Among which one of the following sets of social/religious groups is the extent of poverty the highest, as per Government statistics for the nineties?
- AMuslims in Kerala, Gujarat and A.P.
- BTribals in Bihar, Orissa, M.P. and MaharashtraCorrect
- CScheduled Castes in Punjab, Western UP, northern Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu
- DChristians in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Assam
Explanation
The correct answer is B because during the 1990s, official government data and various expert committee reports, such as the Lakdawala Committee, consistently identified Scheduled Tribes as the most impoverished social group in India.
The states mentioned in option B—Bihar, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, and Maharashtra—contained the largest concentrations of tribal populations who faced severe geographical isolation, lack of land rights, and minimal access to health and education. While poverty existed among other groups, the intensity and head-count ratio of poverty were statistically highest among the tribal communities in these specific central and eastern Indian states during that decade.
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