Educational Exclusion in India: Sub-group Divisiveness among Dalits

Abstract

India cannot make progress by excluding educational opportunities from its Dalit people who form nearly 17 per cent of its population and populate 580 of its 593 villages. Again, for the Dalit activists and functionaries, it is imperative to note that without addressing the issue of sub-group divisiveness the case of Dalit emancipation will remain only a distant dream. It requires consorted policy efforts to combat the evils of illiteracy and to create further opportunities for the Dalits to achieve higher level of education. Nevertheless, policy road map and implementation needs to be informed by thorough understanding of the societal dynamics: the dialectics of Dalit positioning in the social hierarchy and its relationship with the class and power structure. Important as the external (Dalit–non-Dalit) relationships are, understanding the internal dynamics inside the Dalit domain is no less crucial.