AI-generated practice question — model-generated for extra practice, not a previous-year CBSE board question.
Unlike other societies where occupational inheritance is merely customary, India's caste system made hereditary occupational division sanctioned by rituals, giving it a religious justification absent elsewhere.
Source: Caste and politics, Caste inequalities
---
The key phrase examiners look for is "sanctioned by rituals" — this is the exact distinction the textbook draws. Don't just say "hereditary occupations passed down" (that's true of other societies too); the ritual/religious sanction is what makes India's caste-based division unique. One crisp line quoting or closely paraphrasing the textbook is all that's needed for 1 mark.