Socio-Economic and Educational Status of Tribal (Gujjar and Bakarwal) of Jammu and Kashmir: An Overview

Gujjar and Bakarwal are the third largest ethnic group in Jammu and Kashmir constitute more than 11.9% of the total population of the state (Census, 2011); scheduled tribe is the only community in the state which maintain its culture and heritage throughout the ages. Various studies and reports indicate that socio-economic and educational status of Gujjar and Bakarwal in Jammu and Kashmir is not at all satisfactory. In this paper an attempt was made to examine the socio-economic and educational life of tribal in general and Gujjar and Bakarwal in particular. This paper is based on secondary sources i.e. population census of India 2001 and 2011, various Journals, Articles, Books and Reports etc. Results have indicated that literacy rate among the Gujjars was 31.65 % and Bakarwals was 22.51% with a total 55.52% of the General population of the state as per 2001 census.