Thinker
André Béteille
André Béteille is central to 82 previous-year questions, spanning 2009 to 2025 across Paper I and Paper II. Everything below is drawn from the official papers — the questions themselves, the concepts they test, and where they sit in the syllabus.
82Questions
2009–25Years tested
I & IIPaper
12Syllabus topics
Concepts asked alongside André Béteille
What the examiner actually wants you to know when this name appears.
dominant caste 15agrarian class structure 9sanskritisation 8abolition of intermediaries 5commercialisation of agriculture 5creamy layer 5green revolution 5politicisation of caste 5new middle class 4social exclusion 4agrarian differentiation 3capitalist farming 3caste, class and power 3class-caste nexus 3consolidation of holdings 3consumption and lifestyle 3harmonic and disharmonic systems 3land ceiling and redistribution 3
Where André Béteille appears in the syllabus
Every question on André Béteille
Each links to a full breakdown — how to approach it, a model answer, and the examiner’s perspective.
2025
- 'Agrarian class structure has been undergoing changes due to modern forces.' Critically examine.
- 'The transfer of land from cultivating to the non-cultivating owners is bringing about transformation in Indian society.' Justify your answer by giving suitable illustrations.
- Describe the main features of Indian new middle class. How is it different from the old middle class?
- In what respects have the constitutional provisions changed the socio-economic and political conditions of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in India? Critically examine.
- Who is said to be the pioneer of village studies in India? Illustratively describe contributions of some Indian sociologists on village studies. How their approaches are distinct from each other?
2024
- Critically examine the relevance of development planning in India.
- Do you think that the constitutional provisions for women have led to their uplift? Give reasons for your answer.
- Identify different forms of inequalities associated with agrarian social structure in India.
- What are the definitional problems involved in identifying tribes in India? Discuss the main obstacles to tribal development in India.
- What do you understand by decentralisation of power? What is its role in strengthening the roots of democracy in India? Elaborate.
- What, according to André Beteille, are the bases of agrarian class structure in India? Analyse.
2023
- Discuss the main features of Land Reforms in post-independence India.
- Do you agree with the view of Andre Beteille that India's villages are representative of Indian society's basic civilizational values ? Present a sociological overview.
- Elaborate the salient features and the role of middle class in India's democracy and development.
2022
- Discuss the challenges during village studies in India.
- Do you agree that the agrarian class structure in India is changing ? Justify your answer with illustrations.
- Elaborate on the changing nature of caste system with suitable illustrations.
- Examine different understandings of secularisation in India.
- Explain how land reforms brought about desired agrarian transformation.
- In the context of the changing Indian society, how do you view Andre Beteille's conceptions of harmonic and disharmonic social structures ?
2021
2020
- “Indian caste system is unique and has been unhealthy for the growth of sociology of India.” How far do you agree with this view?
- “Indian rural society is a faction-ridden society.” Discuss.
- Discuss in detail the main issues of development planning in mixed economy like India.
- Discuss Whitehead's contention that caste has potential to displace class and colonial contradiction.
- Explain the definitional problems concerning the tribal communities in India.
- How does Andre Beteille justify 'middle class in India'?
2019
- Discuss the implications of 'Swachha Bharat Abhiyan'. Do you think that civil society has a role to play here? Substantiate your answer with examples.
- Examine the changing initiatives of the land tenure system in India.
- Is industrial development in India a bane or a boon to agrarian class structure? Substantiate your answer with suitable examples.
- What is affirmative action? Substantiate theoretical positions on affirmative actions with examples.
2018
- Give a critical analysis of Andre Beteille's study of Tanjore village.
- Has 'Green Revolution' led to the formation of new power elite in rural India? Elaborate your answer.
- Has caste system hindered democracy and adult franchise in India? Discuss.
- Is social mobility possible in closed systems of stratification ? Illustrate from research work.
- What is the difference between natural and social inequality ? Give examples from caste and class dimensions.
- Write a note on the changing roles of middle-class women in India.
2017
- Give an account of the problems relating to the 'creamy layer'.
- What are the changes in the cultural and structural aspects of the caste system since independence?
- What, according to you, are the two fundamental axes of social discrimination in Indian society? Are they changing?
- Why have we started using another category of tribes called the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs)? Why are they so called?
- Write a critique of the structural and functional perspective used by M.N. Srinivas in the understanding of Indian society.
2016
- “Vertical mobility brings structural change even in a closed social system.” Comment.
- Analyse the major components of Land Reform Acts. Show their effectiveness in curbing rural inequality.
- Comment on the factors behind the changing status of women in urban India.
- Comment on the increasing significance of caste in politics.
- Discuss Andre Beteille's account of the relationship between caste, class and power as a change from symmetrical to asymmetrical one.
- Discuss the emerging forms of ‘inequalities’ and ‘acute poverty’ as major challenges of social transformation in India.
- How is the tribal question related with the issues of integration and autonomy in modern India?
- Privatization of education and increasing inequalities
- Significance of Village Studies in Indian Sociology
- What accounts for the growth and consolidation of the middle classes in modern India?
- Write a note on the uneven impact of ‘Green Revolution’ on rural society.
2014
- ‘Many caste conflicts are between castes which are close to each other on the hierarchical scale.’ Give a sociological explanation for this phenomenon.
- Describe the impact of land reforms on the peasants of Indian society.
- Discuss the status of women among the emerging urban middle class.
- How do caste and class come together in creating the category of extreme poor?
2013
- André Béteille's definition of class.
- Classes in agrarian society in India.
- Critically evaluate Louis Dumont's Homo Hierarchicus.
- Discuss the salient features of Indian middle class.
- Examine the influence of industrialisation on caste.
- Explain the inter-linkages between poverty, deprivation and inequality.
- Green Revolution.
- Other Backward Classes.
- What are the features of M.N. Srinivas' concept of dominant caste? How effective is it in understanding today's reality?
- Write a note on ethnicity and integration in the context of tribes.
2012
2011
- 'Casteism is the modern edition of the caste system.' Do you agree with this statement ? Discuss with arguments.
- “Protective discrimination not only protects but also discriminates.” Comment.
- Impact of Green Revolution on rural class structure.
- Perspectives on the study of caste by M.N. Srinivas and Andre Beteille.
2010
2009
- Changes that the agrarian social structure in India is undergoing.
- Do you think that poverty, deprivation and inequalities are the major challenges in the process of social transformation? What are your suggestions to address and resolve these problems?
- Emergence of middle class in India
- New rural elite and leadership
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