Major tribes of the state of Madhya Pradesh and their population
There are 43 recognized Scheduled Tribes in Madhya Pradesh, India, three of which have been identified as "Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups" or "PTGs" (formerly known as "Special Primitive Tribal Groups"). The population of Scheduled Tribals (ST) is 21.1 per cent of the state population (15.31 million out of 72.62 million), according to the 2011 census.[1] Bounded by the Narmada River to the north and the Godavari River to the southeast, tribal peoples occupy the slopes of the region's mountains.
The term Scheduled Tribes refers to specific indigenous peoples whose status is acknowledged to by the Constitution of India. The term Adivasi also applies to indigenous peoples of this area.
Diversity of tribes
The diversity in the tribes across the state comes from differences in heredity, lifestyle, cultural traditions, social structure, economic structure, religious beliefs and language and speech. Due to the different linguistic, cultural and geographical environments, the diverse tribal world of Madhya Pradesh has been largely cut off from the mainstream of development.
Madhya Pradesh holds first rank among all the States or Union Territories (UTs) in terms of Special Tribal population and twelfth rank in respect of the proportion of ST population to total population.[2]
Most populous tribes
According to the 2011 Census of India, Bhil is the most populous tribe with a total population of 4,618,068, constituting 37.7 per cent of the total ST population. Gond is the second largest tribe, with a population of 4,357,918 constituting 35.6 per cent. The next four populous tribes are: Kol, Korku, Sahariya and Baiga. These six tribes constitute 92.2 per cent of the total ST population of the State.
Pardhan, Saur and Bharia Bhumia have a population ranging from 105,692 to 2152,472; together, they form 3.2 per cent of state population. Four tribes, namely, Majhi, Khairwar, Mawasi and Panika have populations in the range of 47,806 to 81,335, and account for another 2.2 per cent of the ST population.
The remaining thirty three tribes (out of the total of 46 tribes) along with the generic tribes constitute the residual 2.5 per cent of total ST population. Tribes having below 1000 population are twelve in number.[2]
