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Approach

• Describe the caste system as a salient feature of Indian society.
• Highlight change in form and representation of the caste system through illustrations.
• Give way forward.

Introduction

• Caste as a social stratification system is a salient feature of Indian society. Traditionally, caste system is defined as a system of hierarchically arranged endogamous social groups according to purity and pollution of occupation which is hereditarily fixed in India. To a very large extent caste system has changed in its form and representation in recent times.

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Change in Caste system’s form and representation

• Change in the occupational role: Due to industrialization and urbanization, the hereditary association between occupation and caste has been broken. An individual is free to choose his occupation.
• Inter-caste marriage: The relevance of endogamy feature of caste is decreasing as there is an increase in inter-caste marriages.
• Caste as a tool for political mobilization: Caste identity is being used for political mobilization. Eg. Bahujan Samaj Party. Further, most of the political parties allot tickets after taking careful analysis of caste arithmetic of region.
• Caste as pressure groups: Caste is being used as pressure groups for seeking favourable changes in policies e.g. demands for affirmative action by Patels of Gujarat, Marathas of Maharashtra and Jats of Haryana.
• Social and behaviour change: Traditionally, under the caste system, elaborate restrictions related to food sharing have been followed. In recent times, these restrictions are getting diluted due to various factors like migration, modern values, westernization, globalisation etc.
• Constitutional safeguards for equality (Article 14), against untouchability (Article 17) and discrimination (Article 15) have largely attempted to remove the hierarchical manifestations of the caste system in the country. Supported by these measures, in recent times the legislative orientation towards caste system is changing.
• Increasing caste associations: Caste is playing an important role as a basis for the formation of new groups. These caste associations are important agencies for the mobilization and coordination of collective effort to achieve the goals of their members.

Conclusion

• While the manifestation of the caste system has changed to a large extent in recent times, the system itself has not changed much.
  • For example- even though untouchability and caste-based discrimination is barred under the Constitution of India, occupations like manual scavenging have the majority of workers from lower castes.
• Though caste groups like Khap Panchayats have been brought under the scrutiny of the judiciary, the expression of social exclusion and maintaining the caste-based division by the communities has however not vanished but has changed to become more subtle. For example-
  • The matrimonial advertisements are frequent in the newspapers that especially demand brides and grooms from particular communities.
  • Even religions that do not follow caste systems like Muslims and Christianity have observed caste-like discrimination. Dalits who have converted to Christianity have separate graveyards in States like Kerala.
• Considering that these divisions offer solidarity and psychological strength to various marginalized groups, even if the caste-based discrimination is diffused through the legislative enforcement the divisions of identity will be difficult to erase.