A historian compares the Paharias and the Santhal settlers of the Rajmahal hills in the early nineteenth century. Which of the following pairs is correctly matched?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Paharias - the hoe, used for shifting cultivation
Option (1) Paharias - growing rice and cotton on cleared forest land — Incorrect. Growing rice and cotton on cleared land was the Santhal way; the settlers cut forests and ploughed the land.
Option (2) Santhals - hunting and food gathering in tamarind groves — Incorrect. Hunting, food gathering and living in tamarind groves describe the forest life of the Paharias.
Option (3) Paharias - the hoe, used for shifting cultivation — Correct. The hoe, used for shifting cultivation, was the symbol of Paharia life.
Option (4) Santhals - withdrawing deeper into the Rajmahal hills — Incorrect. It was the Paharias who receded deeper into the hills as Santhals took over the lower hills.
NCERT (2026-27): “2.1 In the hills of Rajmahal … |