Table 2 Absent presence of Dalits

Quote 1: “Definitely, there are sections that are vulnerable and need to be prioritised. From the perspective of health, we normally consider women within a vulnerable age group who are in their reproductive age groups, children below 5 years. We also talk about old age, though old age is technically above 60 years, now I feel the minimum age could be increased a little more. Then we can consider people with chronic diseases who cannot lead a productive life, people with mental health issues, then people who are our guests which are the migrants and finally tribal population. All these are prioritised by us. That means that all other healthy males and females who are able to work and within the reproductive age group are important to us” (Directorate of Health Service 1)

Quote 2: “When it comes to marginalised sections in Kerala, there are groups like tribal where there have been interventions beyond what health department has been doing like social justice department. Then there are also other organisations including NGOs who work amongst tribal communities. If you ask me whether their needs are being addressed, I’d say yes, and they are also the groups whom we generally categorise as marginalised. So, I don’t think there are groups whose health needs are unaddressed in the state or it would be minimal. Because particularly in Kerala where there is very high level of active community involvement there is very little chance of having marginalised groups. Then obviously there is the coastal belt which is a very long geography for us and where there is a big population too. They too are in a sense a marginalised population” (Directorate of Health Service 4)