Tribal Culture in the Matrix of an Inclusive Society: A Case of Marginality of Tribes in Terai and Dooars Region of West Bengal in India

Abstract Tribes in India are not a homogenous group and are at different levels of integration with the mainstream in the society. Originally living on marginal economy and practicing a religious life based on beliefs in spirit and supernatural powers, tribal life is now gradually witnessing conversion under the influence of a number of factors and forces like Hinduisation, Christianity, modernization, industrialization and urbanization; resulting into an admixture of tribal culture and economy with those of the mainstream in the society. In order to integrate the tribal culture with that of the rest of society, the Government of India has so far experimented with three approaches based on the politics of segregation, assimilation and integration.