MPSC 2025 Prelims Paper-I · Question 19 of 100

Correct — option (2), Lakshadweep. As per the 2011 census, roughly 94.8% of Lakshadweep's population is recorded as Scheduled Tribe — almost the entire population of the archipelago — making it the Union Territory with the highest ST share in the country. This is a striking figure because Lakshadweep is not typically pictured as a 'tribal' territory the way a hill or forest region is, but its indigenous island population is officially notified as Scheduled Tribe, which is exactly the kind of counter-intuitive fact this question is testing.

• (1)Chandigarh — Chandigarh recorded 0% Scheduled Tribe population in the 2011 census — it has no notified Scheduled Tribes at all, which places it at the opposite end of the scale from the correct answer rather than anywhere near it.
• (3)Dadra-Nagar Haveli — Dadra and Nagar Haveli genuinely has a large tribal population by percentage — about 52% of its population was recorded as Scheduled Tribe in the 2011 census, which makes it a real contender and a deliberately close distractor. But that figure is still well short of Lakshadweep's roughly 94.8%, so it is not the highest among Union Territories.
• (4)Delhi — Like Chandigarh, the National Capital Territory of Delhi recorded 0% Scheduled Tribe population in the 2011 census — there are no notified Scheduled Tribes in Delhi, making it another option at the low end rather than the high end of the scale.

Scheduled Tribe status in India is notified state-by-state and union-territory-by-union-territory, so the same community can be an ST in one territory and not recognised elsewhere, and the resulting percentages vary enormously — from 0% in urbanised Union Territories like Chandigarh and Delhi to nearly the entire population in Lakshadweep.

MPSC current-affairs and census questions like this test whether a candidate has actually looked at the percentage table rather than assuming that 'tribal' automatically means a forested or hilly mainland region — Lakshadweep's near-total ST share is the classic surprise fact in this category.

• Lakshadweep recorded the highest ST population percentage among Union Territories in the 2011 census, at roughly 94.8%.
• Dadra and Nagar Haveli recorded roughly 52% ST population in 2011 — high, but well below Lakshadweep's share.
• Chandigarh and Delhi both recorded 0% Scheduled Tribe population in the 2011 census, having no notified Scheduled Tribes.
• Mizoram, a full state rather than a Union Territory, has a comparably high ST percentage (around 94.4%) but is not counted among the Union Territories in this comparison.

• Assuming the highest tribal percentage must belong to a forested or hilly mainland territory rather than an island Union Territory
• Confusing a Union Territory's ST percentage with a full state's ST percentage (Mizoram is a state, not a UT)

MPSC likes to test the 2011 census's ST-percentage rankings, and this Lakshadweep fact is a recurring 'surprise' item precisely because it defies the intuitive image of a tribal-majority territory. Keeping a short list of the highest and lowest ST-percentage states and Union Territories is the reliable defence.

No directly related past PYQ was found.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  According to the 2011 census, approximately what percentage of Lakshadweep's population was recorded as Scheduled Tribe?

  • (a)Around 52%
  • (b)Around 75%
  • (c)Around 94.8%
  • (d)Around 100%, with no other category recorded

  Answer(c) Around 94.8% — the highest ST population share of any Union Territory in the 2011 census.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Which of the following Union Territories recorded 0% Scheduled Tribe population in the 2011 census?

  • (a)Lakshadweep
  • (b)Dadra and Nagar Haveli
  • (c)Chandigarh
  • (d)Andaman and Nicobar Islands

  Answer(c) Chandigarh — along with Delhi, it recorded no notified Scheduled Tribe population in the 2011 census.