General Studies I · Subtopic
Forms of diversity
Official syllabus
Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India.
UPSC CSE 2026 notification
What this covers
Diversity includes language, religion, caste, tribe, ethnicity, region, ecology, occupation, class and gender. These categories overlap: a person occupies several social locations at once, and the meaning of an identity changes with context. Diversity can enrich public life and provide institutional resilience, but unequal power can turn difference into exclusion. Preparation should distinguish descriptive plurality from inequality, examine how identities are produced and mobilized, and compare constitutional recognition, social practice and everyday interaction.
Key ideas
- Linguistic and religious plurality
- Caste and tribal diversity
- Regional and ecological variation
- Class gender and occupation
- Intersectionality
- Minority and indigenous identities
- Recognition and redistribution
- Diversity within social groups