DESIGN OF THE STUDY

->*,

CHAPTER 111

DESIGN OF THE STUDY

Contents

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

.9

10

.11

,12

.13

.14

.15

.16

.17

.18

.19

Statement of the Problem

Title of the Study

Objectives

Operationalisation of Concepts

Design of the Study

Method of the Study

Selection of the Study Area

Area of the Study

Selection of Settlements

Universe of the Study

Units of the Study

Respondents of the Study

Sampling

Tools and Techniques

Type of Data

Data Collection and Analysis

Limitations of the Study

Constraints in Data Collection

Field Experiences

CHAPTER III

DESIGN OF THE STUDY

3 .1 . Statement of the Problem

Women command supremacy in some societies while in

others, they are equal or nearly equal to their menfolk. Largely,

however, they remain subservient to men and, in a few societies,

they are under subjugation too. It would be interesting to examine

to which category the tribal women belong to, as contrasted with

their non-tribal counterparts. Living in remote places, leading

mostly a primitive life, the tribal women command an

overwhelming importance and remain as inevitable partners in all

the essential spheres of human existence. \ 'The status of women

in tribal societies is better than that of their non-tribal

counterparts. \The sex-ratio is favourable, there is no bride

burning; there is high participation in economic activities; and

infant mortality is low.; All these have a lot to do with the tribal

ethos which recognizes the equal role of women' (Singh, 1988).

But the status of tribal women is not uniform everywhere.! Hence,

there is a greater need for undertaking a region-specific study on

the status and role of tribal women which can throw up data that

wil l make planning for their welfare more meaningful and effective.

57

There are many studies of the life-style of tribals in general,

but specific studies on tribal women are not many, particularly

studies on women of the tribes of the southern India. 'The in-

depth studies on tribal women have not been many. In the few

studies of tribal women, the crucial issues facing tribal women

have not been pointedly discussed'. Similarly many studies on the

tribals and tribal women from various major tribes in India are

available, whereas those on the primitive tribes such as the

Paliyas are lacking. Although studies have been made on the

Paliya tribe from other angles such as their socio-economic

condit ions, economic life, child labour practice, and resource

availabil i ty, and use, those on the status and problems of these

women are wanting. Gardner (1972), confined his focus to their

broad social structural aspect, inclusive of women's involvement

in the socio-economic spheres, but did not attempt an exclusive

study on the status of women. Hence, the present study, which

examines the status of the Paliya women, may be useful to

planners and policy-makers as well as researchers and the non­

governmental organizations.

Women across continents, countries, cultures and

communit ies share certain common characteristics and command

a certain social status, classified as high, intermediate and low.

58

They enjoy greater, moderate and lesser privileges within and

among their communities, which varies across the regions,

situations and times.

The status accorded by the human society to women has

been carefully cherished, cautiously guarded and collectively

sustained through the ages, though it has been subjected to the

influences of invasion by both internal and external forces. The

Paliya tribe on the Lower Palani hills considers women as equal

partners in their socio-cultural life. In-depth examination of such

a tribe which has assigned an enviable position to women would

be revealing and rewarding particularly in portraying their plight

and planning for their upliftment. The present study is an attempt

in this direction.

3.2. Title of the Study

"Status and Problems of Tribal Women on the Lower Palani

Hills of Tamil Nadu State".

3.3. Objectives

The broad objective of the study is to shed light on the

various shades of the life, work and development of the Paliya

tribe on the one hand and, on the other, examine the status

enjoyed and the problems encountered by the women of the Paliya

tr ibe.

59

The specific objectives of the study are:

1. To construct the profile of tribal settlements on the Lower

Palani hills,

2. to depict the social and economic characteristics of the tribal

households and the status and problems of the women in

particular,

3. to identify the factors influencing the utilization of on-going

developmental programmes,

4. to analyze the living and working conditions of the Paliya

families based in plantations and

5. to suggest intervention strategies for the development of the

Paliya tribe.

3.4. Operationalisation of Concepts

3.4.1. Tribe

The word 'Tribe' according to the Encyclopedia Americana

is derived from the Latin word Tr ibus ' meaning 'one third', which

originally referred to one of the three people who united to found

Rome. The Encyclopedia Britannica, defines the term 'tribe' as "a

group of people speaking a common language, observing uniform

rules of social organization and working together for common

purposes such as trade, agriculture or warfare". Other typical

60

characterist ics include a common name, a contiguous territory, a

relatively uniform culture or way of life and a tradition of common

descent.

'Tribe', then, refers to a group of people sharing customs,

language, and territory. Usually a tribe has a leader, a religion

teaching that all its people are descended from a common

ancestor, and a common language and culture. A tribe is often

small in size, is fairly limited in its contacts with other societies

and is correspondingly ethnocentric in its view of the world. The

most important criteria for a tribe continue to be linguistic and

cultural resemblances (Funk and Wagnolls) .

In the Indian context, the main criteria adopted for the

Scheduled Tribes, particularly in the post-Independence period,

include (Verma, 1990).

• "traditional occupations of a definite geographical area,

distinctive culture which includes whole spectrum of tribal way

of life, i.e. language, customs, traditions, religious beliefs, arts

and crafts etc.

• primitive traits depicting occupational pattern, economy e t c . ,

• lack of educational and techno-economic development.

For the purpose of the present study, ' tr ibe' is defined as a

homogenous community descended from common ancestors,

61

leading a unique socio-cultural life, living and working together in

a given geographic setting, with limited cross cultural interaction,

depending on and drawing from common natural resources for

their l ivelihood and maintaining their identity and sustaining their

status as a tribe in their social environment.

3.4.2. The Paliya Tribe

The Paliyas are a tribe living on the lower eastern slope of

the Palani hills which divide Tamil Nadu from Kerala; these hills

form a less than 5000 to 8000-foot- high spine down the southern

extremity of India. While they speak a dialect of plain Tamil, the

Paliyas are physically different from their Tamil-speaking

neighbours of the plains. Physiologically they fall within the

ranges of South and South East Asian Australoid types, formerly

termed Negrito, Malid, Veddia, and proto-Australoid. They are

physically most similar to the Semangs of Malaya, and other

Indian gatherers. Culturally too, they resemble the Semangs, as

well as the Kadars, Malapandarams, and Chenchus of India

(Gardner, 1972).

The Paliyas are described, in the Gazetteer of Madurai

distr ict, as a "very backward caste", who reside in small, scattered

parties amid the jungles of the upper Palni hills and in the

Varushanad valley. They speak Tamil with a peculiar intonation

62

which renders it scarcely intelligible... and they are much less

civi l ized... Like other primitive tribes, the Paliyas are short of

stature and dolichocephalic, and the archaic type of nose persists

in some individuals. Their average height is 150.9 cm. and nasal

index 83 (max.100) (Thurston,1972). The Paliya hill tribe is one of

the ancient and primitive hill tribes of India found in Madurai

district (Hutton, 1986).

Paliyan is a regional dialect version of Paraiyan, 'the

ancient' . 'Paliyar' is somewhat more respectful as a term for the

tribe; it is in the plural form. 'Paliyan' is properly both a singular

noun and an adjective and it permits the use of Anglieized plural

(Gardner, 1972). The study employs the term 'the Paliya tribe' or

'the Paliyas' interlchangeably. The study focuses on the Paliyas

who are concentrated in the Lower Palani hills region in Dindigul

district of Tamil Nadu State.

3.4.3. Settlement

A settlement is defined as any permanently occupied human

dwell ing place. Although an isolated occupied hut may be

described as a settlement, the word more usually indicates a

community of dwellings and associated buildings, ranging from a

hamlet to a conurbation (Smith, 1984).

63

For the present study, a tribal settlement refers to an

organized habitation of the scattered tribals in individual families.

Tribal families wandering from one place to another place, those

who are confined to the premises of their employers or families

who already lived in other clusters or settlements, shift their

residence individually or in small groups to settle down in a new

habitat ion. They may shift their residence out of their choice,

upon suggestion or invitation by fellow tribals or out of compulsion

from their employers or for any other reasons. A collection of

such families who are concentrated in one place may be called a

sett lement.

3.4.4. Family and Household

The census of India (1991) defines a household as a group

of persons who commonly live together and take their meal from a

common kitchen unless the exigencies of work prevented any of

them from doing so. All India Rural Household Survey (1965)

defined a household as a group of persons related by blood,

marriage or adoption who normally took meal in the same kitchen.

Household, in fact, is an economic unit which is defined for the

purpose of census of population as single persons living together,

having meal prepared together and benefiting from house-keeping

shared in common.

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On the other hand, family is a fundamental social unit of any

human society and a universal social phenomenon, although its

form varies across the regions. A family is a social and economic

unit consisting minimally of one or more parent(s) and their

chi ldren. Family members usually live in one household, but

common residence is not a defining feature of families (Whyte,

1978). In simpler societies, the family and the household tend to

be indistinguishable. It is only in more complex societies that

some members of a family may live elsewhere. The family

provides a learning environment for children since they have to

learn a repertoire of beliefs and habits which are mostly cultural in

order to become functioning adults in society. A family cares for

and protects children while they acquire the cultural behaviour,

beliefs and values necessary for their own, and their society's

survival (Pasternak, 1976).

In most cases, the Paliya households consist of complete

nuclear families or nuclear families which lack one adult, but they may

also be made up of lone individuals or small, loosely-knit, extended

families" Gardner (1972). The Paliyas are an acknowledged simple

society and an acclaimed nomadic tribe [Thurston, 197S]. In the

present study, the terms 'household' and 'family' are used inter­

changeably, as they have been found to be identical in all respects.

65

3.4.5. Status of Women

To some, the relative status of the sexes means how much

importance society confers on females versus males. To others, it

means how much power and authority women or men have relative

to each other. And to still others, it means what kinds of rights

women and men possess to do what they want to do.

Status, class or income and political power are the three

dimensions of social stratif ication. Status is an effective claim to

social esteem in terms of positive or negative privileges (Weber,

1978).

Status is considered as the ascribed position of an

individual or section of the community at par with the necessities

arising out of the ecological and traditional conditions.

Status is composed of three dimensions - economic,

pol i t ical, and social. The economic dimension includes activities

and institutions constructed around the production, distribution,

and consumption of goods and services. The political dimension

represents the articulation of power relationships, conceptualized

as the subjugation of one group by another. The social dimension

includes activities and institutions such as education, kinship, and

the mass media, which constitute the symbolic infrastructure in a

society (Bradley & Khor, 1993).

66

Women's status is the position women enjoy in a given

society, vis-a-vis men or women of another society. "Female

infant mortality, maternal mortality, female literacy rate, women's

age at marriage, sex ratio, status of female child in the family and

society, employment status of women, property rights of women,

their participation in polit ical, economic, and social life of the

country, incidence of social evils (such as sati, divorce, domestic

accidents, rapes dowry deaths) and social and personal

oppression of women" have been pointed out as the indicator of

women's status (Chowdhry, 1992).

To sociologists and social anthropologists, the term status,

therefore, includes all culturally prescribed rights and duties

inherent in social positions and encompasses both the ascribed

and achieved status. Status is largely used as a synonym for the

'role'. Role is treated as the more dynamic aspect of status and

role cannot be dissociated (Linton, 1936). One can assess or

analyze the status of women in tribal society "after taking into

consideration the mutual duties between the sexes and

safeguards provided for the protection of each sex against the

high-handedness of the other"(Malinowski, 1920). Status also

includes the type of taboos, opportunity for work and contribution

to the household economy.

67

Status, in the present study, refers to the following aspects:

* social position of women in the Paliya tribe

* their role and involvement in household responsibilities

• contribution to the household economic activities

• participation in the process of decision-making

• privileges and problems of the Paliya women within and outside

the tribe.

3.4.6. Development

Economists use the per capita income as the measure of

economic development. From anthropological point of view, it is a

useful method as it deals with the micro processes that provide

important insights into the changing human condition (Long, 1988)

Development focuses on "the process of enlarging the range

of people's choices - increasing their opportunities for education,

health care, income and employment and covering the full range

of human choices from a sound physical environment to economic

and political freedom" (UNDP, 1992). Quality of life (QOL)

according to Mukherjee, (1989) has other forms besides unlimited

material expansion - they are 'satisfaction' and 'happiness'. Applying

the ideology of development, Sen (1986) offers a concept of 'well-

being' that virtually originates from the domains of entitlement and

deprivation which can be ideally employed in tribal studies.

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Development, according to Mohanty (1995), is a complex,

multifaceted process of social transformation, including as

necessary conditions:

« The satisfaction of basic needs, starting with the needs of the

neediest.

« The capability to resist the forces of destruction and inequality

inherent in many forms of modernization.

• Voluntary participation in, and control of, programmes and

projects of economic development by local people, and thereby

a reduction in dependence on remote and external bodies.

These, it is reiterated, are the necessary, but not the

sufficient, conditions for development, which, above all, is a

process of empowerment of the people.

The present study adopts Mohanty's definition for use and,

in addit ion, the following:

• freedom of work and habitation

• protection from exploitation, and deception

• elimination of discrimination on social and gender grounds

• enlightenment on unfounded faith, beliefs and practices which

bother and burden them

• assigning priority for human resource building exercises and efforts

• organizational endeavours and institution building exercises.

69

3.5. Design of the Study

Descriptive design in field setting has been used in the

present study in order to throw light on the status and problems of

women in the Paliya tribe.

3.6. Method of the Study

Surveys help to come into direct contact with the

phenomena under study and provide needed details for example,

anthropological surveys of small communities, socio-economic

surveys describing the living conditions of the people of a

geographical area. The purpose of these surveys is to collect

general information and they are not meant to prove or disprove

anything (Moser, 1974). Since the present study is an attempt to

portray the life and work of the Paliya tribe, and the status of the

Paliya women, survey method was adopted. This is an empirical

study, which used non-participant observation method to gather

the required information.

3.7. Selection of the Study Area

Dindigul district houses two important hill ranges - viz., the

Sirumalai hills about 35 kms. east of Gandhigram and the Palani

hills, about 100 kms. west of Gandhigram. The Paliya tribe

inhabits both these hills. Earlier field studies conducted (Reddy,

1985) show that Sirumalai hills have very small number of tribals

70

(around 40-50 families). (In fact, the 1991 census does not show

the presence of tribals in Sirumalai Panchayat) The Palani hills

have a greater number of tribals - near ly 3000 persons. Among

these tr ibals, a substantial number of them - about 70 per cent are

concentrated on the Lower Palani hills. Since the Lower Palani

hills housed the largest number of tribal families, in this district, it

has been selected as the area of study.

3.8. Area of the Study

The several ranges of the Palani hills, which the Paliyas

occupy, rise 2539 meters, with several peaks of about 2400

meters constituting a plateau of 272 square kms. at an altitude of

over 2100 meters. Seldom have the Paliyas cause to visit the

slopes above 1500 feet, which are cool and wet, says Gardner

(1972) and estimates that some 3000 scattered Paliyas doggedly

orient their life toward the last few zones of refuge.

The Palani hills in Dindigul district of Tamil Nadu are sub­

divided into the upper and the lower Palanis, two distinct

geographical and even more importantly, vegetational regions, by

the neutral saddle, a ravine running between the towns of

Periyakulam in the South and Palani in the north along the

Parappar-Tevendarai Valley. The western block (upper Palanis) is

the plateau (385 sq. km. and average altitude of 2220 m)

71

consisting of undulating slopes of grasslands interspersed with

forests, locally called 'sholas' with sub-tropical or temperate

vegetat ion. This is interspersed with occasional peaks rising to a

maximum of 2506 m at Vembadi with a few ravines and valleys

(Development Alternatives, I390). The eastern block (lower

Palanis, altitude from 750-1500 m area 1683 sq. km.), consists of

slopes with more typical vegetation (Mathew, 1990). Coffee

plantations are dominant in the lower hills.

The Palani hills cover the whole of Kodaikanal block

including the Kodaikanal township and parts of Athoor,

Kodaikanal, Oddanchatram and Reddiarchatram blocks. Whereas

the Upper Palani hills cover parts of Kodaikanal block exclusively,

the Lower Palani hills encompass parts of the other four blocks

tentatively. Because, there is no clear line of demarcation

between the lower and upper Palani hills either in the Survey of

India's District map, or the Block profile, which are the authentic

Government documents. Therefore, although there are other

blocks such as Batlagundu and Palani bordering the lower Palani

hills, the tribal families small in number, scattered in its spread

and an admixture in tribal composition, are proximate to the

plains, particularly developed towns like Palani, Batlagundu and

Periyakulam.

72

Under these circumstances, the investigator in consultation

with the NGOs, identified four blocks viz., Athoor, Kodaikanal,

Oddanchatram and Reddiarchatram as constituting the core of the

lower Palani hills, which houses the largest concentration of the

Paliya tribe living in a contiguous region with the predominant

characteristics of a hill tribe.

Kodaikanal block comprises 15 revenue villages besides

Kodaikanal township. The upper Palanis encompass Kodaikanal

township and six revenue villages while the remaining 11 villages

fall under the lower hills region. (National Informatics Center,

Dindigul, 1991). Tribals, inhabit four out of six revenue villages in

the upper region (ranging from 2 to 675 persons) whereas in the

lower hills, the tribals (ranging from 25 to 347) lived in eight out of

the total of nine revenue villages. As per 1991 census, there were

a total of 2989 tribals in the Palani hills - 2125 in the lower as

against 864 in the upper Palani hills region. Thus, 71 per cent of

the Paliyas in the Palani hills are based in the lower region and 29

per cent are in the upper region. The present study was therefore

undertaken in the lower Palani hills.

3.9. Selection of Settlements

The Lower Palani hills house study settlements belonging to

four blocks in Dindigul district viz., Athoor, Kodaikanal,

Oddanchatram and Reddiarchatram with the largest concentration

of tr ibal families living in the settlement form. These blocks have

revenue villages housing tribal population in the order of one,

eight, one and one respectively. [See Table 3.01]

73

74

Scheduled tribes constitute nearly five per cent of the total

population of 12 revenue villages (Table 3.01). They comprise a

minimum of 0.55 per cent to a maximum of 11.19 per cent in the

total population of the individual revenue villages. Their number

ranges from a meagre 25 to a maximum of 347 in these revenue

vi l lages. Females share 48.8 per cent of the total population -

ranging from 44.9 to 60.5 per cent. In two revenue villages,

females equal and in two others they outnumbered their male

counterparts. In one third of the revenue villages therefore,

females were favourably placed with males or even better.

The Census (1991) gives only population figures, with break

up of males and females and contain no details about the

households. The Society for Integrated Development of Tribals

(SIDT), an NGO based on the Lower Palani hills, had the

household information, obtained through their Field Survey.

Based on this survey conducted during the year 1993-94, it was

found that out of the total of 12 revenue vil lages, which had tribal

population in four blocks, two revenue villages in Kodaikanal block

had settlements with less than 10 households, subsisting in the

plantation premises provided by their employers (viz. Kamanur

with 15 persons and Pooiathur with 33 persons). In two other

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revenue villages viz.,- Manalur (with 48 persons) in Athoor block

and Adalur (with 98 persons) in Reddiarchatram block, the tribal

households were reported to be spread over in small clusters and

individual plantations in scattered locations. Hence, these two

revenue villages were dropped from the study. Accordingly, the

remaining eight revenue villages - six in Kodaikanal and one each

in Oddanchatram and Reddiarchatram which had a population

ranging from 127 to 347, were finally identified for the present

study, spread over in more than 30 households in each settlement

as per 1991 census.

The block profile does not contain the names of all the tribal

sett lements, but only the larger ones which had been fairly long in

existence. Moreover, they do not provide settlement / hamlet-wise

household or population figures particularly for the tribal families.

Hence, the field surveys done by the NGOs, serving the Paliya

tribe is more realistic and comprehensive. The help of NGOs,

particularly the SIDT was taken in the selection of study

sett lements. Accordingly from these eight revenue villages, tribal

sett lements which had more than 30 households each were

located. Two Panchayats in Kodaikanal block had two larger tribal

sett lements, with more than 30 households. Hence, these two

sett lements were also selected, thus taking the total number of

76

sett lements to 10 in all. The cut off mark of 30 households was

arbitrarily decided for the study in consultation with the NGOs,

who suggested that only settlements of about this size would be

relatively more stable, would have been in existence for a few

years, and would have acquired the character of a community.

Accordingly, the revenue villages with tribal settlements of more

than 30 households, finally selected for the study are given in the

Table 3.02.

TABLE 3.02 SELECTED STUDY SETTLEMENTS AND THE NUMBER OF

TRIBAL HOUSEHOLDS

In addition to the above ten tribal settlements selected for

household survey, two families residing in two different revenue

vil lages viz., Adalur in Reddiarchatram block and Poolathur in

77

Kodaikanal block were identified for a deeper study. These

vi l lages were purposively chosen since they did not have

settlements with sizable number of tribal famil ies,were reported

(by the NGOs) to be housing the plantation -based tribal families

living under difficult circumstances.

Selection of these two families (one living in a cluster of

small group of families and another one living in a plantation

alone) for in-depth study was done on judgement basis after

consultations with the NGOs working in these villages, who are

guided by the advise of tribal leaders from neighbouring

sett lements.

3.10. Universe of the Study

Accordingly, the Paliya tribe living on the lower Palani hills

in 12 revenue villages belonging to four blocks viz., Athoor,

Kodaikanal, Oddanchatram and Reddiarchatram blocks of Dindigul

district, numbering 2125, comprised the universe of the study.

Fig. 1 gives the location of study area consisting of 10 study

sett lements and two case study revenue vil lages.

3.11. Units of the Study

The tribal settlements, housing exclusively or mostly the tribals,

as well as the Paliya households in each of these settlements, clusters

and plantations constituted the units of study.

79

3.12. Respondents of the Study

In all, three categories of respondents were selected for the

study. Firstly, the female heads in the tribal households selected

from the ten settlements constituted the primary respondents for

gathering information on the social and economic characteristics

of tr ibal households and to analyze the status and problems of

women.

Secondly, the traditional leaders in all the ten settlements

were contacted in order to obtain a general profile of the

sett lements. This group comprised six to nine informed persons in

every sett lement, led by the local leader. Two selected families

from a cluster and a plantation constituted the third category of

respondents.

3.13. Sampling

Sampling was done only for the first category of

respondents i.e. households living in settlements. A census of

households was taken by the Investigator with the help of local

leaders, in every study settlement afresh. Totally, their number

stood at 374. Selection of sample was done settlement-wise and

hence, the total number of households selected for the study

came to 185 in all. From the sequential list of households

prepared for every settlement, 50 per cent of the households were

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selected using systematic sampling method, by choosing every

alternate household from the sample frame.

3.14. Tools and Techniques

Regarding the first category of the respondents viz., adult

female heads in the household, direct personal interview

technique in a face-to-face setting was adopted. Interview may be

defined as a two-way conversation between an investigator and an

informant, initiated for obtaining information relevant to a specific

study (Krishnaswamy, 1993). The Interview Schedule for female

adult heads was prepared in consultation with the experts. The

NGOs working in the study area too were contacted in this regard.

Pre-testing was done in three tribal settlements in the study area,

among adult females numbering five each. Based on the

(experience gathered in the) pre-test, the interview schedule was

finalized with the required modifications.

On the second category of respondents viz., local leaders,

'Focussed group discussion method was employed. " The focus

group is a qualitative research method for eliciting descriptive

data from population sub groups. "Usually, a group of eight to

twelve persons are gathered together for a group interview or

discussion on a focussed topic" (Bender & Ewbank, 1994). The

'Vil lage Profile Proforma' was used for eliciting information about

81

the general profile of the settlement and the community in the

respective sett lements.

Case study method was resorted to among the third

category of respondents viz., head of households living within the

plantation premises of their employers. Case study refers to a

comprehensive study of a social unit - be that unit a person, a

group, a social institution, or a community (Young, 1984). An

unstructured Interview guide was used in gathering the required

information from these households.

3.15. Type of Data

Data collected were of two types viz., primary and

secondary. Primary data were gathered from all the three

categories of respondents. Secondary data regarding the general

profile of the block and village related information were culled out

from Census and Block office documents. These include 1991

census data sheet (block and village panchayat-wise) provided by

the National Informatics Center, Block Development Guide,

Resource Atlas of Dindigul District, Annual Credit Plan of the lead

bank and other relevant documents from different sources.

Relevant records information and views of non-tribals

closely associated with the Paliya tribe such as the NGOs, Trade

unionists, private doctors, petty traders, and non-tribal fellow

82

workers were used in the study for substantiation of the data

collected by the investigator wherever considered appropriate.

3.16. Data Collection and Analysis

Data were collected directly by staying in each settlement

for about one week. The NGOs served as the main link for

introducing the Investigator to the tribal leaders of the study

sett lements. Local leaders who provided the necessary

information about their settlement, also introduced the investigator

to the heads of every study household, which was a pre-requisite

in every Paliya jet t lement. Through the male heads of the study

households, the adult females were contacted and the purpose of

the study was explained to them at length. Upon this, the

interview schedule was administered on them. On almost all the

occasions, the male heads were actively present during interview

in every household.

Data were collected during the period from May 1994 to

Apr i l , 1995 spread over a period of about 10 months intermittently.

Subsequently, re-visits were also made to some of the settlements

where additional and rechecked data were required.

Data collected were collated and tabulated into one way or

two way tables. The data provided in tables were analyzed using

percentages, ratios, and averages. The coefficient of correlation

83

between the income of the respondent families and their

expenditure was calculated by using the product moment

correlat ion method. Relevant interpretations were made from the

analyses and suitable inferences were drawn.

3.17. Limitations of the Study

The present study focussed on the status quo of the Paliya

tribe with focus on their life and work, the status and problems of

women, development programmes availed by them and the

sources and nature of various problems confronting them.

Towards the end, it provides certain development intervention

strategies. Throughout the study therefore, the subject has been

given a 'descriptive treatment from a development angle', and

hence it does not dwell on their physical, cultural or ethnographic

aspects.

Although the study has been titled to project the status and

problems of women in the Paliya tribe of Lower Palani hills, it was

found in the course of the study that the social and economic life

of men and women were inextricably interwoven, perhaps with

very few exceptions. Almost in every sphere of their life, work

and development - at home, in the settlement, at the work site and

in nearby places - the Paliya women were intrinsically linked with

their men, barring perhaps certain basic biological differences.

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Under these circumstances, the study has been so designed to

treat the theme of status and problems of the Paliya women, as

part of the profile of the Paliya tribe itself, and has not attempted

to isolate this aspect into two distinct compartments.

The study has not used any index or standard scale to

measure the status of women or assess the socio-economic

condition of the tribal households. However, a sincere attempt has

been made to cover a broad canvas of the life and problems of the

Paliya tr ibe, living in this region.

3.18. Constraints in Data Collection

During the study, certain operational and field difficulties

and constraints largely in the process of field visits and data

col lect ion, had to be faced. They are presented briefly in the

fol lowing paragraphs.

The Paliyas were scared of strangers, and at the very sight

of outsiders, they either raced into the forests or ran into their

sett lements. Gardner characterizes this as 'avoidance of

unnecessary contact with non-Paliyas to preserve their

independence'. Only after meeting the chieftain, convincing him

and upon his advise, the residents retreated from their homes and

hide outs. Such an initial inhibition on the part of potential

respondents posed hardship in building up rapport with them.

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Preparation of the respondents and their partners through a

prolonged conversation before proceeding with the actual

interview, served as a lengthy prelude prior to the much longer

survey envisaged.

The Paliya tribe lives in a variety of settings and varied

forms - down in the valleys, on hill tops, near highways, far away

from the humanity in isolated farms, in the premises of their

employers, and in small or large settlements. Getting access to

some of the tribal settlements was extremely strenuous due to its

remote location, rough terrain, distanced homes and the danger of

wild animals. Tribals living in smaller sett lements, scattered

locations, untraceable spots and isolated farms were therefore

dropped from the survey. Findings therefore, pertain to

sett lements, barring the case studies which of course, are typical

of isolate famil ies.

Being primitive, less interactive and less communicative,

having ignorance, inhibition and inferior feeling, the tribals were

very reluctant to respond to the questioning since they were not

art iculat ive to unfamiliar persons. Gardner corroborates this when

he states that the Paliyans are very uncommunicative verbally.

Moreover, lengthy social surveys such as the present one,

attempting to dig into a multitude of information involving age,

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t ime, quantity, value, number etc. and pull out precise answers

from their mouth were found to be a restraint on the one hand and

lacked the resource (i.e. information or memory)on the other.

Thurston says that they are wholly illiterate .and can hardly count

up to ten.

Information regarding certain delicate aspects such as

prevalence of sexually transmitted diseases, sexual abuse of

women by employers, besides other issues like work exploitation,

wage exploitation met with resistance and resentment, despite a

milder reference to these issues, perhaps because of the

presence of their spouses with them or probably due to their

inherent nature to repudiate such charges whether against them

or their employers in order to protect their image. Gardner

recollects his experience by saying that "it is usually impossible to

elicit from Paliyan, valid statements about behavioural modes or

norms".

Even for conducting the case study, on the families which

were housed within the precincts of plantations, the employers

denied the existence of any Paliya family lest their difficult

condit ions be exposed and the employers be penalized for the

practice of bonded labour. The investigator had to use the tactic

of carrying a headload of aluminium vessels for gaining entry into

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one plantation and ready-made clothes into another cluster, since

such traders are normally allowed into the plantations for the

benefit of the Paliya workers. However, the respondents were

revealed of the original identity of the investigator before

commencing the study.

3.19. Field Experiences

Remote settlements had to be visited walking through their

forests where bison, leopard and other such wild animals are

many. On two such occasions, the escape was prudential.

Absence of village leader at the time of the visit to the

sett lement, who was on a social mission to his fellow tribesmen,

stalled the interview. On such instances, the investigator had to

either confine to the leader's house until the arrival of the leader

or return after a long wait in futility.

Late evening interviews in the initial round of field visit in

remote sett lements had to be wound up for want of l ighting, which

the investigator did not anticipate, since similar research

exercises elsewhere were managed with the help of light available

at the respondents' household. Non-availability of light, and in its

place, the burning of billets in the oven was the prime botheration.

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The local leaders refused permission to the investigator

based on their bitter experience with some persons posing as

officials who visited, them previously. They had misused people's

response as their concurrence for allotting a portion of the

community land to a local landlord for storing wood. Hence, they

insisted on the investigator's identity and genuineness, for any

conversation with the people. Re-visit had to be made to this

sett lement, along with the head of the NGO who was working in

this area.

In one of the distant settlements, the staff of an NGO

advised the investigator to obtain permission from his head office.

This sett lement was reached at dusk after walking 23 kms. from

another study settlement and the NGO's head office was about

100 kms. away at Kodaikanal. After much persuasion and plea,

the investigator was allowed to conduct research work.

-ooOoo-