The Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) is a concept and a sub-classification within India's Scheduled Tribes (STs) that identifies the most disadvantaged tribal communities requiring focused protection and development. The concept originated from the Dhebar Commission (1960-61), which noted the unequal development rate among STs. Based on the Commission's recommendations, the Government of India created the sub-category "Primitive Tribal Group" (PTG) during the Fourth Five-Year Plan. The problem it solved was the need to identify and prioritize tribal groups facing the greatest development disparities.
The government officially listed 52 PTGs during the Fifth Five-Year Plan (1974-79). The nomenclature was officially changed from PTG to PVTG in 2006 to adopt a more sensitive terminology. Currently, there are 75 officially notified PVTGs spread across 18 States and one Union Territory (Andaman and Nicobar Islands).
A community is identified as a PVTG based on four key criteria: a pre-agricultural level of technology (like hunting-gathering), a low level of literacy, economic backwardness, and a declining or stagnant population. The mechanism for their development is the Development of Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTG) scheme, administered by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, which provides 100% central funding for socio-economic development through a habitat-level approach.
The PVTG concept connects directly to the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (FRA). Specifically, Section 3(1)(e) of the FRA stipulates the recognition of habitat rights for PVTGs, which grants them rights over their traditional territory, socio-cultural practices, and traditional knowledge. The term "habitat" is defined under Section 2(h) of the FRA as the areas traditionally inhabited by primitive tribal groups and pre-agricultural communities. A recent change includes the 2018 ruling by the High Court of Chhattisgarh, which found that restricting contraceptive use for PVTGs was a violation of their right to privacy, granting them the right to contraceptives.