Quality of life and caste discrimination among the tribal population, Chengalpattu, Tamil Nadu, India: A community-based cross-sectional study

ABSTRACT According to the 2011 census in Tamil Nadu, out of a total population of 721.47 lakhs, 7.95 lakhs were scheduled tribes (STs), which constitutes about 1.1% of ST in Tamil Nadu and 0.8% of ST compared to the total ST population in India. A brief understanding of India’s caste system and its evolution over time was required to determine caste-based discrimination. Hence, they are vulnerable and isolated due to this untouchability in the caste system. This study focuses on the quality of life (QOL) and caste discrimination among the tribal population of Chengalpattu district. Further, it provides suggestions to improve the QOL and to put an end to discrimination. It is a community-based cross-sectional study, conducted among 300 participants among the tribal population in Chengalpattu district by a systematic random sampling technique. The QOL scores were further converted into categorical variables by obtaining the mean score and dividing the group into those who got a score above the mean and those below the mean. They were labeled as good and poor QOL. More than half of them (52.7%) had poor QOL. Almost two-third of the workers had poor QOL in the social relationship (60.7%) and psychological (64%) domains, and nearly half in the physical (52.7%) and environmental (52.7%) domains. Out of 300 participants included in the analyses, 141 (47%) participants reported experiencing discrimination a few times a year/a few times a month. This study found that the tribal population in Chengalpattu district has poor social and psychological QOL compared to QOL in the environmental and physical domains. In spite of many government initiatives, a wide range of issues and problems are being faced by the tribals in India. Hence, we recommend strategies to improve the physical, social, and psychological well-being of this vulnerable population through strict legislation. The other component regarding discrimination concluded that caste but not socio-economic class is closely linked with perceived discrimination among the tribal population in Chengalpattu district and their responses to unfair treatment.