The declaration of Indian Republic as a secular state . explains the religious and ethnic diversity imbibed in its socio-cultural and political ethos since time immemorial. The caste, religious and regional differentials in economic. social and political spheres in India have a historic basis ... Indian socio-economic fabric is (very) complex ... because of various layers and segmentations the society is divided and sub-divided into.

... A large majority of people in India suffers from abject poverty. Poverty has two dimensions: as absolute  and a relative dimension. India has over 330 million people belonging to all faiths, religions and regions who live a miserable life of absolute poverty suffering from extreme degree of human deprivation. Inspite of falling levels of poverty in terms of proportion, the absolute number is hovering around 300million since independence ... There are two essential reasons for understanding relative poverty profile. Firstly, reduction in relative poverty is a pre-condition in alleviating absolute poverty in any society. Secondly, it is important for any government to track the variations in relative poverty gap between various types of population groups so as to ensure equity in opportunity as a mechanism of poverty alleviation.

... Of late a few independent data sources have come into existence which help in both estimating and redefining the parameters of poverty in its absolute and relative dimensions. A survey of 33,000 nationally  representative rural sample, conducted by the National Council of Applied Economic Research in 1994 provides data on household income and a range of human development parameters which can be cross-classified according to a number of population groups. These data have been used to estimate levels of poverty according to selected population group ..

Income and Levels of Living

The key indicators in Table ! show a very high incidence of poverty among the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes followed by the Muslim compared with the all India average. The percentage of population below the poverty line is about 50 for the SCs and STs and 43 for Muslims compared with 39 for the whole population (32 per cent among the Hindus excluding SCs and STs). If the household and per capita income are considered a scenario emerges where the SCs, the STs and the Muslims can be considered as the economically deprived population groups ... This brings to the fore the lack of access to productive assets. employment and wage stability for the Scheduled groups and the Muslims. Land is the most preferred and valued asset across India and the SCs and Muslims are relatively more deprived in terms of land ownership across India. Hindus as a whole have a relative advantage of owning land in larger proportion and in larger size class. for example while one-fifth of Hindus own five acres or more of land, only one-tenth of Muslims belong to this category. This points to the need for creating new instruments which may provide an alternative for land as the main source of security among the rural households.

Agriculture is the main source of income among the STs and all Hindus ... Agricultural wage is an important source of income to the SCs and STs and artisanship for  Muslims. The proportion of income derived from agriculture and allied activities' among the Muslim is much lower than the Hindus, whereas their share of income is disproportionately large from artisan and industrial work. This at the outset appears a positive feature, but in fact it is not. In rural areas stable and higher level of income is derived from land and agriculture matched only by those with salaried regular income.

Table 1

Income, Asset and Material Well-being of Households According to Caste and Religion

(Source: INDIA: Human Development Report of the 1990s (forthcoming, Oxford University Press).

The work participation rate among the Muslims is the least both for males and females suggesting relatively higher unemployment rate. WPR among the Muslim women is as low as 10 per cent compared with an all India average of 18. Access to selected basic needs is below the national average for the SCs, the STs and the Muslims, particularly in electricity and piped water supply. Muslims particularly have lower PDS utilization compared with all other castes and religious categories.

Literacy and Schooling

... The SCs and STs are least literate in India. followed by the Muslims compared with rest of population (Table 2). Only about 40% of SCs and STs and 50% of Muslims are literate compared with about 54% over all average (60% for Hindus excluding SCs and STs) ... A matter of concern is that the enrolment rate among the Muslims is only 62% almost at parity with the SCs and STs.as compared with about 72% for all India and 77% for Hindus (other than SCs and STs) ... A large inter-group disparity.in enrolment compared with the disparity in levels of : literacy suggests that enrolment rate in elementary schooling among the Muslims has been falling in the immediate past especially so in case of females ...

Another important fact to highlight is the onset of private schooling across India. more so in UP, Punjab.  Haryana. Bihar, AP and Kerala. Muslims send their children relatively more to the private elementary schools compared with all other communities. There appears to be some sort of resentment on the part of Muslims to send their children to government schools. Since schooling and education is a state subject important policy initiatives have to be taken by the states to set right this anomaly in providing equal opportunities and appropriate education at least at the primary and elementary levels. National efforts should be initiated to find out as to why the Muslim children are being withdrawn from the publicly provided free schooling in India. Allowing this trend to continue is also likely to affect female education among the Muslims much more. Considering education as one of the main parameter of human development, clearly the SCs, the STs and the Muslims lag in most of the output indicators such as the literacy, enrolment, discontinuation and percentage of population (aged 17+ years) completing matriculation. A relatively greater dependence on private schooling of Muslims, which is disproportionately expensive and especially given the low economic conditions, seems to be due to compulsions emerging out of inappropriate education. There is an urgent need to take a serious note of the above facts to design appropriate public policy interventions and implement them in due earnest taking help from multi-national agencies such as the United Nations and the World Bank if needed.

Health and Demography

Besides, high fertility rates among the Muslims, the SCs and the STs, overall a birth rate of 32 per thousand population for rural India as a whole should be a cause of concern. The mortality and morbidity rates are relatively high among the SCs and STs and how among the Muslims. The physical disability rates are relatively higher among all the three communities focused in this presentation. The contraceptive practice is low for Muslims followed by the Scheduled groups. However, a dynamic look at the changes in all these factors over time suggests that relative differentials in fertility, mortality and family planning practice are declining over the past four decades and the differential found recently arc the lowest.

In fact the rate of increase in contraception has begun to be more than the general population among the Muslims as evidence emerging from intensive studies on contraception. Muslims prefer to use spacing methods relatively more than all other communities which is cause for optimism for the programme implementations. This scenario suggests that Muslims have begun to accept family planning measures in large numbers in the preceding two decades or so. Research has also conclusively proved that an improvement in human development parameters depress fertility and mortality and improve choice based contraception. Thus there is a great prospect that various states in India enter the third and fourth level of demographic transition in the early first decade of the next century and Muslims will be not lacking in contributing to this important achievement. While it is encouraging that the population group differentials are narrowing down in demographic parameters, the utilization of government provided health care services is relatively low among the SCs, STs and especially the Muslims. Fro example, the number of deliveries conducted under the care of trained professionals such as the auxiliary Nurse Midwives and the child immunization rates among the Muslims are low. There is thus an urgent need that Muslims come forward in a big way to harness the benefits of public programmes.

Table 2

Level of Literacy and Schooling According to Caste and Religion

(Source: INDIA: Human Development Report of the 1990s (forthcoming, Oxford University Press).

Hope for the Future

On the whole compared with the dominant Hindus, the SCs, the STs and Muslims seem to be characteristically marginalised due to social and physical distancing from the social, economic and political nucleus. They also have low personal esteem. The process and mechanisms of exclusion could take mundane and subtle routes that often go unnoticed. Most of the downtrodden are illiterate, maintain endogamous social relations, work as wage labour and artisans. They have a high (age) dependency due to high fertility and, low economic dependency ratio because almost every one has to work including children. Low employment and wage stability, relatively more nuclear and fractured families, high mortality and low health care utilization. Their participation in public programmes and utilization of publicly provided goods and services is substantially lower than the population as a whole. They have been unable to find adequate proportion of positions in the government machinery, and in public and political policy making.

The reason for relative backwardness of the SCs, STs and Muslims is only partly due to historical reasons. All these communities have a poor asset base especially in terms ownership of immovable assets, such as cultivable land. Partly, the reasons for relative backwardness are social - the relative bargaining power in the local social and political system has always been low. Rural to urban migration of the SCs and Muslims since Independence may have also contributed to this state of affair. Concurrently the particular and unique problems emerging from the caste system and multi-religious population composition were not accorded adequate attention in public debates, public allocations and program implementation, notwithstanding the reservations for the SCs, the STs and OBCs. Most programmes aimed at alleviating the problems of poor and minorities are symbolic and un-sustainable due to want of implementation and adequate public commitment. There should be public efforts to create enduring opportunities, and carefully conceived affirmative actions, at least in the short run, to alleviate the relative backwardness especially in the areas of education, employment and training, productive credit and political participation.

Ensuring that India remains a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, diverse and dynamic society is imperative both for national integrity and strength. While these attributes are India's strength a reformed legal system should evolve which can penalize vested interests that misuse these characteristics regardless of whether they be individuals, communities or the political parties. There has been considerable progress in this direction, but much has to be done. The Indian legal system has not been fully harnessed to address these issues ...

The forces of globalization and a new deal world economic order can create opportunities to overcome many a crisis faced by the downtrodden, only if the fruits of new economic order are accessible to all and fairly distributed. The economic forces of liberalization and globalization should essentially be the most secular forces sweeping India in the recent past. However, the peculiar way of adaptation of these forces may not entirely be free from subjective decision making, thus excluding selected population groups and regions from accessing the ensuing benefits. The present day private and to some extent the corporate sector seem to still rely on traditional social systems which needs to change.

Table 3

Health Care Utilization According to Caste and Religion

(Source: INDIA: Human Development Report of the 1990s (forthcoming, Oxford University Press).

Promoting mainstream participation of the SCs, STs and Muslims in social, economic and political spheres should be one of the important objectives of the state governments. This will imbibe the feeling of propriety and ownership which brings along with its responsibility to save, protect and promote. In this regard it is essential to conceptualize programmes and to generate a sense of agency and trusteeship among all but more so among the community leadership irrespective of religion and caste. Participation in secular education is a necessary but not sufficient condition. Education should impart values' emphasizing the multi-cultural nature of Indian society, tolerance and mutual respect of basic human values rather than propagation of procedures, rituals and unconformable historical events. Choice based education system should be evolved in which different religions and  communities should have opportunities to choose their language of instruction and topics of interest. Importance is providing education and  schooling in English should be reviewed, along with priority in computer literacy. This re-emphasis in education is in the interest of all the future generations in India. There are certain responsibilities that the respective communities should share. These communities should be sensitive to local issues and should identify first with the local population and then to the larger population identities of states, nation and international communities. The 73rd and 74 Constitutional Amendments do not automatically address these issues. Yet they provide a good platform. The hitherto marginalized communities should participate in large numbers in the Panchayati Raj system and the urban local self-governments. The respective communities which often suffer from urban middle class stereotype should come out of it as soon as possible. Besides, there is a need to recognize diversity within communities. including that in the minority communities. Creating homogeneity is not the answer. Locate where community lives and integrate. Ensure gender equity and enable female participation in market activities. These should be effected both in the intra-household as well as community context.

There should be institutions and structures that encourage individuals and community to realize the benefits of social services provided by the government. It needs social mobilization not necessarily of the communities alone. The SCs, STs and Muslims should come out in a large way to realize the benefits provided by a large number of public programmes. Special programmes for the downtrodden are yet not fully implemented. Pressure groups and lobbying may help improve programme implementation ... Special trade fairs and display of unique skill that the Indian SCs, STs and Muslims have deserve special encouragement. Private and corporate sectors should open avenues for employment for all communities based on the principles of efficiency and competition.