Contemporary Voice of Dalit, Ahead of Print.
Intragenerational and intergenerational mobility are two important parameters of social mobility. The study of educational and occupational mobility across caste groups will help to understand how caste affiliation influences the pattern of intergenerational mobility. The data from India Human Development Survey 2012 has been used in this study which collects data on fathers’ and sons’ educational and occupational information. This study uses mobility matrices and aggregate measures based on them to understand the son’s position with respect to the father’s position. It is evident from this study that educational and occupational mobility in Bengal is associated with the social position of the caste groups. In comparison to the other castes, the Forward caste has a higher proportion of sons who have completed higher education. In comparison to the other caste groups, the sons of the Forward caste experienced the least downward mobility in education. On the other hand, upward mobility is highest among the Forward caste and lowest among the OBC. The caste-based pattern is also prevalent in downward mobility, immobility and upward mobility in occupation. The sons of the Forward caste had the greatest upward mobility, followed by SC and OBC. On the contrary, down mobility is highest for the SC’s son followed by the OBC and Forward caste. It is quite clear that caste does matter and matters deeply in Bengal’s socio-economic landscape.
Author Archives: Sandip Mondal
Caste in the Time of the COVID-19 Pandemic
Contemporary Voice of Dalit, Ahead of Print.
Historically, it is a glaring fact that any disaster or pandemic made the Dalit and Adivasi as the worst victim. Therefore, it is of utmost importance to unfold the caste dynamics and social realities around the debate of the COVID-19 pandemic. A unique feature of India’s caste system is in its flexibility. Therefore, even during the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, the prescribed medical guidelines of ‘social distancing’ encourages the Savarnas to strengthen the caste prejudices in the name of science. Apart from this, the prescribed guidelines for ‘social distancing’ and ‘home quarantine’ exposed the graded caste inequality in India. The empirical evidence from this study brings it to the forefront that a graded caste inequality persists in household’s availability of exclusive room with attached toilet facilities and adequate ventilation facilities, household’s access to exclusive drinking water source, household’s affordability in practising hand wash with soap or detergent, etc. Therefore, when the Forward caste become the most privileged in maintaining the home quarantine and complete isolation, it becomes an unaffordable luxury for the Dalits. It makes the Dalits most vulnerable during this pandemic. Therefore, this pandemic provides a stark example of the pervasiveness and perniciousness of social inequality in India.
Historically, it is a glaring fact that any disaster or pandemic made the Dalit and Adivasi as the worst victim. Therefore, it is of utmost importance to unfold the caste dynamics and social realities around the debate of the COVID-19 pandemic. A unique feature of India’s caste system is in its flexibility. Therefore, even during the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, the prescribed medical guidelines of ‘social distancing’ encourages the Savarnas to strengthen the caste prejudices in the name of science. Apart from this, the prescribed guidelines for ‘social distancing’ and ‘home quarantine’ exposed the graded caste inequality in India. The empirical evidence from this study brings it to the forefront that a graded caste inequality persists in household’s availability of exclusive room with attached toilet facilities and adequate ventilation facilities, household’s access to exclusive drinking water source, household’s affordability in practising hand wash with soap or detergent, etc. Therefore, when the Forward caste become the most privileged in maintaining the home quarantine and complete isolation, it becomes an unaffordable luxury for the Dalits. It makes the Dalits most vulnerable during this pandemic. Therefore, this pandemic provides a stark example of the pervasiveness and perniciousness of social inequality in India.