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1
CHAPTER – I
INTRODUCTION
1.1 PROBLEM AND IMPORTANCE OF STUDY
The topic which we have selected for our project study is of
wide relevancein the Indian context now and ever. Though divisions based
on economic status, colour, creed etc were found in many places all over the
world, Caste System is unique to India. Though we don’t wish to delve into
the details of Caste system here, the point that we shouldn’t miss is about the
bondage or fetters that are lashed upon the people by birth, under this
system.
The Scheduled Castes are placed at the lower rungs of social
and economic ladder. They had been at this disadvantageous position for
centuries. While framing our Constitution after independence,
B.R.Ambedkar, who himself was the member of the community, laid
enough provisions for the upliftment and development of Scheduled Castes.
They had been provided with reservation in jobs, educational institutions and
even in promotions of jobs. Successive governments have implemented
various schemes and programmes for their upliftment.
The most unfortunate thing is that there had been mixed
responses regarding the success of these shemes.Though they have
succeeded in uplifting the members of the community, there is a strong
2
accusation that the benefits of these schemes are cornered by a particular
section within the community, who are continuously availing these
benefits.And there has emerged a “creamy layer” within the community.
The major question remains that why the majority members of
this community still remain deprived of the benefits of development. Many
of the Scheduled Castes still remain as illiterates, unknowing of the schemes
for their upliftment.Their living standards are below what we call as a decent
standard of living. Most of them don’t have any assets like land, gold etc
except a house to live.
The study regarding the educational attainment and living
standards of Scheduled Castes has got relevance on two aspects- the
“obligation aspect” or commitment aspect and the “rights aspect”. As with
regard to the obligation side all the people of the country have got the
obligation to ensure equality on all scales and no injustice is done to any
community. We people have got the responsibility to ensure that no people
are denied their basic human rights. Further as with regards to the rights
aspect, we people have the right to inquire into the issues of welfare of
Scheduled Castes as it is the taxpayer’s money that has been used to finance
the developmental schemes for Scheduled Castes. The so called “General
category” had to sacrifice many opportunities in the fields of education,
employment etc for the benefit of Scheduled Castes. So they have the right
to know about the improvements in living conditions of Scheduled Castes.
The scheme of reservation for scheduled castes in educational
institutions ,jobs etc have attracted much controversy on the ground that it
3
just promotes inefficiency by neglecting merit. Though we are pretty sure
about the faults of present reservation system, we can’t just ignore the fact
that majority among the scheduled castes are non recipients of the benefits
of the welfare schemes for their amelioration. Through this study we try to
show that there are many among the Scheduled Castes who need a big push
inorder to bring up their living standards. We shouldn’t expect them to play
the same as others because the playing field is not yet leveled.
1.2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE.
Even though caste system is a unique feature of India, many
studies and research have been done regarding the conditions of Scheduled
Castes and the problems faced by them. In this section we are reviewing the
existing literature on the Scheduled Caste.
According to Dumont there is a definite relationship between caste
and occupation, eventually contributed to the stability of caste system which
is a major hazard in the way of social mobility.
K.C.Alexander opines that education can promote acquisition of
new skills among Scheduled Caste.Saradhamani in her study found that
Scheduled Caste people are forced to do low status jobs mainly because they
are polluting caste.
Vijay Nayak and Shailaja Prasad in their article observed that
consumption and expenditure distribution of Scheduled caste people is very
low and there exist wide differences in levels of education and occupational
status of Scheduled Caste households.
4
Isaac cited in his work and said about the education of Scheduled
Caste that no new Ambedkars appeared in city among the young, but a mass
of self-engrossed people who are quickly and easily satisfied with the small
gains they can win for themselves.
Putwardhan had found a wide gulf between the educated and
uneducated harijan and he also tried to find a relationship between the
education and social mobility.
Vinay Kripal and Raj.K.Gupta cited in their article thet social
problems in Scheduled Caste students are caused by inferiority complex ,
problems with English and their introverted nature etc.
Victor.S.Dsuza when dealing with the problems of Scheduled
Caste people in Punjab came to the conclusion that the educational gap
between the Scheduled Caste and the rest of the society is very wide and
improvement is very slow.He also came to the conclusion that there exist
educational inequalities among Scheduled Caste.
Krishnakumar opined that proper education to Scheduled Caste
students can only uplift these people.Pimpley,Nayar,Dubeg,Valnikar,Chitins
and Yadav in their studies on difference between educational level of
Scheduled Caste both at the school and college level,found that at college
level most of the students are aware of the scholarship facilities, reservation
etc in the educational institutions.
5
Malik found that greater percentage of educated respondants is
aware of more important facilities such as educational facilities like
provision of grants, while less educated people are comparatively less aware
of the facilities.
Beteille,Sharma,Nijhawan.N.K observed that the occupational
mobility directly influence the standard of living, education, social mobility
and social status.
From the review of literature it is understood that most of the
studies are concentrating on the social aspects of Scheduled Castes.Even the
studies which are concentrating on the economic impacts are mostly general
in nature.A few studies available on socio-economic status of the Scheduled
Castes are done at micro level.Hence, we have selected the present study
which is micro in nature.
OBJECTIVES OF STUDY
The main objectives of the study are the following:
• To examine the income and standard of living of Scheduled Castes.
• To understand the educational status of Scheduled castes.
• To get an idea of the housing conditions of Scheduled Castes.
METHODOLOGY AND SOURCE OF DATA.
6
The present study is based on primary data as well as secondary data.
Chembukkavu Division of Thrissur Corporation in Thrissur District.There
are many total number of Scheduled Caste households in Chembukkavu
division.Out of this 50 households are taken randomly. The sample
households of this Chembukkavu division are visited and detailed
information are collected through a well settled questionaire .
Besides this primary data, we have
collected secondary data from the various secondary data sources.
CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS.
Scheduled Caste: Scheduled Caste means such castes, races or tribes part or
group within such castes, races or tribes as are deemed under Article 341 of
the Indian Constitution to be Scheduled Caste for the purpose of the
Constitution of India.
Household: A house hold is a group of persons normally living together and
taking food from a common kitchen. Here in the study a house hold was to
consist of its normal members only.
Standard of living: The financial health of a population, as measured by
percapita income and consumption of goods and services by individuals or
households.
Educational attainment: the highest level of education completed in terms
of the highest degree or the highest level of schooling completed.
7
PLAN OF STUDY.
The study is divided into six chapters. The first chapter
dealswithintroduction including problem, objective and methodology. The
second chapter deals with the profile of Scheduled Castes. It comprises a
general view of the caste system, status of Scheduled Castes in India,their
status and conditions in Kerala. The third chapter deals with status and
living conditions of Scheduled Castes in Thrissur District. The fourth
chapter provides an outline of the general characteristics of sample
households. The fifth chapter mainly consist of the analysis of the primary
data collected from the sample survey and presenting it in tables and charts.
The sixth chapter highlights the findings and conclusion of the project.
8
CHAPTER II
PROFILE OF SCHEDULED CASTES. The Scheduled castes are not a homogeneous group but consists
of morethan 400 major caste groups having varying numerical strength. Due
to occupational differentiation , some castes are predominantly rural while
others are exclusively urban based. Agricultural labourers, cobblers,weavers
and artisans tend to concentrate in rural areas. The spatial distribution of
the Scheduled caste population is such that they can be described as
"dispersed minority”. The Scheduled castes have been notified by the
President of India under articles 341 of the constitution of India.
Accordingly from 1951 Census onwards information on
Scheduledcastes were collected and made available in Census reports. From
1961 Census onwards-special tables on Scheduled Castes were
published in Census reports. From 1981 Census onwards Primary Census
abstract for Scheduled Castes were prepared separately from that of General
Population.
CASTE SYSTEM: A GENERAL VIEW.
Surjit Sinha defined caste system as a hierarchy of endogamous
groups organized in a characteristic hierarchy division of labour where in the
9
functions of caste specialization and hierarchy were originally
linked.Moreover a fairly close correlation existed between caste hierarchy
and the distribution of land holding and power. Caste may be defined
as a small and named group of persons characterized by
endogamy,hereditary membership and specific style of life which
sometimes includes the persuit by tradition of a particular occupation and is
usually associated with a more or less distinct ritual status in a hierarchical
system.
The origin of the caste system are shrouded in a pre-historic past.
A social organization based on differential access to resources, exchange of
service, sharing of produce and a hierarchy of status among a host of
corporate groups got gradually institutionalized.
The saga of the oppression of Scheduled castes in India is as
long as the history of this subcontinent itself. Right from the Indus Valley
Civilisation, we find the presence of this class in Indian society in one
form or the other.Caste has been one of the primary unit of stratification
in India.6 The institution of caste is regarded as a distinguishing feature
of social organization of the Indian people under Hinduism. Caste
system is based on the fundamental social principal of hierarchy. The
caste system determines the hierarchical social status of various groups
in the Indian society. The traditional Indian society remained
structurally stratified into different unequal strata of caste / occupational
groups comprising the socially and economically privileged section of the
higher castes or the Savarnas on the one side lid the Avarnas consisting of
10
the mostdisadvantaged group of the lowest castes, and the intermediate
castes with relative deprivation or affluence on the other.
The caste system was developed to meet the
requirement of the Hindu society in good faith and was based not on birth
but on type of work, but gradually it gave way to division in the Hindu
Society leading to castes and sub-castes based on birth. Thus
untouchability was the out come of degenerated caste system.
Untouchability is not simply a reflection of caste
phenomenon, but of underlying socio economic factors of semi
feudal relation.Further the social oppression of the untouchables had
religious sanction. Thus the untouchables have been the victims of brutal
exploitation and have suffered the stigma of untouchability, social isolation,
residential segregation,economicdeprivation, political subjugation and
cultural degradation.Theybecame illiterate, landless, and with no
hope of progress. Lack of wealth, education and power made the
untouchables vulnerable to oppression. Coming to the other point ie.
the economic condition;these became worse and kept on worsening due
to the nature of tasks entrusted to Sudras, which apart from being menial
were not remunerative enough to keep them going. This led them to take
loans and loan sharks, ultimately, took not only them, but their families
also in bondage. This made them slaves forever and hence they were left
behind in the struggle of life.
STATUS OF SCHEDULED CASTES IN INDIA SINCE
INDEPENDENCE.
11
Independent India offered to the untouchables (now
officially called Scheduled castes) the promise to a life of dignity
through a number of protective measures written into the Constitution.
The Constitution of independent India does not recognize the concept of
caste. Untouchability has been prohibited and various castes have the right
to function freely. The constitution forbids legal recognition of hierarchal
ordering of, and patronization among caste groups. Two schedules of the
constitution (under Article 341 and 342) have specifically listed the
needy caste groups for giving special considerations.
The constitution prohibits discrimination against any citizen on
grounds of religion, race, class, place of birth or any other factor. The
President enjoys the power to appoint a special officer to investigate
matters related to safeguards provided for Scheduled castes and
Scheduled tribes in the constitution and accordingly commissioner
for the weaker sections of the Nation is appointed.
Substantial funds were allocated in the National Five
Year Plans for ameliorating the conditions of scheduled castes.
Constitutional guarantees, planned development of the country which
aimed at a rapid economic growth, agrarian reforms, adult franchise
and elections at all levels had a profound impact on the life of the
untouchables. The five decades since independence witnessed a
perceptible improvement in their lives and socio-economic status.
However the benefits of the overall development and growths have not
percolated down to the concerned groups as much as expected. This weaker
12
sections are still the victims of growing economic inequalities. They have
not even been assured of the basic amenities of life such as food, shelter,
education and medical care and they continue to be exploited
economically and are discriminated socially.
There is a growing sense of deprivation and consciousness
of the rights among Scheduled Castes nowadays. This has been derived
from the deeply felt grievances that have been lived with them for a long
time. The awakening lies in the fact that people no longer feel that they
have to repress their aspirations as much as they did formerly.Thus
protest movements among the Scheduled Castes have been launched by
dalits channeled towards raising their social status.
By embracing other religions apart from Hinduism they put
in all the efforts to regain their lost identity or status.Thus,the major
problem to be solved for the Scheduled castes in India is to regain the
fuller human self identity. The main motive or purpose behind the various
efforts including the change of religion from Hinduism to other religion
by the Scheduled castes has been to gain their lost identity or to establish a
new one. The general feeling that the caste consciousness is vanishing
in modem India may be there but there is a prevalence of caste system
hegemony through physical discrimination, subordination, hostility and
prejudices against the dalits.
TABLE 2.1: Scheduled Castes Attending Educational Institutions.
13
Sl
No.
Age
groups
Total
population
Scheduled
Caste Persons
Males Females
1 0-4 19,446,272 364,956 192,839 172,117
2 5 4,784,161 780,608 423,880 356,728
3 6 4,683,662 1,745,162 941,418 803,744
4 7 4,028,454 2,755,843 1,476,686 1,279,157
5 8 5,572,006 3,928,526 2,146,544 1,781,982
6 9 3,594,225 2,895,941 1,553,111 1,342,830
7 10 6,055,780 4,418,333 2,492,958 1,925,375
8 11 2,977,176 2,417,991 1,342,972 1,075,019
9 12 5,297,235 3,694,500 2,143,187 1,551,313
10 13 3,292,278 2,328,857 1,315,908 1,012,949
11 14 3,709,853 2,301,965 1,356,875 945,090
12 15-19 16,120,667 5,945,155 3,802,279 2,142,876
13 20-24 13,957,965 1,410,523 1,006,378 404,145
14 25-29 13,140,261 230,373 151,656 78,717
15 30-34 11,537,943 106,143 51,743 54,400
16 35-59 36,566,566 179,109 86,118 92,991
17 60+ 11,440,757 20,780 11,983 8,797
18 Age not 430,439 3,496 2,119 1,377
14
stated
19 All ages 166,635,700 35,528,261 20,498,654 15,029,607
SOURCE: Census 2011
The Scheduled Caste population in India according to 2011 census is
166,635,700. Punjab emerged as the state with highest proportion of
population of Scheduled Castes with around 28.9% of total Scheduled Caste
population.
THE STATUS OF SCHEDULED CASTES IN KERALA.
Kerala with its highest literacy in the country have shown that it
can treat its Scheduled Caste population in a much better manner. Though
we can’t claim that the standard of living of Scheduled Castes in Kerala is
matching to the average levels of standard of living, the figures are pretty
rosy for Kerala.Successive governments in Kerala with their welfare
oriented approach has done much for the upliftment of the Scheduled Castes.
Now let us have glance at the difference in status of Scheduled Castes in
India and Kerala as per 2001 Census.
TABLE2.2 : Comparison of the national and state level status of Scheduled
Castes
Scheduled Castes
Sl.No.
ITEM Kerala India
1 Population(in Lakhs) 3124 1666
15
SOURCE: Census 2001
According to 2001 Census, the population of Scheduled
Castes in Kerala is 3158143, consisting of 1539979 males and 1618051
females. The Scheduled Caste population of Kerala increased by 9.4%
during 1991-2001 as against a 13.22 % increase during the decade
2 % to total population 9.81 16.23
3 Decadal growth rate(%) 8.14 20.55
4 Chid population to the total
population
11.65 17.45
5 Sex Ratio 1048 936
6 Literacy rate general 82.66 54.32
7 Female literacy rate 77.56 41.31
8 Povert(as per 55th round) 14.6 36.2
9 Percentage of population in slum
areas
7.50 17.40
16
1981-91. The decadal increase of Scheduled Castes in the state (9.40) is
less than the decadal increase of 9.42 % for the General population.
scheduled castes constitute 9.91% ofthe population of the State in 2001
census. The absence of comparable data for Scheduled Castes for
the pre- independence period is a major handicap to assess the socio-
economic progress achieved during the period after independence on a
firm basis.
LITERACY RATE AND EDUCATIONAL LEVEL.
The Scheduled Castes have shown an encouraging trend in the
level of literacy. More than three fourth population in the 7 years and above
age group is literate. The overall literacy rate of SCs which was 79.7 per
cent at 1991 census, has increased to 82.7 per cent at 2001. This is
significantly higher than the national average of 54.7 per cent overall of
SCs.Male literacy has increased from 85.2 per cent to 88.1 per cent while
female literacy has gone up from 74.3 per cent to 77.6 per cent during
1991-2001.Among the numerically larger castes, Thandan have the
highest female literacy (83.5 per cent) followed by Pulayan (81.1 per cent)
and Vettuvan (79.2 per cent). Notably, all the individual larger castes have
registered 69 - 83.5 per cent female literacy.
TABLE 2.3 :Level of education among major Scheduled Castes in Kerala.
17
Educational levels attained
Name of SCs
Literat
e
withou
t
educati
on
level
Belo
w
prima
ry
Prima
ry
Midd
le
Metric/Secondary
/Higher
Secondary/Interm
ediate etc
Technica
l & Non
technical
diploma
Graduate & above
All SCs
1.5
21.7
26.3
28.4
18.5
1.5
2.1
Cheruman
2.2
24.9
29.4
29.6
12.7
0.5
0.8
Kanakkan
1.7
21.7
26.1
32.0
16.1
0.9
1.4
Thandan
1.1
19.4
24.7
31.4
19.1
2.1
2.2
Kuravan
1.5
23.4
29.2
32.0
12.1
0.9
0.9
Paraiyan
1.4
20.7
25.0
27.0
20.8
2.0
3.1
Pulayan
1.3
20.5
24.4
28.5
21.3
1.7
2.3
Vettuvan 1.3 24.7 30.6 23.6
17.2
0.9 1.7
18
Among the literates, 23.2 per cent are either without
any educational level or have attained education below primary
level. The proportion of literates who have attained education up to
primary and middle levels constitute 26.3 per cent & 28.4 percent
respectively.As many as 18.5 percent literates are educated up to
matric/secondary/higher secondary etc. This implies that every fifth
SC literate has attained education up to secondary level. Graduates &
above are 2.1 per cent while non- technical & technical diploma holders
constitute 1.5 per cent only.
ECONOMIC STATUS
Kerala State is economically backward compared to many of the
states in India. The significant progress accomplished by the state in many
spheres of social life, serves as a model to many other societies But with
regard to per capita income, Kerala's position is below the national level and
that of many other Indian States. In terms of economic growth and
industrial production the state is still backward. Judged by the per- capita
income,it is poorer than the States of Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat,Haryana,
Maharashtra, Punjab and West Bengal.
The comparatively poor economic condition of the State is
reflected more in the weaker sections of the population. The economic
stability of a society is judged on the basis of standard of living of the
weaker sections of the population. The position of the Scheduled Castes
in Kerala requires particular mention here. As the Scheduled Castes
population are engaged in low paying occupations like agricultural labour
19
and unskilled work in large percentage of. cases, most of them do not
get sufficient income for their subsistence. And many are below poverty
line.
As per the Census of families Below Poverty Line by the Kerala
Government, it was found that among the total families below poverty line,
20% belonged to Scheduled castes in the State. The Census indicated a rural
poverty percentage of 36.56 and urban poverty of 17.04% in the state.
OCCUPATIONAL STATUS.
The available sources of information from report of
Commissioner for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes shows that from
very early times SC's were associated with only, inferior work. Agricultural
labourers, scavengers and the like are the majority among SC's.
There was no appreciable change in this pattern during the past
centuries.The data on the occupational pattern of the population
surveyed by the Commission threw light on this aspect. In the plains they
were agricultural serfs toiling from morning to night for earning a
livelihood and among those who were attached to the land in the forest areas
the chief occupations ofthe people were collecting honey; forest produces
and hunting.
The Scheduled Caste were considered as an inferior set of
people in the society. Most of them are agricultural labourers.They are
expected to watch the crops living on the bunds of fields. Some of them
like Parayan, Kavara, and Bellara were basket makers. Chakkiliyans were
leather workers. Castes like Kakkalan and Panan engaged themselves in
tailoring and palmistry. Mannan, Vannan, Pathiyan and Velan were castes
20
engaged in cloth washing. Thandan and Paravan in some area were tree
climbers.
The Work Participation Rate (WPR) of the Scheduled Caste
population is 40.4 per cent which is same as that of all SCs at the national
level but has shown a marginal decline from 1991(41.2 per cent). The work
participation rate of males (54.1 per cent) is twice that of females (27.3 per
cent) at 2001. There has been an increase in male WPR from 51 per cent to
54.1 per cent whereas female WPR has declined by 4 per cent at 2001.
Among the total workers, 73.7 per cent are main workers and this proportion
is almost at par with all SCs aggregated at the national level (73 per cent).
Among the major castes, Vettuvan holds the top position in category of
‘Other Workers’ (81per cent) followed by Thandan,Pulayan and
Paraiyan,whereas Cheruman have more than half (57.6 per cent) of the total
workers work as ‘Agricultutral Labourers’ followed by Kanakkan, Kuravan
etc.
RELIGION.
Hinduism is the predominant religion of the Scheduled Castes
(99.9per cent) in Kerala. Negligible number (390) of SCs are the of
Sikhism and Buddhism. Same trend has been noticed among all the major
SCs.
21
CHAPTER - III
SCHEDULED CASTE POPULATION IN
THRISSUR DISTRICT:A PROFILE
Thrissur is one among the fourteen Districts of Kerala located
almost in the central portion of the state. The district is divided in five
taluks, and further there are 225 villages spreading over 98
Panchayaths. There are ten town of which six are municipalities, one a
township and other three are non-municipal towns. The total
22
geographical area of the district is 2994 sq. Km which form the 7.8
percent of the total area of the district.
Scheduled Caste Population in Thrissur District As per the 2001
census Kerala has 28.87 lakhs of Scheduled Caste in which Thrissur
District has registered a population of 3.341akhs. Of these 1.62 lakhs are
males, and 1.72 lakhs are females. In this section we are presenting a
brief, sketch of the Characteristics of the Scheduled Caste population in
Thrissur District based on the Development surveying of Scheduled Cake
households in Thrissur district, which covers the whole scheduled , caste
colonies in the district.
TABLE3.1:Age wise distribution of Scheduled Caste population in Thrissur
District.
Age Group Scheduled Caste population
of Thrissur District
Percentage
Up to 5 23663 8.67
6 — 11 30736 11.26
12-18 37123 13.60
19-30 76155 27.88
31-50 67264 24.61
51-65 26779 9.80
65 and above 11518 4.22
23
Total . . 273238 . 100 ,
Source. : Developmental survey for Scheduled Caste district planning Office,
Thrissur – 1992.
EDUCATIONAL STATUS
The table given below shows the classification of Scheduled
Caste population according to their educational qualifications. It is observed
that 64.90% of the total Scheduled Caste population has got an education
upto 9th standard .It is significant to note that 20.25% of the Scheduled
Caste population come under the category of the other remaining illiterates
including children. Around 5.34% of the total population has passed the
SSLC while 8.05% failed. Degree holders constitute a share of 1.03%
whereas the share of Post Graduate Degree holders is only 0.10%.It is
observed that professional Degree holders etc. come to 0.21% of the total
Scheduled Caste population of the district.
TABLE 3.2: Classification of Scheduled Caste according to their educational
qualification.
Educational Qualification No. of person Percentage
Up to 9th
Std 177326 64.90 .
_ SSLC Failed 21994 8.05
SSLC passed 14601 5.34
Degree holders 2836 1.03
Post graduates 271 0.10
24
Diploma holders 288 0.11
Professionals 595 0_21
Others 55327 20.25
Total 273238 100.00
Source: Development Survey for Scheduled Caste-1992 District Planning
Office Thrissur.
OCCUPATIONAL STRUCTURE
The table deals with the occupation structure of the Scheduled
Caste population in Thrissur District. According to the data available, it is
observed that a major share of the population is jobless. Of the total
population, the manual labourers occupy a second place with 31.63%. It is
significant to note that only 1.45% of the Scheduled Caste population has
got government job while private employees comes to 1.19%. It is also
observed that 1.20% of the Scheduled Caste population is still depending on
their traditional Kulathozhil for their livelihood.
TABLE 3.3: Occupational structure of the Scheduled Caste population in
Thrissur District.
Occupational Category No. of persons Percentage
Jobless 120055 43.94
Manual Labourers 86443 31.63
Private Employees 3257 1.19
25
Government Employees 3951 1.45
Business 281 0.10
Kulathozhil 3304 1.20
Others 55947 20.48
Total 273238 100
SOURCE: Developmental survey for Scheduled Caste –
1992 District Planning Office Thrissur.
HOUSING CONDITION
The table shows the housing condition of the Scheduled Castes
in Thrissur District. Among 5771 households, the majority of the houses ie,
nearly 56% used tiles as their roofing material. 39.3% of the total
households have thatched roof. The share of the concrete roofed households
comes to 4.34%. It is significant to note that only 0.38% of the total
Scheduled Caste households have used asbestos as their roofing material.
TABLE 3.4: Housing condition of Scheduled Castes in Thrissur District.
Type of house No. of houses Percentage
Houses with concrete
roof
2331 4.34
House with thatched
roof
21139 39.30
26
House with tiled roof 30093 55.97
Asbestos 208 0.38
Total no. of houses 53771 100
Thrissur was known before as Thrisivaperoor and Trichur (anglicized
version). It is the fourth largest city and the third largest urban
aggolomeration in Kerala. It also happens to be the headquarters of
Thrissur district. It is also the cultural capital of Kerala. Well known for its
cultural activities it is a city of many colures. Thrissur poor am is a
very famous cultural activity that takes place in the city. Another major
cultural activity is the pulikkali. Taking its geography the city is built on
a 65 crew hillock called the thekkinkadu maid an, which seats the
Vaddakumnathan temple. Thrissur was once the capital of Cochin kingdom.
It is situated 300 kilometers northwest of their state’s capital
Thiruvnanthapuram. The city is noted for its vibrant nature. It has a
cosmopolitan culture resulting from the influx of migrant laborers. As
said it is one of the busiest cities we have in Kerala. As a proof to the
above mentioned statement we have here the branches of global companies
like pantaloon reliance etc. The town is managed by a corporation headed by
a mayor. The current mayor is Mr. I.P Paul. We have here legacy o eminent
personalities like John mathai economist, any Joseph mundassery sir. The
city is without doubt the pride of Kerala.
27
Chembhukavu is the brain of Thrissur. It is addressed in this way owing to
the presence of educational institutions and cultural organizations. It’s also a
very good residential area noted for the tight security. One reason for this is
the tight police patrolling that take place. The prominent institutions here
are:
Cultural Institutions.
1. Town hall
2. Sahitya academy
3. Sangeetha nadaka academy
4. Regional theatre
5. Ezuthachan samajam
6. Mundassery hall
Educational Institutions
1. Holy family girls school
2. Model boys
3. Sacred hearts
4. GEC
5. MTI
6. J T S technical school
Religious Institutions
1. Sacred heart church
2. Orthodox Church
28
3. Sri karthyani temple
Other Institutions of Importance
1. Zoo
2. Muesuem
3. PWD office
4. IVGM hospital
5. Civil station
CHAPTER - IV
GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF
SAMPLE HOUSEHOLDS.
This chapter deals with some general
characteristics of Scheduled caste households based on the sample survey.
These general characteristics of the households include age composition of
29
population, sex ratio, caste, family size, land resources, household assets etc
of the Scheduled Caste households.
POPULATION
Here we enumerate the total population of the sample households selected
for study.The totral population of 50 sample households is 203,of which
males constitute 48.76% while the females constitute of a higher percentage
of 51.23% of the total population.
TABLE 4.1:Distribution of sample households on the basis of population.
Population Number of persons Percentage
Male 99 48.76%
Female 104 51.23%
Total 203 100%
Source : Sample Survey.
Figure 4.1-Distribution of sample households on the basis of population.
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
1 2
male female
Number of persons
Series1
30
SEX RATIO
It was found from investigation that in the sample households females
outnumbere maleswith a sex ratio of around 1050 females to 1000 males.
AGE COMPOSITION
The table below shows the age wise distribution of Scheduled Castes in the
sample households.From the table it is observed that major share of the
population lies between the age group of 19-30.Almost 64 persons come
under this age group out of which 31 are males and33 are females.It is also
notable that males outnumber females in the two age categories namely31-
50 age group nad above 65 age group.In the above 65 age group there are 12
persons of which 7 are males and 5 are females.
TABLE 4.2:Age wise distribution of the population.
Age wise distribution Number of members Male Female
Upto 5 years 9 4 5
6-11 17 7 10
12-18 29 14 15
19-30 64 31 33
31
31-50 56 30 26
51-65 16 6 10
Age above 65 12 7 5
Total 203 99 104
FIGURE : Age wise distribution of the population
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Upto 5 years
11-Jun
18-Dec
19-30
31-50
51-65
Age above 65
Age wise distribution
Number of persons
Number of
members
32
SIZE OF DISTRIBUTION
Under the size of the distribution,we examine the distribution of the size of
the family among the households.The table classifies Scheduled Caste house
holds on the basis of the number of family members.It is observed that there
are only 2 families with single member.16 households have got 3 members
which constitute 32% of the total households.There is only one household
with more than 8 members.
TABLE 4.3:Distribution of households according to type of distribution.
No. of family members No. of households Percentage
1 2 4%
2 3 6%
3 16 32%
4 12 24%
5 8 16%
6 5 10%
7 2 4%
8 1 2%
More than 8 1 2%
Total 50 100%
33
FIGURE : Distribution of households according to type of distribution.
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8More
than
8
No. of family members
No. of households
SIZE OF LAND HOLDINGS
Among the sample households majority of the households ie, 33 households
have land holdings of size 5 cents or less.Only 7 households have the
ownership of land holdings of size between 11 and 15 cents.It is important to
note that none of the 50 house have land holdings of size more than 15
cents.
TABLE 4.4 :The size of landholdings of sample households.
Size of land holdings in cents No. of possessing households
34
0-5 33
6-10 10
11-15 7
Above 15 NIL
35
CHAPTER 5
STANDARD OF LIVING &
EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT OF
SCHEDULED CASTES.
In this chapter we are presenting the data on standard of living
and educational attainment of Scheduled Castes.We measure the standard of
living from the data on income,expenditure pattern,housing conditions etc.
LEVEL OF INCOME
Income is the money that is earned from doing work or received
from investments.Income is one of the major factors which determine the
economic status of the Scheduled Caste People.In this section we are
discussing the level of income of the Scheduled Caste people on the basis
of field investigation.
TABLE5.1: Distribution of households by total family income.
Monthly Income No. of households Aggregate
Income
Average Income
Below1000 15 9,500 633.33
36
1000-2000 9 13,500 1,500
2000-3000 4 9,900 2,475
3000-4000 5 17,300 3,460
4000-5000 4 17,400 4,350
5000-6000 6 30,000 5,000
6000-7000 4 24,000 6,000
7000 & above 3 47,330 15,776.66
It is seen from the above table that majority of the
households,that is 30% come under the income class of below1000.The
average income of these households is 633.33.Around 18% of the
households come under the income class of 1000-2000.It is found that only
6% of the households have income above 7000.their average income is
15,776.66. From this discussion we come to the conclusion that the average
income level of Scheduled Castes is not so satisfactory because the average
income of households is only 4458.6.
FIGURE 5.1:Distribution of Income among the sample households.
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
1
Income category
No.of households
0-1000
1000-2000
2000-3000
3000-4000
4000-5000
5000-6000
6000-7000
7000 & above
37
EDUCATION
Education is an important element in determining the socio-economic status
of the people.
TABLE5.2: Distribution of sample population on the basis of level of
education.
Level of education
Male Female Total
Below 5 years
4 (44.44%) 5 (55.55%) 9
Illiterate
20 (46.5%) 23(53.4%) 43
Upto SSLC
48(48.9%) 50(51.02%) 98
SSLC
13(46.4%) 15(53.5%) 28
Pre degree
6 (42.8%) 8(57.1%) 14
Degree
6 (75%) 2(25%) 8
Post Graduation
2 (66.66%) 1(33.33%) 3
Professional
NIL NIL NIL
Others
NIL NIL NIL
Total
99 104 203
The table classifies the sample population on the basis of the
level of the education.it is obvious from the table that 43 persons are
38
illiterate.This constitutes about 21.18% of the sample population. Of the
total illiterates,20 are males and 23 are females.It is worth notable that the
major share of the people have got an education upto 10th standard.There are
98 persons in this category of which 48 are males and 50 are females.Out of
this total 203, only 3 people have got Post graduation.They constitute only
1.47% of the total population.
It is also important to note that 28 persons among the 203 have
passed the SSLC among which males and females got a share of 46.4% and
53.5% respectively. The number of degree holders is only 8.
FIGURE 5.2: Distribution of sample population on the basis of level of
education.
Distribution of sample population on
the basis of education
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Below 5 years
Illiterate
Upto SSLC
SSLC
Pre Degree
Degree
PG
Level of Education
No. of people
Males
Females
39
OCCUPATIONAL PATTERN
The social as well as economic status of an individual has
affected and even been determined by the nature of occupation from which
he derives his livelihood.
Table 5.3 : Occupational pattern of sample households.
Occupational category
Males Females Total
Government
Employees
3 0 3
Business& self
employed
3 1 4
Agricultural labour
5 7 12
Non - agricultural
labour
48 27 75
Unemployed
10 21 31
Total
69
56
125
It can be found from the table that majority of the people in the
workforce of the sample households are employed in the non agricultutral
unskilled labour. About 75 persons out of 125 work in this field.ie, about
60% of the workforce is employed in this field. Only 3 persons are
government employees. The most significant thing to note is that almost 31
persons out of 125 are unemployed. This implies that 24% of the total labour
40
force are unemployed. As far as non agricultuaral unskilled labour is
concerned there are more males in this field than females.
FIGURE 5.3: Occupational pattern of sample households.
0
10
20
30
40
50
Occupational pattern of sample
households
Males 3 3 5 48 10
Females 0 1 7 27 21
Gove
rnme
Busi
ness
Agric
ultur
Non -
agric
Une
mplo
CHARACTERISTICS OF HOUSING
Housing condition is one of the important indication of the
economic status.Here we have classified the houses on the basis of wall,roof
etc.
Type of Roof
Roofing is one of the major component of any house construction .It
is observed from the investigation that the majority house holds used tiles as
roof materials for the construction of their houses
41
TABLE 5.4: Distribution of house holds according to type of roofing
Type of Roof
No of House holds %
Tiled
41 82%
Concreted
6 12%
Tile sheet
2 4%
Thatched
1 2%
FIGURE 5.4: Distribution of house holds according to type of roofing.
No of House holds
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
Tiled Concreted Tile sheet Thatched
Type of roof
No.of households
No of House holds
TYPE OF WALL
TABLE 5.5:Distribution of Houses according to type of wall
42
Type of wall material
No of Houses %
Brick
33 66%
Stone
12 24%
Mud
5 10%
Coconut leaves
0 0
From the table we can find that majority of the sample house holds have
brick walls.66% of sample house holds have brick walls. Only 10% of the
sample house holds have mud walls.
FIGURE 5.5 : Distribution of Houses according to type of wall
No of Households
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Brick Stone Mud Coconut
leaves
Type of wall
No.of households
No of Houses
43
TYPE OF FLOOR
TABLE5.6: Distribution of sample households according to type of floor.
Type of floor
No. of households Percentage
Cemented
36 72%
Mosaic
7 14%
Tiles
3 6%
Cowdung
4 8%
It is clear from the table that the majority households (72%)
have cemented floors.Only 3 households (6%) have tiled floors.About 7
households have mosaic floors.
FIGURE 5.6: Distribution of households according to type of floors.
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
Cemented
Mosaic
Tiles
Cowdung
TYPE OF FLOOR
NO. OF HOUSEHOLDS
Series2
44
CHAPTER – 6
IMPORTANT FINDINGS ANDCONCLUSIONS.
OBJECTIVES OF STUDY
The major objectives of the present study are the following:
• To examine the educational status of the Scheduled Castes.
• To examine the income and standard of living of the Scheduled Castes.
• To discuss the housing conditions of Scheduled Castes.
The present study is an exercise in investigating the housing
conditions, education, occupation and income of the Scheduled Castes in
Thrissur Corporation.
1)The majority of the house are having land holdings of size of 5 cents or
less. 66% of the households belong to this category.None of the
households have land holdings of area above 15 cents.
2) It is noted that most of the people in Thrissur District as well as in the
sample households use tiles as the roofing material for their house.
Concreted roofs are also prevalent but only less than tile roofs.Only a small
share of households use thatched roof as the roofing material.
45
3)It is found from the anlysis of the data collected from the sample survey
that majority of the households use brick as the wall material. About 66% of
the households use brick as wall material. Only 24% of the households use
stone as the wall material.
4) It is significant to note that 48.27% of the sample population has got
school education upto 9th standard. Only 21.18% of the sample population
still remain as illiterate. The level of higher education among the sample
population of the Scheduled Castes is less than satisfactory. Only 1.47% of
the sample population have done Post Graduation. Only 3.94% of the total
population are graduates.
5) In the case of occupational pattern, it is found that non agricultural
unskilled labour is followed by majority members. About 60% of the total
work force of the sample households belong to that group. Around 24.8% of
the total labour force of the sample population remain unemployed.
6) It is understood from investigation that out of the 50 sample households
ie, a 30% of the households still remain under poverty line with a monthly
income below Rs.1000. Only three households have got monthly income
of more than Rs.7000 per month.
7) With regard to the type of floor, 72% of the sample households ie, 36
households have cemented floors. Only 6% of the sample households have
tiled their floors.
From the analysis of data
obtained from the sample survey it is found that the condition of Scheduled
Castes in terms of education, standard of living, occupation etc have not yet
reached upto a satisfactory level.
46
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1)Alexander K.C :“Changing status of pulaya Harijans of Kerala”.
Economic and political weekly .volume III.
2)Beteille : “Caste Class and Power” Oxford University Press – 1969.
3)Chitins Suma : “Case of Scheduled Caste in higher education”
E.P.W. Vol.7, No.33-37 -1972.
4)Isaac Harold R : “Indian Ex-Untouchables” – Bombay P.126,1965
5)Krishna Kumar : “Educational Experience of SC and ST” – EPW
SEP.No.3-10p.1969.
6)Louis Dumont: “Homo Hierarchicus” – Vikas Publications.
7)Malik ,Suneila : “Social integration of SC” - Agrev Publications,1979
8) Makhan Jha : “Scheduled Castes Today” - M.D. Publications ,1997
9)Pimpley .P.N : “The problem of attendance of Children SC in Harijana”
Dept. of Sociology, Punjab University, 1978.
10)Punalekar : “School dropout of SC children” – Central Institue of
Research and Training New Delhi,1975.
11) Putwarhan Sunanda : “Change among Indian Harijans”-Orient
Longman P.179,1983.
12)Sharadhamani : “An emphasis on slave caste pulayas of Kerala”
People Publishing.
13)Vijay Nayak & Shailaja Prasad: “On living of SC & ST”, EPW
Vol.XIX No.30,P.1205.
47
APPENDIX – I
DIFFERENT TYPES OF SCHEDULED CASTE
1 Adi Andhra
2. Adi Dravida
3 Adi Karnataka
4 Ajila
5 Arunthathiyar
6. Ayyanavar
7 Baira
8 Bakuda
9 Bandi
10 Bathada
11 Bellara
12 Bharather
13 Boyan
14 Chakkiliyan
15 Chamar, Muchi
16 Chandala
17 Cheruman
18 Domban
19 Gavara
48
20 Godagali
21 Godda
22 Gosangi
23 Hasla
24 Holeya
25 Kadaiyasn
26 Kakkalan
27 Kalladi
28 Kanakkan, Padnanna
29 Karimpalam
30 Kavara
31 Koosa
32 Kootan, Koodan
33 Kundumban
34 Kurauvan Sidhanar
35 Maila
36 Malayan
37 Mannan
38 Mavilan
39 Moger
40 Mundala
41 Nalakeyava
42 Nalkadaya
43 Nayadi
44 Padannan
45 Pallan
46 Palluvan
49
47 Pambada
48 Panan
49 Panchama
50 Paraiya, Parayan, Sambava
51 Paravan
52 Pathiyan
53 Perumannan
54 Pulayan Cheraman
55 Pulaya Vettuvan
56 Puthirai Vannan
57 Raneyar
58 Samagra
59 Samban
60 Semman
61 Thandan
62 Thotti
63 Vallon
64 Valluvar
65 Vannan
66 Velan
67 Vetan
68 Vettuvan
50
APPENDIX – II
QUESTIONARE FOR SCHEDULED CASTE
HOUSEHOLD SURVEY
I. GENERAL PARTICULARS
Name of Family Head :
Ward Number :
House Number :
Street :
Religion :
Caste :
No. of Family Members :
Living Conditions :
II. FAMILY PARTICULARS
Name of
member
Relation
to head
Age Sex Marital
Status
Educational
qualification
Occupation Income
51
III. EDUCATION
1. No. of family members with following marks in
secondary school examination : Above 90% -
70% - 90% -
50%-70% -
Below 50% -
2. No. of family members with following marks in
Graduate examination : Above 90% -
70% - 90% -
50%-70% -
Below 50% -
3. No. of School dropouts in the family :
4. No. family members who have used the opportunity
of reservation of seats in educational institutions :
5. Have you taken any loans for financing the
education of your children : YES / NO
6. How many members have membership in libraries :
7. Are you subscribing to English Newspapers :
IV HOUSING FACILITIES
1. Is the house owned or rented :
2. If rented, monthly rent :
52
3. Build up area : Square feet
4. No. of rooms :
5. Type of roof :
6. Type of wall :
7. Type of floor :
8. Source of lighting : Kerosene Lamp
Electricity
Others
9. Fuel used for cooking :
10. Whether have own well : Yes No
v. House Hold Asset
Items Yes No Purchase
value(if
yes)
Period of
use
Radio
Television
Refrigerator
Washing
machine
Bicycle
Motor bike
Car
Mobile
Gold
ornaments
53
Others
V1.Asset position
Land posses :
Cultivate land :
V11. EXPENDITURE PARTCULARS
Items Average Monthly Expenditure
Food Items
Clothing
Education
Medical
News Paper
Magazines
Electricity
Movies[Entertainment]
Do you make use of public distribution system
for meeting your consumption requirements: Yes/No
Are you keen on purchasing branded items : Yes/No