Match the Concept in list I with their Examples in list II
| LIST-I (Concept) | LIST-II (Examples) | ||
| A. | Exclusion | I. | Standing with bowed head |
| B. | Exploitation | II. | Categorising entire group of people as "lazy" |
| C. | Stereotype | III. | Being prohibited from sharing drinking water sources |
| D. | Humiliation | IV. | Imposition of forced, unpaid labour |
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → A-III, B-IV, C-II, D-I
(A) Exclusion — this matches (III) Being prohibited from sharing drinking water sources. Dalits face forms of exclusion that are not practised against other groups, such as being kept away from shared drinking water sources, collective worship, ceremonies and festivals.
(B) Exploitation — this matches (IV) Imposition of forced, unpaid labour. Untouchability is almost always tied to economic exploitation, most commonly through forced, unpaid or under-paid labour, or the confiscation of property.
(C) Stereotype — this matches (II) Categorising entire group of people as “lazy”. A stereotype is a fixed and inflexible characterisation of a group: it treats a whole community as though it were a single person with one trait, such as ‘lazy’ or ‘cunning’.
(D) Humiliation — this matches (I) Standing with bowed head. Public acts of humiliation and subordination are part of untouchability, such as gestures of deference: taking off headgear, carrying footwear in the hand or standing with bowed head.
Note: The lines giving examples of humiliation-subordination (gestures of deference such as standing with bowed head), in the section on untouchability of the chapter ‘Patterns of Social Inequality and Exclusion’, were there in the pre-rationalised NCERT, which NTA followed in 2023. This portion has been deleted from the NCERT book (2025-26), though the chapter and its account of the three dimensions of untouchability are still there.
NCERT (2025-26): “Untouchability … It is important to emphasise that the three main dimensions of untouchability – namely, exclusion, humiliation-subordination and exploitation – are all equally important in defining the phenomenon. Although other (i.e., ‘touchable’) low castes are also subjected to subordination and exploitation to some degree, they do not suffer the extreme forms of exclusion reserved for ‘untouchables.’ Dalits experience forms of exclusion that are unique and not practised against other groups – for instance, being prohibited from sharing drinking water sources or participating in collective religious worship, social ceremonies and festivals. Moreover, untouchability is almost always associated with economic exploitation of various kinds, most commonly through the imposition of forced, unpaid (or under-paid) labour, or the confiscation of property.…” “Social Inequality … Prejudices are often grounded in stereotypes, fixed and inflexible characterisations of a group of people. Stereotypes are often applied to ethnic and racial groups and to women. In a country such as India, which was colonised for a long time, many of these stereotypes are partly colonial creations. Some communities were characterised as ‘martial races’, some others as effeminate or cowardly, yet others as untrustworthy. In both English and Indian fictional writings we often encounter an entire group of people classified as ‘lazy’ or ‘cunning’. It may indeed be true that some individuals are sometimes lazy or cunning, brave or cowardly. But such a general statement is true of individuals in every group. Even for such individuals, it is not true all the time – the same individual may be both lazy and hardworking at different times. Stereotypes fix whole groups into single, homogenous categories; they refuse to recognise the variation across individuals and across contexts or across time. They treat an entire community as though it were a single person with a single all-encompassing trait or characteristic.…” NCERT (Pre-rationalised): “Untouchability … The performance of publicly visible acts of (self-)humiliation and subordination is an important part of the practice of untouchability. Common instances include the imposition of gestures of deference (such as taking off headgear, carrying footwear in the hand, standing with bowed head, not wearing clean or ‘bright’ clothes, and so on) as well as routinised abuse and humiliation.…” |