Tribals and dikus

This a PPT on the topic Tribals and dikus which is about the way how tribals and dikus lived in India during British period and what happened to them and how were the treated

1. TRIBALS AND DIKUS DONE BY: YOGA VAISHNAV

2. Tribes In anthropology, a  tribe  is a human social group. Exact definitions of what constitutes a tribe vary among anthropologists, and the term is itself considered controversial in academic circles in part due to its association with colonialism.

3. Dikus The word Dikus means outsiders ( eg : The British People Who Came To India). Dikus were the people who made the tribal people depend on them, thereby causing them a lot of misery and suffering. The outsiders consist of traders and money lenders, who can come into the forest . They used to sell the goods not produced in the forests and offer cash loans with high rate of interests.

4. Occupation Of Tribal People During British Period

5. Some Were Jhum Cultivators Some of them practiced jhum cultivation, i.e.. Shifting cultivation. This was done on small patches of land, mostly in forests. The cultivators cut the treetops to allow sunlight to reach the ground, and burnt the vegetation on the land to clear it for cultivation. They spread ash from the firing, which contained potash, to fertilize the soil. They used the axe to cut trees and the hoe to scratch the soil in order to prepare it for cultivation. A field that had been cultivated once was left fallow for several years. The lives of these tribal people depended on free movement within forest and on being able to use the land and forests for growing their crop. That is the only way they could practice shifting cultivation.

6. Some Were Hunters And Gatherers In many regions tribal groups lived by hunting animals and gathering forest produce. They saw forests as essential for survival. The Khonds were such a community living in the forests of Orissa. They regularly went out on collective hunt and then divided the meat amongst themselves. They ate fruits and roots collected from the forests and cooked food with the oil they extracted from the seeds of the Sal and mahua .

7. Some Herded Animals Many tribal groups lived by herding and rearing animals. They were pastoralists who moved with their herds of cattle or sheep according to the seasons. When the grass in one place was exhausted, they moved to another area. The van Gujjars of the Punjab hills and the Labadis of Andhra Pradesh were cattle herders, the gaddis of kulu were shepherds, and the Bakarwals of Kashmir reared goats.

8. Some Took To Settled Cultivation Even before the nineteenth century, many from within the tribal groups had begun settling down, and cultivating their fields in one place year after year, instead of moving from place to place. They began to use the plough, and gradually got rights over the land they lived on. British officials saw settled tribal groups like the Gonds and Santhals as more civilized than hunter Gatherers or Shifting cultivators. Those who lived in the forests were considered to be wild and savage: they needed to be settled and civilized

9. Life of Tribals During British Peeriod

10. Tribal Chiefs’ Lives During The British Period Before the arrival of the British, In many areas the tribal chiefs were important people. They enjoyed a certain amount of economic power and had the right to administer and control their territories. In some places they had their own police and decided on the local rulses of and forest management. Under British rule, the functions and powers of the tribal chiefs changed considerably. They were allowed to keep their land titles over cluster of villages and rent out lands, but they lost much of their administrative power and were forced to follow laws made by British officials I India. They also had to pay tribute to the British, and discipline the tribal groups on behalf of the British. They lost the authority they had earlier enjoyed amongst their people, and were unable to fulfill their traditional functions.

11. Jhum Cultivators Lives During British Period The British were uncomfortable with groups who moved about and did not have a fixed home. They wanted Tribal groups to settle down groups to settle down and become peasant cultivators. Settled peasants were easier to control and administer than people who were always on the move. The British also wanted a regular revenue source for the state. So they introduce land settlements – that is, they measured the land, defined the rights of each individual to that land, and fixed the revenue demand for the state. Some peasants were declared landowners, others tenants. The tenants were to pay rent to the landowner who in turn paid revenue to the state.

12. Impact On Jhum cultivators On Forest Laws The life of tribal groups, as you have seen, was directly connected to the forest. So changes in forest laws had a considerable effect on tribal lives. The British extended their control over all forests and declared that forests were state property. Some forests were classified as Reserved Forests for they produced timber which the British wanted. In these forests people were not allowed to move freely, practice Jhum cultivation, collect fruits, or hunt animals. Many were therefore forced to move to other areas in search of work and livelihood.

13. The British effort to settle Jhum cultivators was not very successful. Settled plough cultivation is not easy in areas where water is scarce and the soil is dry. In fact, Jhum cultivators who took to plough cultivation often suffered, since their fields did not produce good yields. So the Jhum cultivators in north-east India insisted on continuing with their traditional practice. Facing widespread protests, the British had to ultimately allow them the right to carry on shifting cultivation in some parts of the forest.

14. But once the British stopped the tribal people from living inside forests, they faced a problem. From where would the Forest Department get its labor to cut trees for railway sleepers and to transport logs? Colonial officials came up with a solution. They decided that they would give Jhum cultivators small patches of land in the forests and allow them to cultivate these on the condition that those who lived in the villages would have to provide labor to the Forest Department and look after the forests. So in many regions the Forest Department established forest villages to ensure a regular supply of cheap labour

15. Did the tribal people follow what the British said? Many tribal groups reacted against the colonial forest laws. They disobeyed the new rules, continued with practices that were declared illegal, and at times rose in open rebellion. Such was the revolt of Songram Sangma in 1906 in Assam, and the forest satyagraha of the 1930s in the Central Provinces.

16. Most tribes had customs and rituals that were very different from those laid down by brahmans. These societies also did not have the sharp social divisions that were characteristic of caste societies. All those who belonged to the same tribe thought of themselves as sharing common ties of kinship. However, this did not mean that there were no social and economic differences within tribes. Society Of Tribals During British Period

17. Economy Of Tribals During British Period

18. Economy Of Hunters And Gatherers They used many forest shrubs and herbs for medicinal purpose, and sold forest produce in the local markets. At times they exchanged goods – getting what they needed in return for their valuable forest produce. At other times they bought goods with the small amount of earnings they had. Some of them did odd jobs in the villages, carrying loads or building roads, while others labored in the fields of peasants and farmers. Tribal groups often needed to buy and sell in order to be able to get the goods that were not produced within the locality. This led to their dependence on traders and money lenders. Traders came around with things for sale and sold the gods at high prices. Money lenders gave loans which the Tribals met their cash needs adding to what they earned. But the interest charged on the loans was usually very high. So for the Tribals, market and commerce often meant debt and poverty. They therefore came to see the moneylenders and trader as evil outsiders and the cause of their misery.

19. Economy Of Tribal People Who Took To Settled Cultivation Before the nineteenth century, many tribal groups had begun settling down, and cultivating their fields. In many cases, like the Mundas of Chottanagpur, the land belonged to the clan as a whole. All members of the clan were regarded as descendants of the original settlers, who had first cleared the land. Therefore, all of them had rights on the land. Very often some people within the clan acquired more power than others, some became chiefs and others followers. Powerful men often rented out the land instead of cultivating it themselves.

20. Bhils

21. Introduction There are two divisions of Bhil: the Central or "pure" Bhil, and the Eastern or part-Rajput Bhil. The Central Bhil live in the mountain regions of India, particularly in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Rajasthan.

22. Location Bhils are listed as indigenous people of the states of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Rajasthan - all in the western Deccan regions and central India - as well as in Tripura in far-eastern India, on the border with Bangladesh. Bhils are divided into a number of endogamous territorial divisions, which in turn have a number of clans and lineages. Most Bhils now speak the language of the region they reside in, such as Marathi, Gujarati or a Hindustani dialect.

23. Occupation The source of income for Bhil is agriculture and the Animal Husbandry. Poultry farming and labor also form the source of income. Bhil’s possess knowledge of manufacturing agriculture equipments and are also aware of repairing them.

24. Language Apart from other states, Bhils comprise 39% of Rajasthan's total population speak Bhili, which is an Indo Aryan language.

25. Festivals The Baneshwar fair is the main festival celebrated among the Bhils . This fair is held during the period of Shivatri (in the month of January or February) and is dedicated to Baneshwar Mahadev also known as Lord Shiva. On this occasion Bhils gather all together set up camps on the banks of the Som and Mahi river. They perform dance around the fire and sing traditional songs. At night they all of them enjoy raslila at the Lakshmi Narayan temple. Cultural shows, magic shows, animal shows acrobatic feast are the main attraction of the fair. This fair is actually the combination of two fairs, which are held in reverence of Lord Shiva and the other one that commenced after the setting up of Vishnu temple by Jankunwari . Holy and Dusshera are the other major festivals celebrated among the Bhils in India.

26. Food The main food of the Bhil’s is maize . Wheat is used on special occasions and hospitality. kura , kodra , batti , sangli , korang etc.. are used as food. Roti or Maize also called sogra with chatni , green chilli or stitle and curd lasi is the famous food. Fruits also are part of their diet.

27. Gonds

28. Introduction The Gonds are among the largest tribal groups in South Asia and perhaps the world. The term Gond refers to tribal peoples who live all over India's Deccan Peninsula. Most describe themselves as Gonds (hill people) or as Koi or Koitur .

29. Location Gonds live all over central India, and in the states of Maharashtra and Orissa. As "hill people," they traditionally have been associated with hills and uplands in the Deccan Peninsula. Many Gonds live around the Satpura Hills, Maikala Range and Son- Deogarh uplands, and on the Bastar plateau. Many Gond tribes also live in the Garhjat Hills of northern Orissa.

30. Occupation Agriculture is their main work. Gonds tribes are today mainly farmers. While some Gond Communities have risen to the status of landowners, many are landless laborers. Herding cattles is a part of Gond Tribes occupation as a part of livelihood.

31. Language The prime language spoken by Gond tribe is Gondi. Besides this, the Gond tribes have a good command on Telugu, Hindi, Marathi, Parsi and many other Dravidian languages

32. Festivals Celebrations for Gonds have Danderi dancers who can retell events from Gond. Sacrifices are made by the village Priests called Devari in most of the festivals. Their festive life are filled with animal sacrifices. Gonds festivals are usually related to agriculture. Each village of Gonds has a village Guardian and a Village Mother who are worshipped during all regular festivals. Mythology, Dance, songs, cock fighting form the main attraction of any celebration for a Gond Tribe.

33. Madia Festival Of Gonds

34. Food The Staple Food of Gonds is two millets known as Kodo and Kutki. Vegetables are usually grown in kitchen gardens or collected from forests. Gonds grow tobacco for smoking and make liquor for Mahua tree.