Consider the following statements about Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) in India

1. PVTGs reside in 18 States and one Union Territory.
2. A stagnant or declining population is one of the criteria for determining PVTG status.
3. There are 95 PVTGs officially notified in the country so far.
4. Irular and Konda Reddi tribes are included in the list of PVTGs.

Which of the statements given above are correct?

1. 1, 2 and 3
2. 2, 3 and 4
3. 1, 2 and 4
4. 1, 3 and 4

Explanation

Statement 1 is correct

• PVTGs reside in 18 States and 1 Union Territory (UT), which is the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Statement 2 is correct

• The criteria for identifying Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups are:
  • Pre-agricultural level of technology,
  • Low level of literacy,
  • Economic backwardness,
  • A declining or stagnant population.

Statement 3 is incorrect

• At present, there are 75 PVTGs out of 705 Scheduled Tribes.
• Odisha (Total 13 PVTGs) has the highest number of PVTGs.

Statement 4 is correct

• Both the Irular tribe (Tamil Nadu– total 6 PVTGs) and the Konda Reddi tribe (Andhra Pradesh and Telangana- total 12 PVTGs) are included in the list of PVTGs.

Answer: (c) 1, 2 and 4; Difficulty Level: Medium