Tribal Health in India: An analysis of Disease burden and Barriers to access Healthcare

Tribal populations in India, comprising approximately 8.6% of the country’s total population, face a disproportionate burden of disease, encompassing communicable and non-communicable diseases, nutritional deficiencies, and mental health disorders. Despite experiencing an increasing burden of various morbidities, the utilisation of modern healthcare services among these people remains low. The health-seeking behaviour of tribal communities is predominantly focused on traditional systems of healing. Due to limited health awareness and deeply ingrained superstitious beliefs, they often seek health care remedies from indigenous practitioners such as ‘Gunin’ or ‘Gunia’, ‘Ojha’ etc. Furthermore, structural inadequacies in the public health system such as the shortages of healthcare professionals, insufficient infrastructure, and lack of medical equipment exacerbate health disparities in tribal regions. This study is based on existing literature, and secondary data to investigate morbidity patterns and health-seeking behaviours among tribal populations. The findings indicate a high prevalence of both communicable and non-communicable diseases and highlight various barriers that hinder access to effective healthcare services.