DEMOGRAPHIC STUDY ON THE CHANGING TRENDS AMONG THE CHENCHUS A PRIMITIVE TRIBAL GROUP OF AP

Abstract

Andhra Pradesh is the traditional home of the 33 tribal groups, of the 33 Scheduled Tribes of Andhra Pradesh, 8 groups have been recognized as Primitive Tribal Groups. The Chenchu tribe was first recognized as PTG in the year 1975. The Chenchu are found living in the Nallamalai forest areas of Mahboobnagar, Prakasam and Kurnool districts and areas adjoining Guntur, Nalgonda and Ranga Reddy districts. The Chenchu who belong to the Proto-australoid stock. Basically, the Chenchus are food gatherers and hunters. Earlier the Chenchus were unaware of the Food Security, now-a-days they have taken storage of food items for future use. Food habits of the Chenchus very depending upon the habitat. The primary objective of the study is to determine the status of the women and child regarding reproductive parameters, to know the demographic events. The scheduled method employed for primary data collection. A total number of 1230 Chenchu households were covered in Mahaboobnagar, Kurnool and Prakasam districts. The study revealed that the nearly 50% of the population in sample study are dependents. The women in the reproductive age of 15-44 constitute 48% of the total female population. The sex ratio of the sample is 940 females per 1000 males. The families are generally nuclear (70%). The average size of the household is 4.38. All the households subsist on collection of minor forest produce and hunting as the prime occupation. Infant mortality rate is 215/1000 in the year of study. It is 81/1000 for India and 73/1000 for Andhra Pradesh. IMR for Chenchu is 215 per 1000 live births during the year (1992) and it is 142.65 for all age cohorts. From the survey, it is observed that a greater number of deaths are due to Measles (30.86%), followed by Diarrhea (24.69%). The report also focuses on parameters of reproductive life like age at marriage, menarche, incidence of divorce, separation and re-marriage, menopause. The usual age at marriage for Chenchu is between 15-17 years. The study also mentioned the suggestions and recommendation for the reproductive health.