ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses social stratification structure in Kalyan and Gokul and examines the impact of modernization on kinship relationships. It also discusses the channels of social mobility such as occupation, education, and marriage. A universal feature of every known society is its social stratification, that is, the ranking of individuals or groups in a hierarchy according to some valued attribute, or attributes, such as ancestry, wealth, skill, or power. The general statements on social class and mobility of the Lingayats and Brahmans are based on the author's data gathered through interviews. Modern education is a principal means of acquiring higher social status. In fact ten families have attained a higher social status because of the higher educational achievements of one of the family members. Spatial non-mobility is one of the characteristic features of the Kalyan community. Barring the emigration and immigration of women on their marriage, the rate of migration of men folk from Kalyan to other places is insignificant.
