Impact of gender bias on health and nutrition of the tribal women in relation to dynamics of development in India.

Abstract

Tribal communities in India are economically and socially backward and mostly live in forests and hilly terrains isolated from the other elite communities. They have their own way of living and different socio-cultural and eco-geographical settings. Lack of proper education and health facilities, faulty feeding habits, certain irrational belief systems and special tribal chores are likely to aggravate their health and nutritional status. Tribal women, in general, enjoy better status in the society than the general caste people because they exercise decisive role in the family (mother work), society (social work) and economy (other work) in India. However, the ideological devaluation of women’s contribution and reorientation of gender and sex have brought about concomitant drastic changes in the status of women and their empowerment in different dimensions of deprivation and exploitation, and imposed restrictions on daily folk-chores of life. In few communities, a definite decline has been observed threatening their very existence. This decline may not be due to low level of fertility but rather high level of mortality and illogical health practices. The success of dynamic tribal development is dependent on various factors like improved literacy rate, sustainable socio-economic status, women’s empowerment, better health care and other human resource indicators. It is much desirable to make reproductive health care accessible and affordable, extending basic amenities, empowering women and enhancing their employment opportunities, and providing the transport and communication facilities.