Paper short abstract:

The tribal societies in India are subjected to graded hierarchies with discrimination and extra economic force as modes of institutional operation for conducting economic transactions, accessing social resources and determining the developmental outcomes. Dr.BR.Ambedkar struggled to liberate tribes

Paper long abstract:

The tribal societies in India are socially regulated by institutions such as religion, caste, social discrimination and exclusion from human development. The Indian Social structure creates graded hierarchies of social groups with discrimination and extra economic force being the modes of institutional operation for conducting economic transactions, accessing social resources and determining the developmental outcomes. It is in this context that Dr. BR. Ambedkar, a member from a discriminated dalit community, endeavored by ensuring the human rights for tribal people through Constitutional democratic State socialism, equal rights, legal safeguards against violation of rights, strategies for fair share, participation and representation and remedies against structural Inequalities. He believed that a development strategy is effective only when tribal people are provided with greater access to ownership of means of production, education, skills and opportunities in the employment market, access to nutrition and health. Ambedkar`s approach to development is based on the need to have social transformation, economic progress, equity based fairness, freedom, participation, human security and sustainability. The constitutional safeguards in the social, economic and political spheres led to considerable empowerment. However the continued negligence and discrimination continues to deprive the tribal people from conserving, promoting and uplifting their culture, accessing resources and earning livelihoods. Under this context, the constitutional provisions of reservations, grants in aid, fifth& sixth schedule and separate ministry; and the subsequent sub plans needs an examination. Thus based on the above indicators this paper attempts at providing an alternative assessment of developmental experience of indigenous Indian Tribal people