“Caste system is assuming new identities and associational forms. Hence, caste system cannot be eradicated in India.” Comment.
Approach · directive: “comment”
What it asks · Assess whether the survival of caste in new forms, such as associations and political identities, means it cannot be eradicated, weighing signs of change against persistence.
It asks 2 things — answer each
- Comment on the premise: the new identities and associational forms caste is taking, and why it persists
- Comment on the inference that caste cannot therefore be eradicated: forces of erosion, the law, the limits, and a verdict
Open with · NCERT notes that caste, once rooted in purity and pollution, now often works as a political pressure group, a shift called the secularisation of caste.
Cover
- Associations and parties: caste associations and, since the 1980s, caste-based parties press demands on the State.
- Dominant caste: M.N. Srinivas's concept shows landowning jatis turning numbers into power.
- Persistence: endogamy, jati networks in jobs and credit, and caste-sorted matrimonial columns.
- Reservation politics widens access but hardens categories.
- Erosion: urbanisation, education and new occupations weaken purity–pollution barriers.
- Law and incentives: Article 17, the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, the 2013 manual-scavenging ban, and Rs 2.50 lakh for inter-caste marriage.
- Verdict: adaptation is not immortality; caste weakens where mobility, inter-marriage and enforcement advance.
Close with · The Preamble's fraternity, assuring the dignity of the individual, makes ending caste a constitutional task rather than a matter of waiting.
Add value (verified)
- Under the Dr. Ambedkar Scheme for Social Integration through Inter-Caste Marriages, the incentive is Rs 2.50 lakh per legal marriage where one spouse is Scheduled Caste and the other non-Scheduled Caste.Dr. Ambedkar Scheme for Social Integration through Inter-Caste Marriages — scheme guidelines (Government of Tripura, Social Welfare) ↗“The incentive for a legal inter-caste marriage shall be Rs.2.50 lakh per marriage.”
Question: UPSC's CS (Main) 2018, GS Paper I — paper ↗. Approach: Minimalist IAS, checked 16 Oct 2026 (how we verify) — UPSC publishes no model answers. ·
Model answer· 225words · Minimalist IAS
NCERT notes that caste, once rooted in purity and pollution, now often works as a political pressure group, a shift called the secularisation of caste. The statement reads this change of form as proof of permanence.
New forms of caste: associations; caste parties; vote blocs; matrimonial networks
New identities and associational forms
- Associations and parties: caste associations and, since the 1980s, explicitly caste-based parties press their demands on the State.
- Dominant castes: M.N. Srinivas's dominant caste shows landowning jatis turning numbers into power.
- Persistence: endogamy, jati networks in jobs and credit, and caste-sorted matrimonial columns keep boundaries alive.
- Reservation politics: quotas widen access but harden categories, spurring new claims.
Why 'cannot be eradicated' overstates the case
- Ritual hierarchy weakens: urbanisation, education, shared spaces and new occupations erode purity–pollution barriers.
- Law against hierarchy: Article 17 abolishes untouchability; the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 and the 2013 manual-scavenging ban punish discrimination.
- Incentives to mix: the Dr. Ambedkar Scheme pays Rs 2.50 lakh for a legal marriage between a Scheduled Caste and a non-Scheduled Caste spouse.
- Limits: inter-caste marriages remain few and atrocities continue, so hierarchy has changed shape rather than vanished.
Verdict
Adaptation is not immortality: caste weakens wherever class mobility, inter-marriage and enforcement advance together.
The Preamble's fraternity, assuring the dignity of the individual, makes ending caste a constitutional task, not a wait for time.
Prepared by Minimalist IAS to the answer standard of Shivam Singh (mentor, 7 years) · facts checked against official sources (how we verify) · updated 16 Oct 2026. UPSC publishes no model answers: compare your structure and coverage with this, then write your own.
