Introduction:
The Chota Nagpur belt, that is the tribal junction of the states of West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa. Madhya Pradesh is one of the richest in terms of mineral wealth. This area is prominently tribal inhabited and is rich in iron ore, coal, mica, bauxite and other industrially and economically important minerals. Therefore, it is not surprising that this belt was one of the earliest zones to be exploited and developed right from British period.
- (a) First came the railways and coal mines. In 1907, the Tata Iron and Steel Company was established.
- (b) The phase of industrialisation picked up greatly after independence with the establishment of Durgapur, Bokaro, Rourkela and Bhilai Steel Plants,
Ranchi Heavy Engineering complex and a multitude of downstream industries. - (c) Apart from the heavy engineering industries, several irrigation projects such as the Konar and Panchet in Bihar, Manchkund and Hirakund in Orissa and the more recent Sardar Sarovar Dam came up in these tribal areas.
One would except that the establishment of these huge industries and multipurpose irrigation projects lead to all-round improvement and welfare of the tribes, since all these were established in the heart of tribal India. But unfortunately, this did not happen. On the contrary, it has led to aggravation of
their problems. Whatever improvement has taken places is only marginal. We can now sum up the impact of industrialisation on tribes as below.
(a) Loss of land and displacement from traditional habitat:
The first agonising impact of industrialisation is the loss of tribal land and their consequent displacement and uprooting from their traditional homes and lands. In return, the compensation paid is meagre and not all the tribes who have surrendered their land get employment in industries/projects. The progress with regard to allocation of alternative sites to the displaced tribes and rehabilitation methods have been found to be utterly inadequate. In 1961 itself, the Dhebar Commission pointed out the failure in this area. For example, the Commission collected statistics on the number of tribes displaced and the number of tribes who were allotted alternative lands. Out of a total number of 14,560 tribal families thrown out from their houses as a result of acquisition of land for various projects in Bihar, West Bengal and Orissa, only about 3,500 were allotted alternative lands.
Even the alternative land that was offered has been of no great help because of the following reasons:
- (a) The land offered was not fit for cultivation or irrigation facilities are inadequate
- (b) Very few tribes have availed of the agriculture facilities offered in the rehabilitation camps. Younger generation preferred employment to cultivation
- (c) The cash compensation given was used up in buying consumer goods and meeting day to day expense.
Even the World Bank had noted with anguish that the relief and rehabilitation work in respect of tribes (Bhils) displaced by Sardar Sarovar Project in Maharashtra and Gujarat was far too inadequate, and the report strongly recommended the World Bank to link aid to has progress in relief and rehabilitation.
(b) Emergence of Slums and Bastis: L.P Vidyarthi and other anthropologists who have studied the immediate impact of industrialisation in tribal areas have noted that tribal slums and bastis in and around the industrial township are without any basic civic amenities like drinking water, drainage, etc. of
course, some employers have taken steps to improve civic amenities in the bastis and slums. But the picture is generally alarming. The slums and bastis are inhabited by tribes who fail to get absorbed in the project. They constitute the impoverished ring of the industrialised areas.
(c) Industrialisation definitely affects the demographic composition of the tribal area. With the influx of skilled and semi-skilled labour and managerial talent from other parts of the country, the tribal soon find themselves either outnumbered or having to live with a large number of outsiders which threatens the employment opportunities of tribal youngsters. This has happened in the Jharkhand belt and may be one of the factors that has led to demand for a separate Jharkhand state.
(d) Another, adverse impact of industrialisation is what is termed as ‘cultural mutation’. The tribal gradually lose their traditional life styles and adopted a new way of life. Industrialisation disrupts their traditional cultural patterns, language, food habits, dress and observance of festivals etc. their general
outlook gets changed under the impact of industrialisation. This is most directly and tellingly felt by the first generation
(e) Change in Occupation: In the tribal areas that have become industrialised, a shift to non-traditional occupations is noticed mostly in the direction of unskilled and semi-skilled industrial labour and white-collar employment. In addition to those tribes who are lucky to get employment in the projects,
others too are tempted to give up agriculture or other traditional occupations. They take to working in the ancillary industries and as unskilled daily labour in hotels, railway stations, automobile garages, etc. Some anthropologists have however maintained that this change in occupational pattern may only
take place within a limited radius of the industrial centres. In fact, some of them even record that the traditional culture of tribal villages falling outside this radius does not get affected.
(f) Another unfortunate consequence of industrialisation the growing number of unemployed amongst the tribes. As already noted, the youngsters are not keen on continuing with their traditional occupations. the would like to join the labour force in adjoining industrial areas which attracts them. It is not possible to offer employment to all the aspiring young, educated or even illiterate tribes. This phenomenon had led to what some anthropologists call “Industrial nomadism” where the tribals go in search of jobs from place to place. They may even migrate to other areas where opportunities for seasonal employment as agricultural labour exist.
(g) Another effect of industrialisation in tribal areas is the emergence of a new class of tribal leaders viz. trade union officers, political party workers and educated personnel working in industries and other projects. They represent the urbanised and modern section of tribes.
(h) Das and Banerjee clearly listed the cultural and socio-psychological effects of industrialisation on the tribes which are:
- (i) Weakening of the traditional authority of elders
- (ii) Weakening of endogamous restriction of marriage leading to marriage with non-tribals
- (iii) Increase in the frequency of divorce.
- (iv) A slow change in their traditional world view as a result of interaction with people from other areas and different communities. (influence of
- mass media like films is also an important impact on this connection).
- (v) Emergence of nuclear family pattern
- (vi) Growth of individualism
- (vii)Change of family from a unit of production to a unit of consumption.
- (viii)More emphasis on achievement than on an ascription.
As result of all the above, the tribal gets drawn into an urban, rational and secular world. However, further research is to be done in these areas to monitor the changes and evaluate their impact on tribal culture and personality. We can conclude by Quoting Dr. L.P. Vidyarthi, who aptly sums up the impact of industrialisation on tribals. To quote him: “By and large, instead of being benefited by these developments, their economy and culture, so far, have been adversely affected. The net result of the uprooted tribal, in due course, is loss of traditional occupation, land, house, the traditional way of life, exhaustion of cash received by way of compensation. unemployment, keen and unfair competition with the migrants in the labour market, high aspiration and great frustration.”