So-called scheduled castes and tribes are more likely than other Indians to suffer the ills of poor diet.

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And despite six decades of affirmative action Scheduled Castes and Tribes, who languish at the bottom of the ladder, accounted for only 3.5% of the directors.

BBC: Why Indian boardrooms have no diversity

Secondary-school attendance among the Scheduled Castes generally remains shockingly low.

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Based on the surnames - which usually give away caste affiliation - of the members of these company boards, the intrepid researchers classified them into Forward Castes, Other Backward Classes (OBCs), Scheduled Castes and Tribes and foreign directors.

BBC: Why Indian boardrooms have no diversity

However, ownership of business among OBC's - an acronym for Other Backward Castes or the "middle castes" who "neither suffering the extreme social and economic discrimination of the Scheduled Castes, nor enjoying the social privileges of the upper castes" - has grown.

BBC: Caste and entrepreneurship in India

Delving into the relationship between caste and entrepreneurship, the researchers have found that scheduled castes and tribes, the most disadvantaged groups in Hinduism's hierarchy, owned very little businesses despite a decade of sprightly economic growth and a long history of affirmative action.

BBC: Caste and entrepreneurship in India