Q.People who flee their homes but remain within national borders are called ___________. (A) fugitives (B) migrants (C) internally displaced people (D) indigenous people

The key distinction here is about movement across borders. When people are forced to leave their homes due to conflict, violence, natural disasters, or human rights violations, their legal status depends on whether they cross an international boundary.

If they flee to another country, they become refugees — a term with a specific legal definition under international law. But if they stay inside their own country, even though they have been displaced from their homes, they are called internally displaced persons, or IDPs.

Now look at the options given:

• (A) Fugitives — This word refers to someone who is running away from the law, usually to avoid arrest or prosecution. It has a criminal connotation and does not describe people fleeing general danger or disaster.
• (B) Migrants — A migrant is someone who moves from one place to another, often for economic reasons or to improve their living conditions. The move may be voluntary, and the term does not necessarily imply forced displacement or staying within national borders. …

The idea of ‘indigenous people’ carries a specific global meaning — groups who were living in a region before colonisation or conquest, and who maintain distinct social, cultural, and economic traditions. In India, however, the term is politically and legally complex. The Indian Constitution does not use the phrase ‘indigenous people’ at all. Instead, it identifies certain communities as Scheduled Tribes (STs) under Article 342. These are the groups that correspond most closely to what the world calls indigenous peoples.

Why the difference? India’s history of migration and settlement is ancient and layered. Unlike settler-colonial nations such as Australia or the United States, where a clear line can be drawn between colonisers and pre-colonial inhabitants, India’s population movements have been continuous for millennia. Deciding who is ‘original’ is nearly impossible. So the Constitution chose a practical, administrative definition: communities that are tribal in character, often living in remote forests or hills, with distinct languages, customs, and a low level of integration into mainstream society.

The official criteria for identifying a community as a Scheduled Tribe are:

• Indications of primitive traits — such as a pre-agricultural level of technology or a hunting-gathering economy.
• Distinctive culture — including language, rituals, and social organisation that differ from the surrounding population.
• Geographical isolation — typically living in hill tracts, forests, or other remote areas.
• Shyness of contact with the larger community.
• Backwardness — in education, health, and economic development.

These criteria were applied during the colonial period and refined after independence. The President of India, in consultation with the Governor of a state, specifies which communities are Scheduled Tribes for that state. A community listed as an ST in one state may not be listed in another, because the degree of isolation and distinctiveness varies regionally. …