NCERT Solutions for Class 8 Social Science History Chapter 4: Tribals, Dikus and the Vision of a Golden Age

The chapter will shed considerable light upon the questions related to Tribals, Dikus, etc. How the rules formed by the Company hindered their existence, and how did their lives change. The following points can briefly discuss the chapter.

• The customs and rituals that were followed by most tribes were very different. They varied from those laid down by Brahmans.
• The tribal people of India had a different way of life and were involved in a variety of activities by the nineteenth century. Some tribal people practised jhum cultivation, which is, shifting cultivation. A modified form of this still continues in many forest areas of modern- day Gujarat. In this scenario, the trees are cut, and the land is cleared to create patches for cultivation.
• Tribal groups in many regions depended on hunting animals and gathering forest produce for their living. Herding and rearing also became an occupation for many tribal groups.
• All these activities of the tribals clashed with the company's economic interests and led to battles being fought on both ends. The revolt of Sonogram Sangma in 1906 in Assam and the forest satyagraha of the 1930s in the Central Provinces are two such examples.
• From the late nineteenth century, the concept of tea plantations gained traction, and mining became an important industry. Contractors recruited tribals in large numbers as manual labour for the tea plantations of Assam. They were also employed in the coal mines of Jharkhand. These tribals used to be recruited through contractors. These contractors paid them miserably low wages and the tribals were not allowed to return home.
• Tribal groups from across the country revolted against the changes in laws. This was majorly in response to the restrictions on their practices and traditions. They were against the new taxes levied on them, and the exploitation they faced by traders and moneylenders.