Geographical Distribution of Indian Tribes

Introduction: Due to multiplicity of factors and complexity of problems involved, it is not very
easy to classify the Indian tribes into different groups. However, the Commissioner for
Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes took up the task and investigated the possibility of
adopting classification criteria. Keeping this aim in view the state governments were asked to
suggest the characteristics which seemed to them most suitable in distinguishing the so-called
aboriginal groups from the rest of the population. The Assam Government suggested descent
from Mongoloid stock, affiliation with Tibeto-Burman linguistic groups and the existence of a
social organization of the village clan type as the major characteristics. The erstwhile Bombay
government considered residence in forest areas as the basic criterion while for the Madhya
Pradesh government tribal origin, speaking tribal language and residence in forest areas were
important criteria. Similarly, the governments of Madras, Orissa, Andhra, Mysore, Travancore,
etc. suggested various linguistic, geographical, economic and social factors as indicators.

Geographical Classification

Looking at the physical map of India and the distribution of tribal population, we find that both
geography as well as tribal demography permits a regional grouping and a zonal classification.
B.S.Guha, a famous anthropologist, has classified Indian tribes into three zones.

1. The northern and north-eastern zone : The northern and north-eastern zone consists of
the sub-Himalayan region and the mountain valleys of the eastern frontiers of India. The
tribal people of Assam, Manipur and Tripura may be included in the eastern part of this
geographical zone while in the northern part are included the tribals of eastern Kashmir,
eastern Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and northern Uttar Pradesh. Some of the important
tribes living between Assam and Tibet are Aka, Dafla, Miri, Gurung and the Apatani on
the west of the Subansiri river. The Mishmi tribes live in the high ranges between the
Debong and Lohit rivers. Further east are found the Khamti and the Singpho and beyond
them are the different Naga tribes. South of the Naga Hills running through the states of
Manipur, Tripura and the Chittagong hill tracts live the Kuki, the Lushai, the Khasi and
the Garo (now the habitants of the newly curved Meghalaya state). In the sub-Himalayan
region of the Sikkim and the northern portions of Darjeeling, there are a number of
primitive tribes, Lepcha being the best known of them. The Himalayan region of Uttar
Pradesh also contains some important tribes like Tharu, Bhoksa, Jounsari (Khasa),
Bhotia, Raji, etc. The entire geographical zone, though quite large in area, does not
contain dense population. As a result of geographical similarities most of the tribes of this
zone are engaged in either terrace cultivation or Jhum (shifting) cultivation and are
steeped in poverty and economic backwardness.
2. The Central or the Middle Zone: This zone consists of plateaus and mountainous belt
between the Indo-Gangetic plain to the north and roughly the Krishna river to the South
and this is separated from the north eastern zone by the gap between the Garo hills and
 the Rajmahal hills. In this zone we have another massing of tribal people in Madhya
Pradesh with extensions in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Bharat, Southern Rajasthan, Northern
Maharashtra, Bihar and Orissa. Northern Rajasthan, Southern Maharashtra and Bastar
form the peripheral areas of the zone. The important tribes inhabiting this zone are the
Savara, Gadaba and Borido of the Ganjam district; the Juang, Kharia, Khond, Bhumij and
the Bhuiya of the Orissa hills. In the plateau of Chotanagpur live Munda, Santhal, Oraon,
Ho and Birhor. Further west along Vindhya ranges live the Katkari, Kol and the Bhil, the
Gond forms the largest group and occupy what is known as the Gondwanaland. On
both sides of the Satpuras and around the Maikal hills are found similar tribes like
Koraku, Agaria, Pardhan and Baiga. Most of the tribes of this zone practice shifting
cultivation as means of their livelihood but the Oraon, Santhal, Munda and Gond have
learnt plough cultivation as a result of their cultural contact with neighboring rural
populations.
3. The Southern Zone: This zone consists of that part of Southern India, which falls south
of the river Krishna stretching from Wynaad to Cape Camorin. Andhra Pradesh,
Karnataka, Coorg, Travancore, Cochin, Tamil Nadu, etc. are included in this zone. Some
of the important tribes living in this zone are- Chenchu, Loraga, Yaruba, Toda, Irula,
Paniyan, Kurumba, Kadar, Kannika, Malvadau, Mala Kuravna, Kamara, etc. This zone
also included among some of the most economically backward communities of the
World. Except Toda, Badaga and Kota who live in Nilgiri hills and most of the tribal
groups of this zone depend upon hunting and fishing for food gathering.
According to Nadeem Hasnain, although Guha has not included the inhabitants of
Andaman and Nicobar Island in any of the three zones, yet these tribal people may be
said to constitute a fourth zone. The main tribes living in this zone are the Jarawa, Onge,
North Sentineless, Andamanese and Nicobari. These tribes are ethnically close to the
South Indian tribes.
In yet another classification given by S.C.Dubey five tribal zones are given:
North and north-eastern zone
Western and North-western zone (Punjab, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh,
Gujarat, etc.)
Central zone (Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, etc.)
Southern zone (Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Cochin, Karnataka, etc.)
Andaman and Nicobar Island