With reference to India, the terms 'Halbi, Ho and Kui' pertain to
Answer & explanation
Answer: (d) tribal languages
Halbi, Ho and Kui are tribal languages. In the Census of India's classification Halbi (spelt 'Halabi') is an Indo-Aryan language, Ho belongs to the Austro-Asiatic family and Kui to the Dravidian family.
- ✗ (a) None of the three is a dance form; the Census lists all three among India's languages and mother tongues.
- ✗ (b) They are not musical instruments; Census C-16 lists them as languages.
- ✗ (c) They are not cave-painting traditions; they are living languages spoken by communities.
- ✓ (d) Halbi, Ho and Kui are languages spoken chiefly by tribal communities, and state education programmes have used Halbi and Kui (with Gondi, Saora and Santali) for early schooling.
Remember · Halbi (Indo-Aryan), Ho (Austro-Asiatic) and Kui (Dravidian) are tribal languages, not dances, instruments or paintings.
Sources
- Census of India 2011, Paper 1 of 2018, Language: India, States and Union Territories (Table C-16), Statement 9: Indo-Aryan family listing ↗ “1. Assamese (S), 2. Bengali(S), 3. Bhili/Bhilodi, 4. Bishnupuriya, 5. Dogri(S) 6. Gujarati(S), 7. Halabi, 8. Hindi(S), 9. Kashmiri(S), 10. Khandeshi,11. Konkani(S) … 10. Kui, 11. Kurukh/Oraon, 12. Malayalam(S), 13. Malto, 14. Parji, 15. Tamil(S), 16. Telugu(S), 17.Tulu. 3. AUSTRO-ASIATIC 1. Bhumij, 2. Gadaba, 3. Ho,”
- NCERT, Journal of Indian Education (ejournals.ncert.gov.in): tribal languages in primary education ↗ “Odisha has implemented MTB-MLE programmes in over 1,500 schools using languages such as Kui, Saora, and Santali (Mohanty, 2019, p. 108). Chhattisgarh has piloted primers in Gondi and Halbi”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2021, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). ·