How has national development impacted tribal development?

(A) Tribal areas located in mineral rich and forest covered parts of the country paid a disproportionately high price for development.
(B) Large dams, factories and mines were built in Nehruvian era.
(C) Tribals were dispossessed of their land for setting up hydroelectric power plants.
(D) These developments benefitted the tribes at the expense of others.

Choose the correct answer from the options given below:

(A), (B) and (C) only

The correct answer is Option (3) - (A), (B) and (C) only

Option (D) is not correct because the statement "These developments benefitted the tribes at the expense of others" does not accurately reflect the impacts of national development on tribal communities. In most cases, tribal communities bear the negative consequences of development disproportionately compared to the benefits they receive.

The imperatives of ‘development’ have governed attitudes towards tribes and shaped the policies of the state. National development, particularly in the Nehruvian era, involved the building of large dams, factories and mines (B). Because the tribal areas were located in mineral rich and forest covered parts of the country, tribals have paid a disproportionate price for the development of the rest of Indian society (A). This kind of development has benefited the mainstream at the expense of the tribes (D is incorrect). The process of dispossessing tribals of their land has occurred as a necessary byproduct of the exploitation of minerals and the utilisation of favourable sites for setting up hydroelectric power plants, many of which were in tribal areas (C).