Volume-XI, Issue-IV, July 2025 |
Urban Living and Life Satisfaction among Scheduled Tribes: A Study in East Kolkata Using SWLS Shibthakur Hembram, Assistant Professor, Department of Geography, Presidency University, Kolkata, India |
Received: 05.07.2025 | Accepted: 08.07.2025 | Published Online: 31.07.2025 | Page No: | ||||
DOI: 10.29032/ijhsss.vol.11.issue.04W.103 |
ABSTRACT | ||
The tribal People are inherently living in isolated, remote areas, in exclusion from the so-called modern world. They are accustomed to living in self-made socio-cultural settings, often in harsh environments, especially in forested areas. The tribes are among the most marginalised people in social, economic, political, and cultural terms since the history of tribal people has been one of exploitation, marginalisation, and discrimination. But after independence in India, many tribal people have migrated to urban areas due to the need for their livelihood. The isolationist approach of Verrier Elwin advocated that the tribal people should be left alone and allowed to develop in isolation, fearing that cultural contact would undermine tribal solidarity and expose them to exploitation. But Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of India, argued that the inclusion of tribal people in mainstream society, not forcefully but voluntarily, is the suitable way to tribal development. A study has been carried out to find out the quality of community life and life satisfaction level of the tribal community in an urban setting, and their intra- and inter-personal relationship in mainstream society using Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS). To fulfil the objectives, data has been collected through a questionnaire survey, and interview. Analysing the collected data, it has been found that majority of tribal people feel that the urban environment is better to live their life, as it provides all the facilities and amenities and diverse livelihood opportunities which are unavailable in rural life. Keywords: Tribal, Urban setting, Quality of life, life satisfaction, tribal development. |