Consider the following statements about Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) in India: I. PVTGs reside in 18 States and one Union Territory. II. A stagnant or declining population is one of the criteria for determining PVTG status. III. There are 95 PVTGs officially notified in the country so far. IV. Irular and Konda Reddi tribes are included in the list of PVTGs Which of the statement given above are correct?

The correct answer is C (1, 2 and 4). Statement III is the one that fails.

• Statement I is correct. PVTGs are notified in 18 States and one Union Territory (Andaman and Nicobar Islands).
• Statement II is correct. The Dhebar Commission criteria, which the government still uses, are pre-agriculture level of technology, a stagnant or declining population, extremely low literacy, and a subsistence economy.
• Statement III is wrong. The official number is 75, not 95. The figure was revised to 75 and is the number to remember. Earlier listings called them Primitive Tribal Groups (PTGs), and the 2006 nomenclature change renamed them PVTGs.
• Statement IV is correct. Irular (Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh) and Konda Reddi (Andhra Pradesh and Odisha) are both on the PVTG list.

The core concept is the PVTG identification framework and the protective policy that follows from it. For Mains, it connects to the debate on tribal development, forest rights under the FRA 2006, and whether the PVTG Development Plans are actually reaching these groups.

Trap: Aspirants often recognise the number 95 from other lists or misremember the total, and eliminate Option C on that basis. Check each statement on its own facts rather than relying on a memorised headline number.