Several Castes on the Verge of Extinction, But Not Casteism

Justice Nagamohan Das Commission has mapped the demography of castes and communities facing extinction in Karnataka and has recommended measures to protect the native cultures, knowledge systems and their occupations

Sachidananda Gautam

These days, the lack of dedicated cycling tracks makes it scary to pedal on city roads. The problem is the attitude of road users towards cyclists. They act as if they are doing cyclists a favor by letting them exist in the same space as their cars. The road hierarchy priorities are cars, followed by two-wheelers, and bicycles and pedestrians are pushed to the brink literally.

They come last in the pecking order. The main reason why cycling is not popular in India is because it is not being encouraged. No one has any concern for cyclists on road. They are not even considered on roads. That is the mentality of the people. Also, the government doesn’t support it here. In foreign countries, the government provides separate cycling lanes and makes sure they are safe.

Here, there are some cycling lanes which are mostly occupied by the parked cars. And no one questions them. This phenomenon can only be compared to the caste system in the country. Like cycling becoming an extinct transport form in the country, especially in Karnataka, some marginalized castes are on the verge of extinction.

According to anthropologists, castes and people connected to that are custodians of some of the most biologically diverse territories and they are also responsible for a great deal of cultural diversity and their traditional knowledge has been and continues to be an invaluable resource that benefits the developing society.

Yet these communities continue to suffer discrimination, marginalisation, extreme poverty, and conflict. Some are being dispossessed of their traditional lands as their livelihoods are being undermined. Meanwhile, their belief systems, culture, language, and ways of life continue to be threatened, sometimes by extinction.

Though it is believed that, as many as 53 castes are on the verge of extinction, reports submitted by Justice H. N.

Nagamohan Das Commission

constituted by the state government and another committee headed by High Court Justice Subhash Adi with documents and statistics concluded that; as many as 74 castes are on the verge of extinction.

Nagamohan Das Commission Nagamohan Das Commission was constituted by the previous Janata Dal (Secular)-Congress coalition government to look into the increase in reservation for the SC community from the existing 15% to 17% and for the ST community from 3% to 7%. After the collapse of the coalition government, the incumbent BJP government asked the commission to continue its work in this direction, by according time until the end of June to submit its report.

The 227-page report is in favour of an increase in reservations. Interestingly, according to a survey conducted by the Centre for the Study of Social Exclusion and Inclusive Policy (CSSEIP) of National Law School of India University, Bengaluru in 2019, over 74% of communities under the Scheduled Tribe category are not visible, as their population has now dwindled to 10,000 and literacy in these communities is just 30%.

Of the 50 communities that come under ST category with the population of only three communities has crossed 1 lakh and the population of the rest fortyseven castes fall below one lakh, the report says. Both Nagamohan Das and Justice Adi committee reports concluded that; there are 74 castes, which are on the verge of extinction and the plight of the people belonging to these communities is pathetic. These invisible communities are not availing of any government benefits.

These communities are extremely small in number and most deprived. Even the names of these castes have remained invisible and they are depending only on traditional occupations and professions, that are facing threat due to urbanisation and globalisation. Most of these small castes have not gained any place in the mainstream of national life.

The report regrets that, even after Human Rights Commission recommended for amending the Habitual Offenders Act of 1952, none of the states have taken cognizance of the recommendation and pushed the report under the carpet. Because of this, these “perishing” communities are getting pushed backward and backward by the day.

These communities are completely depending on beggary, Hagalu vesha (a community that impersonate as mythological characters and enact episodes from Ramayana and Mahabharata and other mythological stories and walk on the road), engaged as agricultural labourers, or in hunting and collection of forest produce.

Population

“Total population of these nomadic communities is about 9, 81,11