Chat with us
General Studies 2026 GS Paper I 15 marks 250 words Compulsory Illustrate

GS Paper I — Q18

Is caste disappearing in urban India? Illustrate your answer with examples. (Answer in 250 words) 15

हिंदी में प्रश्न पढ़ें

क्या शहरी भारत में जाति लुप्त हो रही है? अपने उत्तर को उदाहरणों के साथ स्पष्ट कीजिए। (उत्तर 250 शब्दों में दीजिए)

Q18 of the 2026 UPSC Mains General Studies GS Paper I, as printed
The question as printed in the 2026 General Studies paper
Evaluate your answer to this question → See all 2026 General Studies questions

Model answer

Written by UPSC Answer Check against this question's marking rubric, to the 250-word length. UPSC does not publish answers for Mains — this is one way to score well, not an official key.

Urbanisation has significantly eroded traditional ritual hierarchies and public practices of purity and pollution. The anonymity of metropolitan life facilitates shared public transit, common dining spaces, and merit-driven corporate workplaces where inter-caste interaction is routine. Furthermore, increasing inter-caste marriages among the urban educated middle class reflect a genuine weakening of hereditary social taboos.

Persistence in Private and Socio-Economic Spheres Despite these shifts, caste has adapted rather than disappeared. Endogamy remains resilient, as evidenced by urban matrimonial advertisements and community-specific matchmaking portals explicitly seeking caste matches. Urban caste associations (sabhas) also actively operate in cities, organizing community halls and networking networks.

Occupational and Spatial Segregation In the informal urban economy, hereditary occupational traps endure. Sanitation work, sewer maintenance, and hazardous manual scavenging in major cities remain disproportionately relegated to specific Dalit sub-castes, such as the Valmiki community.

Concurrently, caste manifests through disguised residential segregation. Empirical studies show widespread discrimination in the private rental housing market of Tier-1 cities, where Dalit and Muslim applicants are systematically denied accommodation by resident welfare associations and landlords through vegetarian-only covenants or overt identity screening.

Urban Political Mobilization Politically, caste operates as a vital instrument of mobilization. Even in municipal and state elections in urban constituencies, political parties actively court caste-based voting blocs and align ticket distribution with localized demographic equations.

Therefore, caste is not disappearing in urban India; it is transforming. While its overt ritual dimensions have receded, it continues to persist in modern, disguised forms through socio-economic networking, housing segregation, political identity, and enduring endogamy.

What "Illustrate" is asking you to do

Carry the point with concrete cases rather than assert it, so the examples do the work of proving it. In the technical papers illustrate is often literal — a labelled diagram, a map, a graph — and an answer without the figure has not complied with the instruction.

Structure that answers it

The point stated → example 1 with the feature it demonstrates → example 2 → example 3 or the required diagram → what the set of examples establishes

Where marks are lost

Examples named and then abandoned. A case listed without the sentence showing what it demonstrates is marked as recall of information, not as illustration.

All UPSC directive words, compared →

How this answer will be evaluated

Approach

Framework: Society: continuity, data, intersectionality, then solution. discuss: intro > 3-4 dimensions > example > balanced close Full marks: Nuanced analysis of caste transformation with robust urban examples and data.

Key points expected

  • Explicitly address the 'disappearing' vs 'transforming' debate
  • Cite specific urban examples (housing, marriage, jobs)
  • Explain the mechanism of caste persistence (e.g., endogamy)
  • Conclude with a balanced judgment on the phenomenon

Evaluation rubric

Each sub-part is marked on its own, against the marks and word limit printed on the paper.

  1. The answer Analytical assessment of caste persistence in urban India with specific examples. 15 marks · 250 words

    discuss— intro → 3-4 dimensions → example → balanced close

    Must cover

    • Explicitly address the 'disappearing' vs 'transforming' debate
    • Cite specific urban examples (housing, marriage, jobs)
    • Explain the mechanism of caste persistence (e.g., endogamy)
    • Conclude with a balanced judgment on the phenomenon

    Loses marks

    • Narrating history of caste without urban focus
    • Using emotive language instead of sociological analysis
    • Ignoring the 'urban' qualifier and discussing rural India

    Earns more

    • Mention of 'Caste in the City' or similar sociological concept
    • Reference to specific urban data (e.g., Census, NSSO)
    • Discussion of 'Caste-ism' vs 'Casteism' in urban context
    • Mention of political mobilization in urban areas

    Extra mark

    • Citing a specific study (e.g., M.N. Srinivas, M.K. Gandhi)
    • Reference to specific urban housing segregation data

Practice this exact question

Write your answer and it is marked point by point against the model answer above — what you covered, what you missed, what you got wrong.

Evaluate my answer →

More from General Studies 2026 GS Paper I