SOURCE :- SIASAT NEWS
Hyderabad: The Telangana Socio, Economic, Educational, Employment, Political and Caste (SEEEPC) Survey-2024 has shed new light on the state of inter-caste marriages across 56 castes, revealing a society in transition, but one where the pace and nature of change vary sharply across communities.
The survey’s most striking finding is that certain upper-caste communities are recording the highest rates of inter-caste marriages. Other Caste (OC) Iyengars/Iyers top the list with 12 per cent of households reporting such unions, followed by Backward Classes (BC)-C Scheduled Caste (SC) Christians (9.9 per cent) and OC Rajus (8.7 per cent).
BC-C SC Christians are also known as Dalit Christians.
The report attributes this trend to high urbanisation, education and greater exposure to diverse social environments. OC Brahmins, who also show a notable rate of around 7 per cent, are a case in point, where over 90 per cent of them reside in urban areas where caste barriers in marriage tend to be more flexible. BC-A Gangiredlavaru (around 9.5 per cent) and BC-A Agnikulakshatriyas (around 8 per cent) also feature prominently, alongside OC Kapus (around 7 per cent).
The privilege paradox: Dominant communities lag behind
Despite their socio-economic clout, some of Telangana’s most powerful land-owning groups show surprisingly low rates of inter-caste marriage. OC Velamas report just 5.1 per cent and OC Reddys only 4.4 per cent – both well below the state average.
The report is candid in its assessment. “This suggests that despite socio-economic privilege, these groups retain strong caste-based matrimonial boundaries — reflecting both societal rigidity and limited personal agency, especially for women in marriage decisions,” it said.
The political undertone here is hard to miss. Telangana was governed from 2014 to 2023 by the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), widely perceived as Velama-dominated, and is now led by the Congress, perceived as a Reddy-dominated party. That the communities closest to political power are also the most resistant to inter-caste marriages is, as the report’s own findings suggest, food for thought, as are the inter-caste marriages that did take place between these two communities over the last few decades.
A critical gap: We don’t know who is marrying whom
Observers have raised an important caveat about the report’s findings on upper-caste inter-caste marriages. The data doesn’t tell us who these communities are marrying into.
“Unless we know who these OCs are getting married to, it may not be accurate to say that these castes are breaking their barriers,” notes G Yadaiah, an academician and writer of Adivasi stories working to promote Adivasi languages, culture and traditions.
He points out that globalisation and the migration of young people from Hyderabad to foreign countries have contributed to inter-caste marriages among OC communities, and in some cases, between OCs and better-off BC communities. The more meaningful question, he argues, remains unanswered – how many OCs married Scheduled Caste members or communities from the most backward castes?
Similarly, patterns within SC and BC communities remain underexplored. How many SC Malas married SC Madigas? How many inter-caste marriages occurred across the various BC communities? Without these data points, it is difficult to determine whether the survey reflects genuine barrier-breaking or simply a consolidation of class within relatively privileged groups.
Nomadic, marginalised communities: Inter-caste marriage as a natural shift
Some of the higher inter-caste marriage rates in BC communities may have less to do with social reform and more to do with livelihood transitions, observers suggest.
Gangiredlavaru, listed under BC-A with around 9.5 per cent inter-caste marriages, were traditionally a nomadic community, travelling from village to village with decorated bulls, playing shehnais and drums, and seeking alms during festivals. Most of their younger generation, particularly those born in the 1990s and later, have migrated to urban areas and moved into other occupations. In that context, inter-caste marriages may not represent the crossing of a social barrier so much as a natural outcome of a changed way of life.
A similar dynamic is visible in the Pitchiguntla community, found to be the most backward among all BC groups, yet reporting a 5 per cent inter-caste marriage rate. Pitchiguntlas were historically the genealogy singers of Reddys, performing in the Srisailam, Prakasam and Kurnool areas before spreading across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
Yadaiah notes that the community was known to have had 99 occupations that evolved across generations. As their traditional roles faded, many have drifted toward the margins, once central to the region’s folklore, now struggling to hold on to their BC status. Their story is part of a broader pattern of communities whose identities are in flux as they navigate generational change.
Tribal communities: Geography, tradition as strong barriers
At the other end of the spectrum, Scheduled Tribe (ST) communities show some of the lowest rates of inter-caste marriage, a trend the survey attributes to geographical isolation, limited exposure to urban life and adherence to traditional customs.
ST Kolam reports just 2.6 per cent, ST Gonds 2.8 per cent, and ST Lambadas around 3 per cent of inter-caste marriage. The Lambada case is particularly noteworthy, as despite generations of political empowerment and a significant presence in government departments and the private sector, the community, which continues to live in closely-knit thandas, largely separate from other villages, remains strongly averse to inter-caste marriages.
Education and employment, it appears, have not been sufficient to erode deeply embedded cultural barriers.
Muslim communities: Another layer of complexity
The survey also finds that 5 per cent of Shaik Muslims, Dhobi Muslims and Qureshi Muslims (BC-E category), as well as 5 per cent in the Dudekula community (BC-B), reported inter-caste marriages.
However, a crucial question goes unanswered: did these marriages take place within their religious community across caste lines or did they involve marriages outside the faith altogether? The distinction matters considerably for understanding what these numbers actually mean.
The ‘no caste’ category and the shadow of honour killings
Another thread the survey leaves hanging is the fate of the roughly 13.7 lakh people in Telangana – nearly 4 per cent of the state’s population – who chose “no caste” or “others” as their response. How many among them have married outside their caste?
There is also a darker dimension that statistical data alone cannot capture. This is the rise in honour killings in Telangana. Understanding the full picture of inter-caste marriage in the state requires answers to questions that go beyond survey data, among which castes are honour killings occurring, and who are the accused and the victims? These are questions that demand legal datasets.
A direction, not yet a destination
The SEEEPC Survey is a valuable first step in mapping the landscape of inter-caste marriages in Telangana. It points to a society in motion, but one where the direction of travel is uneven, and where the numbers, without adequate contextual detail, can as easily mislead as illuminate.
Whether the changing trends represent a genuine dismantling of caste barriers, or merely a realignment of class interests within the caste system, remains an open question. The survey’s findings, for all their suggestiveness, underscore how much more needs to be known – and how much further research remains to be done.
SOURCE : SIASAT
