Tribes, Society and Festivals of Jharkhand

Practice questions (18)

Attempt each one before opening the answer. Every explanation names the tempting wrong option as well as the right one, because that is where marks are lost.

1. As per Census 2011, how many people in Jharkhand were Scheduled Tribes, and what share of the state's population did they form?

   1. About 86.45 lakh, about 26.21 per cent
   2. About 70.87 lakh, about 26.3 per cent
   3. About 96.20 lakh, about 29.2 per cent
   4. About 79.40 lakh, about 24.1 per cent
   Show answer

   Answer: A — About 86.45 lakh, about 26.21 per cent

   Census 2011 counted 86,45,042 STs, 26.21% of 3,29,88,134 people. The 70.87 lakh and 26.3 per cent pair is the 2001 count, which candidates most often mix in. The other two pairs match no census count.

2. Consider the following statements about the Scheduled Tribes of Jharkhand under the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950, as amended.
   P. The Census 2011 tribe table records 32 tribes.
   Q. Puran was added as entry 33 by a 2022 Act.
   R. Kawar and Kol were inserted as entries 31 and 32 in 2003.
   S. The 2022 Act removed Bhogta from the list of Scheduled Tribes.
   Which of these statements are correct?

   1. P and S only
   2. P, Q and S only
   3. P, Q and R only
   4. Q, R and S only
   Show answer

   Answer: C — P, Q and R only

   P, Q and R are correct. S is false: the 2022 Act moved Bhogta out of the Scheduled Castes and into the Scheduled Tribes entry 16, so it did not remove Bhogta from the STs. Candidates who read the Scheduled Castes change as an ST change make S look true.

3. In Census 2011, in which district did the Ho tribe form the largest share of its population?

   1. Khunti
   2. Seraikela-Kharsawan
   3. Gumla
   4. West Singhbhum
   Show answer

   Answer: D — West Singhbhum

   Ho make up 83% of the Ho population in West Singhbhum (7.74 lakh of 9.28 lakh). Seraikela-Kharsawan, at 10%, is the tempting second place, while Gumla and Khunti hold only a small Ho population.

4. Each group below is paired with the Census 2011 district in which it has the largest share of its population: Birhor, Korwa, Mal Paharia and Savar. Which set of pairings is fully correct?

   1. Birhor–Chatra; Korwa–Palamu; Mal Paharia–Dumka; Savar–East Singhbhum
   2. Birhor–Chatra; Korwa–Garhwa; Mal Paharia–Dumka; Savar–East Singhbhum
   3. Birhor–Latehar; Korwa–Garhwa; Mal Paharia–Sahibganj; Savar–Seraikela-Kharsawan
   4. Birhor–Hazaribagh; Korwa–Garhwa; Mal Paharia–Pakur; Savar–Dumka
   Show answer

   Answer: B — Birhor–Chatra; Korwa–Garhwa; Mal Paharia–Dumka; Savar–East Singhbhum

   Birhor are 22% in Chatra and 19% in Hazaribagh; Korwa are 71% in Garhwa; Mal Paharia are 29% in Dumka and 28% in Pakur; Savar are 84% in East Singhbhum. Each wrong set moves at least one group to a district where its share is much smaller.

5. Which of the following is NOT among the nine PVTG groups that the Ministry of Tribal Affairs lists for Bihar including Jharkhand in its 2019 Lok Sabha reply?

   1. Birjia
   2. Parhaiya
   3. Kharwar
   4. Savar
   Show answer

   Answer: C — Kharwar

   Kharwar is a Scheduled Tribe of Jharkhand with about 2.49 lakh people, but it is not a PVTG. Birjia, Parhaiya and Savar are all on the nine-group list, so each of them is a wrong answer here.

6. The eight PVTG groups counted separately in the Census 2011 tribe table (Asur, Birhor, Birjia, Korwa, Mal Paharia, Parhaiya, Sauria Paharia and Savar) have a combined population of 2,92,359. The state's Scheduled Tribe population was 86,45,042. What share of the ST population do these eight groups form?

   1. About 1.25 per cent
   2. About 0.89 per cent
   3. About 3.38 per cent
   4. About 33.8 per cent
   Show answer

   Answer: C — About 3.38 per cent

   2,92,359 divided by 86,45,042 is 3.38%. The 0.89% figure divides by the state's total population (3,29,88,134) instead of its ST population, which is the common slip. The 33.8% figure moves the decimal point in the same answer.

7. In which month of the Hindu calendar is Sarhul, the spring festival that worships the sal tree, observed?

   1. Chaitra
   2. Bhadra
   3. Kartik
   4. Poush
   Show answer

   Answer: A — Chaitra

   Sarhul is observed in Chaitra, beginning on the third day of the bright fortnight, and it marks the new year. Bhadra is the month of Karma, Kartik of Sohrai, and Poush of Tusu.

8. Consider these statements about festivals of Jharkhand.
   P. Karma is observed in Bhadra, and a branch of the karam tree is planted in the dancing ground.
   Q. Sohrai is a cattle festival observed in much of Chotanagpur around the Kartik new moon (Diwali).
   R. Tusu is observed in Chaitra by married women.
   S. Mage Parab, observed by the Ho, honours Singbonga.
   Which of these statements are correct?

   1. P and R only
   2. P, Q and R only
   3. Q, R and S only
   4. P, Q and S only
   Show answer

   Answer: D — P, Q and S only

   P, Q and S are correct. R is false: Tusu is a Poush festival of unmarried girls, not a Chaitra festival of married women. Those who recall Tusu as a harvest festival and forget the month and the group are caught by R.

9. In which month and fortnight is Jitiya, the fast that mothers keep for their children's well-being, observed?

   1. Chaitra, bright fortnight, third day
   2. Bhadra, eleventh day of the bright fortnight
   3. Kartik, new-moon day
   4. Ashwin, dark fortnight, seventh to ninth days
   Show answer

   Answer: D — Ashwin, dark fortnight, seventh to ninth days

   Jitiya falls in Ashwin, on the seventh to ninth lunar days of the dark fortnight. The eleventh day of the bright fortnight in Bhadra is Karma's date, which is the tempting confusion.

10. In Census 2011 the religion shares of Jharkhand were: Hindu 67.83%, Muslim 14.53%, Christian 4.30%, and other religions and persuasions 12.84%. Approximately how many times the Christian share is the other religions and persuasions share?

    1. About 1.5 times
    2. About 6 times
    3. About 3 times
    4. About 10 times
    Show answer

    Answer: C — About 3 times

    12.84 divided by 4.30 is about 2.99, so the other religions group is about three times the Christian share. The six-times option doubles the ratio, and the 1.5 and ten-times options are nowhere near 2.99.

11. Census 2011 counted eight PVTG groups separately. Why do some older state sources give a total of eight rather than nine PVTG groups for Jharkhand?

    1. Savar is counted under Birhor in the Census
    2. Hill Kharia is counted within the Kharia row in the Census
    3. Birjia is counted under Asur in the Census
    4. Korwa is counted under Munda in the Census
    Show answer

    Answer: B — Hill Kharia is counted within the Kharia row in the Census

    The Census tribe table has separate rows for Savar, Birhor, Birjia, Asur and Korwa, so none of the other three explanations holds. Hill Kharia has no row of its own and is merged into the Kharia row, which lowers the count to eight.

12. Which term denotes the village priest of the Sarna faith, who officiates at the sal-grove worship?

    1. Manjhi
    2. Pahan
    3. Parha
    4. Jog manjhi
    Show answer

    Answer: B — Pahan

    The Pahan is the village priest who makes the sacrifices at the sarna sthal. The manjhi is the Santhal village head, the Parha is an Oraon council of villages, and the jog manjhi handles marriage talks.

13. For which language was the Ol Chiki script devised by Pandit Raghunath Murmu?

    1. Mundari
    2. Ho
    3. Kurukh
    4. Santali
    Show answer

    Answer: D — Santali

    Ol Chiki is the script of Santali. Mundari has its own Bani Hisir, Ho has Warang Chiti, and Kurukh has Tolong Siki, so the other three language names are the tempting slips.

14. Consider these statements.
    P. Lako Bodra devised the Warang Chiti script for the Ho language.
    Q. Raghunath Murmu devised the Ol Chiki script for the Mundari language.
    R. Ram Dayal Munda wrote Mundari Grammar, published in 1979.
    S. Sadhu Ramchand Murmu devised the Ol Chiki script.
    Which statements are correct?

    1. P and R only
    2. P, Q and R only
    3. Q and S only
    4. P and S only
    Show answer

    Answer: A — P and R only

    P and R are correct. Q is false because Ol Chiki is for Santali, not Mundari. S is false because Sadhu Ramchand Murmu devised Muj-Dandhe, while Ol Chiki belongs to Raghunath Murmu.

15. Rose Kerketta, a writer from Simdega who died in April 2025, is best known for writing in which language?

    1. Kurukh
    2. Kharia
    3. Santali
    4. Khortha
    Show answer

    Answer: B — Kharia

    Rose Kerketta wrote in Kharia: her Kharia folk-tale study, the Kharia story collection Sinkoe Sulolo, and a Kharia version of a Premchand story. Kurukh is the language of the Oraon, not of Rose Kerketta's Kharia community.

16. The Census 2011 populations and their largest districts are: Santhal 27,54,723 in total, 4,81,809 in Dumka; Oraon 17,16,618 in total, 5,30,287 in Ranchi; Munda 12,29,221 in total, 3,25,958 in Khunti; Ho 9,28,289 in total, 7,73,930 in West Singhbhum. Which tribe has the largest share of its own population in its single largest district?

    1. Munda
    2. Oraon
    3. Ho
    4. Santhal
    Show answer

    Answer: C — Ho

    The district shares are Santhal 17%, Oraon 31%, Munda 27% and Ho 83%. Santhal is the largest tribe in total, which is the tempting answer, but its largest district holds the smallest share of the four.

17. Arrange these events in the order in which they occurred:
    P. the Santal Hul led by Sidhu and Kanhu;
    Q. the start of the Tana Bhagat movement led by Jatra Bhagat;
    R. the Jharkhand Assembly's resolution seeking a Sarna code;
    S. the Act that added Puran to the Scheduled Tribes list.
    Which sequence is correct?

    1. P, Q, R, S
    2. Q, P, R, S
    3. P, Q, S, R
    4. P, R, Q, S
    Show answer

    Answer: A — P, Q, R, S

    The Hul was in 1855, the Tana Bhagat movement began in 1914, the Assembly resolution came on 11 November 2020, and the Puran Act received assent on 8 April 2022. The Puran Act is the most recent of the four events.

18. Which site near Dumka has 72 surviving terracotta temples out of an original 108?

    1. Navratangarh (Gumla)
    2. Maluti (Dumka)
    3. Itkhori (Chatra)
    4. Rajrappa (Ramgarh)
    Show answer

    Answer: B — Maluti (Dumka)

    Maluti near Dumka has 72 surviving terracotta temples of an original 108, built in the Bengal style. Navratangarh is a Nagvanshi fort in Gumla, Itkhori a Buddhist site in Chatra and Rajrappa a Chhinnamasta temple in Ramgarh.