Andhra Pradesh Population, Tribes and Social Groups: Census 2011, ST List, PVTGs

Population, tribes and social groups form one of the most predictable clusters in an Andhra Pradesh paper, and also one of the easiest to get wrong. The reason is simple: Andhra Pradesh was split in 2014, but the last Census was taken in 2011, so the same year carries two different sets of numbers. One set describes the undivided State of about 8.46 crore people. The other describes the 13 districts that make up the State after 2 June 2014. A candidate who memorises the first set and meets a question about the second set loses marks without ever realising why.

This guide works with the post-2014 State only. It gives the Census 2011 headline figures, the district extremes, the Scheduled Tribe list, the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups, the Scheduled Areas and tribal development machinery, and the household indicators from the fifth National Family Health Survey. Every figure carries its source and year. Census 2011 is still the latest published census. Results of the next Census are not published as on October 2026, so nothing here comes from it.

Read it alongside the district-wise fact sheet for the 28 districts, the Reorganisation Act explainer and the post on local status, reservation and the roster. Those three cover the geography, the legal frame and the reservation rules that surround the numbers below.

1. Which Andhra Pradesh are we measuring?

Before any number, fix the territory. The Census of India counted people in March 2011, when Andhra Pradesh had 23 districts, including Hyderabad and the ten districts that later became Telangana. The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014 created Telangana from ten of those districts with effect from the appointed day, 2 June 2014. What remained was a State of 13 districts. The Census office and the State Government then re-tabulated the 2011 data for those 13 districts, and that re-tabulated set is what a question means by "Andhra Pradesh, Census 2011" in an AP paper.

There is a second wrinkle. The Act moved a group of Khammam villages affected by the Polavaram project into Andhra Pradesh, which meant that East Godavari and West Godavari grew in area and population. Our two official sources therefore give two slightly different totals for the same State:

Basis	Population	Where it appears
13 districts including the transferred Polavaram-area mandals	4,95,77,103	Andhra Pradesh at a Glance, Educational Statistics 2019-20, Commissionerate of School Education, citing Census 2011
13 districts as first tabulated, before the transfer	4,93,86,799	Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Annual Report 2024-25, Annexure 4B, citing the Registrar General of India

The gap between the two is exactly 1,90,304 persons. That number also equals the difference between the East Godavari and West Godavari totals in the State's own district table and the older totals for those two districts. We read this as the population of the areas transferred in 2014, but the sources do not state it in so many words, so treat that explanation as our inference and not as an official statement.

For the rest of this post, the State and district numbers come from the Commissionerate of School Education table (the 4,95,77,103 basis) because it is the one that carries every district, every social group and every literacy cut in one place. When a number comes from the Tribal Affairs report we say so, and the two should never be mixed inside one calculation. An examiner who gives you a percentage will almost always give you the numerator and the denominator from the same table.

2. Census 2011 headline figures for Andhra Pradesh

All figures in this table are Census 2011 as published in Andhra Pradesh at a Glance and the district tables of Educational Statistics 2019-20 (Commissionerate of School Education, Andhra Pradesh).

Indicator	Value (Census 2011)
Population	4,95,77,103 (49.58 million)
Males	2,48,30,513
Females	2,47,46,590
Sex ratio (females per 1,000 males)	997
Density	304 per sq km
Decadal growth 2001 to 2011	9.21 per cent
Rural growth, urban growth	1.53 per cent, 33.35 per cent
Rural population	3,49,66,693 (70.53 per cent)
Urban population	1,46,10,410 (29.47 per cent)
Literacy, persons	67.35 per cent
Literacy, male and female	74.77 per cent and 59.96 per cent
Literacy, rural and urban	62.37 per cent and 79.17 per cent
Scheduled Castes	84,69,278 (17.08 per cent)
Scheduled Tribes	27,40,133 (5.53 per cent)
Literacy of SC and ST	64.47 per cent and 48.83 per cent
Census frame	13 districts, 670 revenue mandals, 17,366 villages, 195 statutory and census towns, 12,918 gram panchayats

A few relationships are worth locking in because examiners like to test them without printing the numbers.

The sex ratio is near parity. At 997, the State is one of the few large States where women almost match men in the Census count. This is the Census count of the whole population, and it should never be confused with the child sex ratio or with the sex ratio at birth, which are lower and come from other sources.

Growth was slow, and urban growth did the work. The State grew 9.21 per cent in the decade. Rural growth was only 1.53 per cent while urban growth was 33.35 per cent. Part of the urban jump comes from villages being reclassified as census towns between 2001 and 2011, so do not read it as migration alone. The urban share of 29.47 per cent is lower than the share for India as a whole in 2011, which the Health Dossier from the national health systems resource centre gives as about 31 per cent.

The gender gap in literacy is about 15 points. Male literacy at 74.77 per cent against female literacy at 59.96 per cent gives a gap of 14.81 percentage points. The urban rate of 79.17 per cent beats the rural rate of 62.37 per cent by almost 17 points.

Tribal literacy is the lowest of all. At 48.83 per cent, Scheduled Tribe literacy is almost 18.5 points below the State average. The tribal female rate is only 40.89 per cent. That single number explains much of the policy emphasis on residential schools in tribal areas, which we return to in section 7.

Rank and area: a note on stability

The State Socio Economic Survey, as summarised in our budget and survey essentials post, gives the area as roughly 1,62,970 sq km, and the Census table prints 1,62,968 sq km. A question that asks "approximately how large is the State" will be written to tolerate that difference. The same survey is the usual source for the statement that Andhra Pradesh is the 10th most populous State on the 2011 count. Because rank statements move when a State is split, always say "per the 2011 Census, after reorganisation".

3. District extremes: use the 2011 structure

Here is the trap that costs the most marks. The State now has 28 districts as on October 2026 (see the district fact sheet). The Census has no data for them, because they did not exist in 2011. Every district-level Census number in this post therefore refers to the 13 districts that existed in 2011, and a modern question that asks "which district has the highest literacy" is really asking about those 13 unless it says it is using a later survey. The new districts and mandals were carved out of the old ones, so a district like Alluri Sitharama Raju or Parvathipuram Manyam has no Census 2011 line of its own.

In the table below, each row names the winner and the runner-up, using the 13-district structure of 2011, from the district tables of Educational Statistics 2019-20 citing Census 2011.

Measure	Highest	Lowest
Population	East Godavari, 52,85,824	Vizianagaram, 23,44,474
Density (per sq km)	Krishna, 518	YSR Kadapa, 188 (Prakasam 193)
Sex ratio	Vizianagaram, 1,019 (Srikakulam 1,015)	Anantapur, 977
Literacy, persons	West Godavari, 74.32 per cent	Vizianagaram, 58.89 per cent
Female literacy	West Godavari, 71.01 per cent	Kurnool, 49.78 per cent
Decadal growth	Kurnool, 14.85 per cent	West Godavari, 3.58 per cent
Urban share	Visakhapatnam, 47.45 per cent	Srikakulam, 16.16 per cent
SC share	Prakasam, 23.19 per cent	Visakhapatnam, 7.68 per cent
ST share	Visakhapatnam, 14.42 per cent	Kurnool, 2.04 per cent

How to remember the extremes

Do not memorise thirty-six cells. Use a few stories that explain the pattern, then check each cell against the story.

The Godavari-Krishna delta is the populous, literate core. East Godavari is the largest district by population, West Godavari tops literacy, and Krishna has the highest density. These three sit on irrigated delta land with a long history of settled agriculture and education.

The north coast and the interior are the opposite corner. Vizianagaram has the lowest population, the lowest literacy and the highest sex ratio. Srikakulam is second on sex ratio and has the lowest urban share. This is a classic pattern in Indian demography: where men migrate out for work, the resident sex ratio tends to rise, and where literacy is lower the same districts often score higher on the sex ratio. Be careful with this as an explanation for an essay, because the Census table shows the pattern but does not prove the cause.

Rayalaseema is sparse. YSR Kadapa has the lowest density at 188, with Prakasam at 193, and Anantapur has the lowest sex ratio at 977. Kurnool combines the highest decadal growth with the lowest female literacy, which is a good example of a district where population grew quickly without a matching rise in girls' schooling.

Visakhapatnam is the double outlier. It has the highest urban share at 47.45 per cent because of the city and the port, and also the highest ST share at 14.42 per cent because the agency uplands fall inside the district. It is also the district with the lowest SC share. Few districts hold two extremes at opposite ends of the social spectrum, and examiners know it.

Two cautions complete this section. First, density figures depend on area, and the State's table gives district areas in thousands of sq km, so small differences in area can move a rank when two districts are close, as with YSR Kadapa and Prakasam. Second, the East Godavari and West Godavari rows in the State table include the transferred mandals, whereas some older web tables show smaller totals for those two districts. If your coaching notes show 51,54,296 for East Godavari, they use the older basis.

4. Social groups: Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in numbers

In Census 2011 for the 13-district State, Scheduled Castes numbered 84,69,278, or 17.08 per cent, and Scheduled Tribes numbered 27,40,133, or 5.53 per cent (Educational Statistics 2019-20, Census 2011). Together they make 22.61 per cent of the population. On the Tribal Affairs basis of 4,93,86,799 people, the tribal count is 26,31,145, which is 5.3 per cent of the State and 2.5 per cent of all Scheduled Tribe people in India, out of a national ST population of 10,45,45,716 (Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Annual Report 2024-25, Annexure 4B). The difference of 1,08,988 tribal persons between the two bases is consistent with the transferred mandals being heavily tribal, which is again our inference.

The Scheduled Caste picture

The SC share is highest in the coastal delta and south coast and lowest in the tribal north. Prakasam leads with 23.19 per cent, followed by SPSR Nellore at 22.49 per cent and West Godavari at 20.61 per cent; Guntur (19.59) and Krishna (19.28) are close behind. Visakhapatnam at 7.68 per cent, Srikakulam at 9.46 per cent and Vizianagaram at 10.57 per cent are lowest. SC literacy for the State is 64.47 per cent, with the male rate 71.66 per cent and the female rate 57.38 per cent.

The Scheduled Tribe picture

The ST share runs the other way. Visakhapatnam is first at 14.42 per cent, with 6,18,500 tribal people, the largest number of any district. Vizianagaram follows at 10.05 per cent and SPSR Nellore is third at 9.65 per cent, then Srikakulam at 6.15 per cent and East Godavari at 5.62 per cent. The lowest shares are in Kurnool at 2.04 per cent, YSR Kadapa at 2.63 per cent and Krishna at 2.93 per cent.

Look at the absolute numbers as well as the shares. SPSR Nellore has 2,85,997 Scheduled Tribe people, which is more than Vizianagaram's 2,35,556, and its ST share of 9.65 per cent is third in the State even though Nellore is not a hill district. The large number is driven by the Yanadi and Yerukala communities living on the coast and in the plains, not in forests; this attribution is general background and is not stated in the table. Guntur likewise has 2,47,089 ST people. A candidate who assumes "tribal means hill district" will miss that a large part of the State's tribal population lives in the plains.

District-wise ST literacy shows the same split. The lowest ST literacy in the State is in SPSR Nellore at 42.78 per cent and Visakhapatnam at 44.90 per cent, while West Godavari has 57.05 per cent and East Godavari 54.15 per cent. The State rate is 48.83 per cent.

Reading percentages correctly

When a question gives you a district's ST share and asks for the number of people, multiply by that district's total from the same table, not by the State total. When it gives you the State's ST percentage and a different base, say 5.3 per cent against 5.53 per cent, ask which document the figure came from. Reservation percentages are policy choices and do not need to match the Census share; our post on reservation and the roster explains how they are applied in service recruitment.

5. The Scheduled Tribe list of Andhra Pradesh

Article 342 of the Constitution lets the President specify, by public notification after consulting the Governor, which tribes are Scheduled Tribes in a State, and only Parliament can add to or remove from that list afterwards. The list for Andhra Pradesh sits in the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950, Part I. The Statement of Objects and Reasons of the 2024 amendment Bill says the list was last modified by the Reorganisation Act of 2014 before that amendment.

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs prints 34 entries for Andhra Pradesh in the version reproduced in its Annual Report 2023-24. Many entries are group names that bundle several communities, so "34 entries" is not the same as "34 tribes", although popular sources often say 34 tribes. The entries, as printed, are:

No.	Entry as printed	No.	Entry as printed
1	Andh, Sadhu Andh	18	Koya (with sub-names such as Doli Koya, Gutta Koya, Kammara Koya, Musara Koya, Oddi Koya, Rasha Koya)
2	Bagata	19	Kulia
3	Bhil	20	Malis (with district qualifiers printed in the entry)
4	Chenchu	21	Manna Dhora
5	Gadabas (Bodo, Gutob, Kallayi, Parangi, Kathera, Kapu)	22	Mukha Dhora, Nooka Dhora
6	Gond, Naikpod, Rajgond, Koitur	23	Nayaks (in the Agency tracts)
7	Goudu (in the Agency tracts)	24	Pardhan
8	Hill Reddis	25	Porja, Bondo Porja, Khond Porja, Parangiperja
9	Jatapus	26	Reddi Dhoras
10	Kammara	27	Rona, Rena
11	Kattunayakan	28	Savaras, Kapu Savaras, Maliya Savaras, Konda Savaras, Khutto Savaras
12	Kolam, Kolawar	29	Sugalis, Lambadis, Banjara
13	Konda Dhoras, Kubi	30	Valmiki (Scheduled Areas of the specified districts)
14	Konda Kapus	31	Yenadis (Chella, Kappala, Manchi, Reddi Yenadi)
15	Kondareddis	32	Yerukulas (Koracha, Dabba, Kunchapuri, Uppu Yerukula)
16	Kondhs (Kodi, Kodhu, Desaya, Dongria, Kuttiya, Tikiria, Yenity, Kuvinga)	33	Nakkala, Kurvikaran
17	Kotia (Bentho Oriya, Bartika, Dulia, Holva, Sanrona, Sidhopaiko)	34	Dhulia, Paiko, Putiya (in the districts of Visakhapatnam and Vijayanagaram as printed)

Entries that carry conditions

Several entries are not unconditional, and these are the favourite targets of a tricky question.

Entry 7, Goudu, and entry 23, Nayaks, apply "in the Agency tracts" only. A Goudu or Nayak family living outside the Agency tracts is not covered by this entry.

Entry 30, Valmiki, is limited to the Scheduled Areas of a named set of districts: Visakhapatnam, Srikakulam, Vijayanagaram (Vizianagaram), East Godavari and West Godavari, in the districts' 2011 form. This is a typical case of a district list frozen at an older administrative structure.

Entry 34, Dhulia, Paiko, Putiya, is limited to the districts of Visakhapatnam and Vijayanagaram.

Entry 20, Malis, as printed in the Ministry's version still carries district qualifiers that name Telangana districts, a remnant of the pre-2014 wording. If a question depends on it, check the Order text in the Gazette instead of relying on a secondary list.

The 2024 amendment

In February 2024 Parliament amended the list for the State. The Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order (Amendment) Bill, 2024 was introduced in the Rajya Sabha on 5 February 2024, passed there on 6 February, and passed by the Lok Sabha on 8 February (PRS Legislative Research bill track). Its text replaced two entries. Entry 25 now reads "Porja, Bondo Porja, Khond Porja, Parangiperja" and entry 28 reads "Savaras, Kapu Savaras, Maliya Savaras, Konda Savaras, Khutto Savaras". The Statement of Objects and Reasons says the change followed a recommendation of the State Government, after consulting the Registrar General of India and the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes. The practical effect was to bring the Bondo Porja, Khond Porja and Konda Savaras communities into the list, so that they can claim benefits meant for Scheduled Tribes. The date of the President's assent is not given in the sources we opened, so check the Gazette if a question asks for it.

6. Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups

A Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group is a sub-category of Scheduled Tribe communities recognised by the Union Government on four criteria: a pre-agricultural level of technology, low literacy, economic backwardness and a declining or stagnant population. These are the criteria as commonly stated for the national scheme; we did not open the scheme guidelines themselves, so confirm them there if a question quotes them. The category was earlier called Primitive Tribal Groups, and the renaming is usually dated to 2006, which we also did not verify from a primary page.

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs publishes a state-wise list of 75 PVTGs. In that list Andhra Pradesh appears together with Telangana as a single entry, "Andhra Pradesh (including Telangana)", with 12 groups (list dated 9 July 2024):

No.	PVTG as printed by the Ministry
1	Chenchu
2	Bodo Gadaba
3	Bondo Poroja
4	Dongria Kondhs
5	Gutob Gadaba
6	Khond Poroja
7	Kolam
8	Kondareddis
9	Konda Savaras
10	Kuttiya Kondhs
11	Parangiperja
12	Thoti

This is where careful reading matters for the post-2014 State. The Ministry's list is a combined entry, so it does not tell you which of the twelve groups are concentrated in each of the two States today. The Chenchu, with their traditional home in the Nallamala forest, the Konda Reddis of the Godavari hills and the Gadaba, Porja and Savara groups of the north-eastern uplands are the names associated with Andhra Pradesh in common study material, whereas Kolam and Thoti are generally associated with the Telangana side. We could not confirm the split from the Ministry's list itself, so in an exam answer say "listed under Andhra Pradesh (including Telangana)" and do not claim the split unless the question gives it.

Four exam rules about PVTGs save marks:

1. A PVTG is a sub-category of an ST, not an alternative to it. Every PVTG community must also be in the ST list; that is why the 2024 amendment was needed to bring Bondo Porja, Khond Porja and Konda Savaras formally into the State's ST list.
2. The PVTG list is administrative, issued by the Ministry for a scheme. The ST list is constitutional, notified under Article 342. Do not call a PVTG list a constitutional schedule.
3. PVTG status does not change reservation rules. Reservation depends on the ST listing.
4. The number 75 is national. Twelve is the Andhra Pradesh and Telangana combined entry.

7. Scheduled Areas and tribal development machinery

Scheduled Areas and the Fifth Schedule

Part X of the Constitution allows special administration for tribal regions. For the Fifth Schedule areas, which include Andhra Pradesh, the Governor has two powers named in Para 5: to direct that a law of Parliament or the State Legislature shall not apply to a Scheduled Area, or shall apply with changes, and to make regulations for the peace and good government of the area, including regulations to prohibit or restrict transfer of land by or among Scheduled Tribe members, to regulate allotment of land to them and to regulate money-lending to them. A regulation needs the President's assent before it takes effect, and the Governor must consult the Tribes Advisory Council where one exists (Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Annual Report 2024-25, paras 5.24 to 5.28).

The Tribes Advisory Council has not more than twenty members, of whom, as nearly as may be, three-fourths are representatives of Scheduled Tribes in the Legislative Assembly. The Governor reports annually to the President on the administration of the Scheduled Areas. This is a favourite text-based question: it tests the proportion of three-fourths and the ceiling of twenty.

The Scheduled Areas of Andhra Pradesh trace to several orders, as listed by the Ministry:

Order	Date
Scheduled Areas (Part A States) Order, 1950 (C.O. 9)	26 January 1950
Scheduled Areas (Part B States) Order, 1950 (C.O. 26)	7 December 1950
Madras Scheduled Areas (Cesser) Order, 1951 (C.O. 30)	2 June 1951
Andhra Scheduled Areas (Cesser) Order, 1955 (C.O. 50)	9 September 1955

In the Ministry's list of Scheduled Areas for "Andhra Pradesh (including Telangana)", the Andhra Pradesh part is described as the Visakhapatnam Agency area, the East Godavari Agency area and the West Godavari Agency area, each with a few named villages excluded, and the Telangana part is a long list of taluks and villages. The words "Agency area" belong to the 1950s district map. The districts have been reorganised since, so for a modern question about which present-day districts contain Scheduled Areas, do not apply the 1950 district names mechanically; check the latest Gazette notification.

ITDA, MADA and clusters

The Ministry defines the units of tribal planning as follows (Annual Report 2024-25, paras 5.34 to 5.37):

Unit	Definition
ITDP	One or more development blocks in which STs are 50 per cent or more of the population
ITDA	The agency with jurisdiction over such projects; the term was historically used in Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Telangana
MADA pocket	A contiguous area of one or more revenue villages with 50 per cent or more STs and a total population of 10,000 or more
Cluster	A pocket with 50 per cent or more STs and a total population of 5,000 or more

For Andhra Pradesh the Ministry reports 5 ITDPs or ITDAs, 41 MADA pockets and 17 clusters in the same report. District websites give details for individual agencies. The ITDA at Parvathipuram started at Vizianagaram on 3 March 1980, moved its headquarters to Parvathipuram in 1982, and covers eight sub-plan mandals (Vizianagaram district website). The ITDA at Rampachodavaram was established in 1975, serves about 2,36,649 Scheduled Tribe people over 6,444 sq km and 15 mandals, and its main tribes include the Kondareddis, Konda Kammaras, Konda Doras and Konda Kapus (East Godavari district website; that page does not state the Census year for its population figure). Because the ITDA names and counts have changed with district reorganisation, quote any list of agencies as "as on" a date.

Schools and special provisions

Educational support is a recurring exam theme because of the low tribal literacy figure. The Ministry's report records that Andhra Pradesh had 28 Eklavya Model Residential Schools sanctioned and 28 functional as on 31 March 2025. Physical standards are also relaxed for aboriginal Scheduled Tribe candidates from agency areas in police recruitment, which our post on the police physical test describes in detail, with the districts named in the notification.

8. Languages and cultural identity

Telugu is the State's official language and the mother tongue of the large majority of residents. We could not verify the language-wise Census C-16 percentages for the post-2014 State from a primary source, so no percentage is quoted here. For Urdu, Tamil, Kannada, Odia, Hindi and the tribal languages, check the Census language tables or a recent Handbook before quoting a number.

The tribal communities in the ST list speak their own languages, some of which are quite distinct from Telugu. Names to link with places include the Savaras of the north-east uplands (entry 28), the Gadabas and Porjas of the Visakhapatnam and Vizianagaram hills, the Koyas of the Godavari region, the Kondhs (including the Kuttiya and Dongria groups) and the Chenchus of the Nallamala forest. As general linguistic background, and not from the sources above, Savara is a Munda language, Koya and Kui are Dravidian, and Lambadi belongs to the Indo-Aryan family. Exam questions usually ask which community lives where, not which family a language belongs to.

Culture, festivals and crafts are covered in the culture and festivals notes, and the story of the Rampa and forest movements is in the freedom struggle post. The language and literature side is in the Telugu literature notes.

9. NFHS-5 indicators for Andhra Pradesh

Census 2011 is a count of people. The National Family Health Survey is a sample survey of households that measures health, nutrition and household conditions. The fifth round, NFHS-5, covered Andhra Pradesh between 2 July and 14 November 2019, and the state fact sheet is labelled 2019-20 (International Institute for Population Sciences, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare). The table below uses that fact sheet. NFHS-4 (2015-16) is the earlier round.

Indicator	NFHS-5 (2019-20)	NFHS-4 (2015-16)
Sex ratio of the total population, females per 1,000 males	1,045	1,021
Sex ratio at birth, last five years	934	914
Total fertility rate, children per woman	1.7	1.8
Institutional births	96.5 per cent	91.5 per cent
Births by caesarean section	42.4 per cent	40.1 per cent
Children under five who are stunted	31.2 per cent	31.4 per cent
Children under five who are wasted	16.1 per cent	17.2 per cent
Children under five who are underweight	29.6 per cent	31.9 per cent
Women aged 15 to 49 who are anaemic	58.8 per cent	60.0 per cent
Children aged 6 to 59 months who are anaemic	63.2 per cent	58.6 per cent
Women aged 20 to 24 married before 18	29.3 per cent	33.0 per cent
Households using clean cooking fuel	83.6 per cent	62.0 per cent
Population using improved sanitation	77.3 per cent	54.4 per cent
Women aged 15 to 49 who are literate	68.6 per cent	not available
Women with a bank or savings account they use	81.8 per cent	66.3 per cent

How to read NFHS correctly

Two different sex ratios. The NFHS figure of 1,045 females per 1,000 males describes the people in the sampled households. It is not the Census sex ratio of 997. The two measure different things at different times and they are not comparable. In a question that says "according to Census 2011", the answer is 997. In a question that says "according to NFHS-5", it is 1,045 for the total population and 934 at birth.

Sex ratio at birth is the worrying number. At 934 the State is below parity at birth, with a marked urban and rural gap: 877 in urban areas and 957 in rural areas. The fact sheet shows an improvement from 914 in NFHS-4.

Fertility is below replacement. A total fertility rate of 1.7 is under the replacement level of about 2.1, which is a general demographic benchmark and not from the sheet. The fact sheet gives 1.5 for urban areas and 1.8 for rural areas. Questions often ask whether the State is "below replacement" and the right answer follows from the rate, not from a memorised label.

Nutrition has improved only slowly. Stunting barely moved, from 31.4 to 31.2 per cent, while wasting fell from 17.2 to 16.1 per cent and the underweight share fell from 31.9 to 29.6 per cent. Child anaemia rose from 58.6 to 63.2 per cent. A common error is to say that "all nutrition indicators improved"; the table shows one that worsened.

Caesarean births are high. The overall share of 42.4 per cent splits into 63.0 per cent in private facilities and 26.6 per cent in public facilities, which means the private-public gap is more than 36 points.

Surveys have margins of error. NFHS covers a sample of 11,346 households, 10,975 women and 1,558 men in Andhra Pradesh. District and sub-group figures carry wider uncertainty. Quote the number with its survey name and year and never mix it with Census data in one calculation.

10. Worked examples

Example 1: converting a share into a count. A question gives Visakhapatnam's ST share as 14.42 per cent and the district population as 42,90,589 and asks for the approximate ST population. Compute 0.1442 multiplied by 42,90,589, which is about 6.19 lakh. The Census table gives 6,18,500, so the rounded share agrees. The check works only because both numbers come from the same table.

Example 2: comparing two bases. A student finds the State ST population as 27,40,133 in one document and 26,31,145 in another and decides one source is wrong. Neither is wrong. The first sits on the 4,95,77,103 basis and the second on the 4,93,86,799 basis. The right exam answer names the source and the base.

Example 3: an extreme with two readings. "Which district has the highest sex ratio" can be answered by Vizianagaram (1,019) in the 13-district Census structure. A question that asks which of today's 28 districts has the highest sex ratio cannot be answered from Census 2011 at all. If an option set offers only the old names, the question is using the Census structure.

Example 4: the PVTG option. Options are Yerukula, Chenchu, Sugali and Valmiki. All four are in the ST list, but only the Chenchu appear in the Ministry's PVTG list. This pattern, in which most options are valid STs and only one is a PVTG, is the common form of the question.

Example 5: the conditional entry. A family belongs to the Valmiki community and lives in Guntur district. Entry 30 limits the Valmiki entry to the Scheduled Areas of the named districts, so the family does not get ST status under that entry in Guntur. Questions of this kind turn on the words in brackets, not on the community name.

Key facts for exams

• Census 2011, post-2014 Andhra Pradesh (Commissionerate of School Education table): population 4,95,77,103, sex ratio 997, density 304, decadal growth 9.21 per cent, literacy 67.35 per cent, urban 29.47 per cent.
• Tribal Affairs basis: 4,93,86,799 persons and 26,31,145 STs (5.3 per cent). School Education basis: 27,40,133 STs (5.53 per cent) and 84,69,278 SCs (17.08 per cent).
• District extremes use the 2011 structure of 13 districts: largest East Godavari, smallest Vizianagaram, densest Krishna, sparsest YSR Kadapa, highest literacy West Godavari, lowest Vizianagaram, highest ST share Visakhapatnam, highest SC share Prakasam.
• The ST order prints 34 entries; entries 7 and 23 apply only in the Agency tracts, entry 30 is tied to named Scheduled Areas, entry 34 to two districts.
• The 2024 amendment, passed between 6 and 8 February 2024, replaced entries 25 and 28 and added Bondo Porja, Khond Porja and Konda Savaras.
• The Ministry's PVTG list has 75 groups in all, with 12 under "Andhra Pradesh (including Telangana)", starting with the Chenchu.
• Fifth Schedule: Governor's Para 5 powers; Tribes Advisory Council of up to 20 members, three-fourths ST MLAs.
• NFHS-5 2019-20: TFR 1.7, institutional births 96.5 per cent, sex ratio at birth 934, stunting 31.2 per cent.

Ten practice questions

1. In Census 2011, which district of the 13-district Andhra Pradesh had the largest population? A) Guntur B) Krishna C) East Godavari D) Visakhapatnam Answer: C. East Godavari had 52,85,824 persons on the State's published table, ahead of Guntur and Krishna.

2. The Census 2011 sex ratio of post-2014 Andhra Pradesh is closest to: A) 934 B) 997 C) 1,021 D) 1,045 Answer: B. 997 is the Census figure. 934 is NFHS-5 sex ratio at birth, 1,021 is NFHS-4 total and 1,045 is NFHS-5 total.

3. Which district has the highest Scheduled Tribe share of population in the 2011 district structure? A) Srikakulam B) Vizianagaram C) Visakhapatnam D) East Godavari Answer: C. Visakhapatnam has 14.42 per cent, ahead of Vizianagaram at 10.05 per cent.

4. Which district recorded the lowest density in Census 2011 among the 13 districts? A) Anantapur B) Prakasam C) Kurnool D) YSR Kadapa Answer: D. YSR Kadapa has 188 persons per sq km. Prakasam, at 193, is the nearest rival.

5. Which of these communities appears in the Ministry of Tribal Affairs list of PVTGs? A) Yerukula B) Sugali C) Valmiki D) Chenchu Answer: D. The other three are in the ST list but not in the PVTG list.

6. The Scheduled Areas of Andhra Pradesh are administered under which part of the Constitution's schedules? A) Fifth Schedule B) Sixth Schedule C) Seventh Schedule D) Ninth Schedule Answer: A. The Sixth Schedule covers autonomous districts in the north-eastern States.

7. The 2024 amendment to the Scheduled Tribes Order for Andhra Pradesh changed which entries? A) Entries 4 and 9 B) Entries 12 and 16 C) Entries 25 and 28 D) Entries 30 and 34 Answer: C. Entry 25 now includes Bondo Porja and Khond Porja, and entry 28 includes Konda Savaras.

8. According to NFHS-5 (2019-20), the total fertility rate of Andhra Pradesh is: A) 1.2 B) 1.7 C) 2.1 D) 2.5 Answer: B. The fact sheet gives 1.7, below the replacement level.

9. A Tribes Advisory Council under the Fifth Schedule has at most how many members, and what share represent STs in the Assembly? A) 10, one-half B) 15, two-thirds C) 20, three-fourths D) 25, one-fourth Answer: C. Not more than twenty members, with about three-fourths ST representatives.

10. Which statement about the two ST totals for Andhra Pradesh (26,31,145 and 27,40,133) is correct? A) One is a printing error B) They are from different decades C) They rest on different population bases within Census 2011 D) One counts SCs as well Answer: C. One sits on 4,93,86,799 persons and the other on 4,95,77,103, as explained in section 1.

Frequently asked questions

What is the population of Andhra Pradesh after bifurcation? Census 2011 gives 4,95,77,103 on the State Government's published table and 4,93,86,799 in the Tribal Affairs annexure. The first includes the Polavaram-area mandals transferred in 2014. State which base you are using.

Why can't I use Census 2011 for the new districts? The Census was taken when the State had 23 districts. The present 28 districts did not exist, so district-wise Census figures describe the 13 districts of 2011. A later survey or a Gazette notification is needed for current district data.

Is the next Census available? Results of the next Census are not published as on October 2026, so Census 2011 remains the latest published census. Check the Registrar General of India for updates.

How many tribes does Andhra Pradesh have? The Scheduled Tribes Order prints 34 entries for the State. Many entries cover several communities, so the count of communities is larger than 34. Use "34 entries" unless a source gives a different count of tribes.

What is the difference between an ST and a PVTG? An ST is a constitutional category notified under Article 342. A PVTG is a more vulnerable sub-group identified by the Union Government on four criteria for a scheme. PVTG status does not change reservation.

Are the NFHS-5 and Census sex ratios comparable? No. The Census count is 997 for 2011. NFHS-5 reports 1,045 for the sampled population in 2019-20 and 934 at birth. They measure different things in different years.

Which tribes are in the Scheduled Areas? The Scheduled Areas are defined by territory, not by tribe, so the question should be answered from the Order. The tribal communities living there include the Savaras, Gadabas, Kondhs, Koyas, Konda Reddis and others from the ST list.

Related reading

• AP district-wise fact sheet, 28 districts
• AP Reorganisation Act 2014 explained
• Local status, reservation and the roster
• AP geography notes: rivers, districts and ports
• AP culture, festivals, art and dance notes
• AP freedom struggle and social reform
• AP police physical test preparation
• Telugu version of this post

Practise on pareeksha.in

After revising the tables, test yourself with timed questions on pareeksha.in, where the platform offers 10 Lakh+ MCQs, 100+ Exams and 5,000+ Full-Length Mocks. Treat figures in practice questions as revision aids and confirm any current number against the official source named in the question.

Sources and verification

Pages opened for this post:

• Andhra Pradesh at a Glance and district tables (population, SC and ST, rural and urban, literacy, density), Educational Statistics 2019-20, Commissionerate of School Education, Andhra Pradesh (cse.ap.gov.in), citing Census of India 2011.
• Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Annual Report 2024-25: Annexure 4B (ST population by State), paras 5.24 to 5.38 (Scheduled Areas, Tribes Advisory Council, ITDP, ITDA, MADA, clusters), Annexure 5C (Scheduled Areas), the table of Scheduled Areas orders, and the EMRS table (tribal.nic.in).
• Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Annual Report 2023-24, Scheduled Tribes list, Part I Andhra Pradesh (copy hosted on the IIIT Lucknow website).
• Ministry of Tribal Affairs, State/UT wise list of Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups, 9 July 2024 (tribal.nic.in).
• The Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order (Amendment) Bill, 2024, text as introduced in the Rajya Sabha on 5 February 2024, and the PRS Legislative Research bill track page (prsindia.org).
• National Family Health Survey 5, State Fact Sheet, Andhra Pradesh, 2019-20, International Institute for Population Sciences and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (hosted at dhsprogram.com).
• Health Dossier 2021, Andhra Pradesh, National Health Systems Resource Centre (nhsrcindia.org), used only for the national urban share and to confirm that its Census 2011 table is for undivided Andhra Pradesh.
• Vizianagaram district website, ITDA Parvathipuram page, and East Godavari district website, ITDA Rampachodavaram page (ap.gov.in).

Not verified, and hedged in the text: language-wise Census 2011 percentages for the post-2014 State (no primary table opened, so none quoted); the President's assent date for the 2024 amendment; the split of the 12 PVTGs between Andhra Pradesh and Telangana; names and number of present-day ITDAs after district reorganisation; the Census year behind the Rampachodavaram ITDA population; the explanation that the 1,90,304 gap between the two population bases is the transferred Polavaram-area mandals (our arithmetic inference); the 2022 and 2025 district structure for Scheduled Area descriptions; and the linguistic family of tribal languages (general background, not sourced here); the four PVTG criteria and the 2006 renaming (commonly stated, scheme guidelines not opened); and the Yanadi and Yerukala explanation for the Nellore tribal count (general background).