as well as tea gardens. In other areas where such migration did not exist, tribals worked in the forest department and on the fields of caste-Hindu peasants. So, their identity changed from ‘Producers’ to that of ‘Labourers’.
  • Before the arrival of the British, in many areas the tribal chiefs were important people. They enjoyed a certain amount of economic power and had the right to administer and control their territories. Under British rule, the functions and powers of the tribal chiefs changed considerably. They lost much of their administrative power. They were forced to follow laws made by the British. They lost the authority amongst their people therefore, unable to fulfil their traditional functions.

Tribal response

It is not as if the tribals were mute spectators to colonial interventions. The earliest tribal revolts can be traced to mid-19^th century with the Kol rebellion. Some other important tribal uprisings are:

• • The Santhal uprising (Hool)
  • The Kols of Chhota Nagpur
  • The rebellion of the Munda tribesmen (Ulgulan)
  • Maria rebellion in Bastar
  • Forest Satyagraha of the 1930s, and
  • Tana Bhagat Movement.

CONCLUSION:

In broad sense, it can be said that the changing economic relations in the colonial period contributed to tribal grievances and their anguish found expression in various rebellions. Indian tribal economy in pre-colonial period was based on a subsistence ethics. The imposition of British rule, resulted in the loss of their autonomous domains of power, freedom and culture.