Health status of tribes of Uttar Pradesh with special reference to health-seeking behaviour of uncharted Tharu tribe: A mapping review

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES: The tribal population in India is considered as one of the vulnerable groups with respect to their achievements in health and other developmental issues. In this context, this mapping review attempted to understand the health profile of the Tharu tribal community residing in the northern State of Uttar Pradesh, India through literature mining. Tharu tribe is one of the indigenous groups living in the Terai plain on the Indo-Nepal border. In 1967, this tribe was documented as a Scheduled Tribe by the Government of India. The present review aimed to map the health-seeking behaviour of the Tharu population and review other factors pertaining to their health such as socioeconomic, developmental, employment, education, etc. METHODS: Online data search was carried out on PubMed and Google Scholar using search terms ‘Tharu’ AND ‘India’. In addition, official reports avaibale in public domain and grey literature was also searched. RESULTS: Twenty seven studies including reviews, articles, books/book chapters were evaluated along with 13 reports (including reports from government organizations and grey literature) were retrieved and analyzed. Of the 27 published reports, 16 were found relevant to Tharu tribe in India. A total of 29 (16 articles + 13 reports) were included in this review. INTERPRETATION & CONCLUSIONS: This mapping review highights the health seeking behaviour of the Tharu tribe in India that can help inform future interventions to improve the health status of the Tharu tribe as well as other aspects of their development.