The lived experiences of poverty among particularly vulnerable tribal groups in a rights-based anti-poverty programme in Jharkhand India

This research explores poverty and social exclusion among Primitive Tribal Groups (PVTGs) in India using T. H. Marshall's concept of social citizenship. With evidence showing a disproportionate burden of poverty in the Global South, indigenous groups are even overrepresented among the poor. India, home to one of the largest Indigenous populations, accounts for 70% of South Asia's impoverished, but the specific nature of poverty within these communities remain poorly understood. Over the past two decades, India's national response to poverty has shifted towards rights-based, inclusive policies targeting marginalised communities such as Dalits, Scheduled Castes, and Scheduled Tribes, historically subjected to discrimination. An example is the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), which guarantees 100 days of employment annually. Despite these initiatives, the specific experiences of poverty among these groups within such programmes, predicated on citizen rights, remain underexplored. This study addresses this gap by analysing the experiences of poverty and social exclusion among Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) participating in MGNREGS, aiming to deepen understanding and inform policy responses to poverty among Indigenous populations like PVTGs. This investigation employed phenomenology and an interpretive case study design. Data were gathered through in-depth semi-structured interviews with 46 PVTGs and 6 program officers, alongside non-participant observation of MGNREGS implementation. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed in NVivo 12 using flexible pattern matching. The coding framework was informed by key literature and theoretical concepts from social citizenship and the Global Multidimensional Poverty Index, which encompasses indicators on both material and non-material dimensions of poverty, including themes like exploitation, work insecurity, and service access. The findings indicate that the poverty experienced by PVTGs is profoundly rooted in political structures that restrict their access to rights and entitlements, thereby impeding their ability to advocate for these rights. Participants reported extreme material deprivation, including near starvation, and a lack of sustainable livelihoods, despite the assurances provided by MGNREGS. These material challenges were exacerbated by relational dynamics of domination and exploitation, intensified by policies such as the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, which disrupt traditional livelihoods. Consistent with recent studies (Walker, 2014; Pellissery and Mathew, 2014; Sambo, 2018), findings revealed heightened experiences of stigma, shame, and indignity due to unmet personal and social expectations, leading to self-isolation and acute helplessness. Guarantees to work were also disrupted by powerful middlemen exploiting PVTGs through corruption. Additionally, spatial exclusion significantly contributed to their exclusion from resource-sharing networks. The study argues that experiences of spatial exclusion faced by PVTGs exacerbate their poverty and contribute to further social exclusion. It highlights a cyclical relationship between social exclusion and poverty, thereby revealing the inadequacy of rights-based anti-poverty programmes in facilitating genuine citizenship for these communities. By examining the complexities of poverty and social exclusion that undermine the citizenship rights of Indigenous groups, this research provides critical insights into the multidimensional nature of poverty, particularly its non-material dimensions as identified in the Global Multidimensional Poverty Index, which are often regarded as ‘missing dimensions.’