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{{Short description|Tribal community in India}}
{{merge|Kondha|discuss=Talk:Kondha|date=November 2014}}
{{Multiple issues|
{{More citations needed|date=September 2017}}{{Tone|date=March 2024}}
}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2024}}
{{Use Indian English|date=February 2024}}
{{Infobox ethnic group
{{Infobox ethnic group
|group = Kondh
| group = Khonds
|image = [[File:Kutia kondh woman.JPG|200px]]
| image = Kutia kondh woman 3.jpg
|caption = A Kondh woman in [[Odisha]].
| caption = A Khond woman in [[Odisha]]
| region1 = [[Odisha]]
|pop = ca. 430,000
| pop1 = 1,627,486 (2011 census)
|popplace = {{flag|India}}
| ref1 = <ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011census/PCA/ST.html|title=A-11 Individual Scheduled Tribe Primary Census Abstract Data and its Appendix|publisher=Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India|website=www.censusindia.gov.in|access-date=3 November 2017}}</ref>
|languages = [[Kui language (India)|Kui]], [[Kuvi language|Kuvi]]
| popplace = {{Flag|India}}
|related = santali
| languages = [[Kui language (India)|Kui]], [[Kuvi]], [[Odia Language|Odia]]
}}
| religions = [[Hinduism]] and some [[Christianity]]<ref>{{cite web |title=ST-14 Scheduled Tribe Population By Religious Community - Odisha |url=https://censusindia.gov.in/nada/index.php/catalog/11909/download/15022/ST-21-00-014-DDW-2011.XLS |website=census.gov.in |access-date=12 February 2020}}</ref>
[[File:Castes and tribes of southern India. Assisted by K. Rangachari (1909) (14783429545).jpg|thumb|Meriah sacrifice post.]]
| related = [[Dravidian people]] {{•}} [[Dangaria Kandha]] {{•}} [[Gondi people]]}}
'''Khonds''' (also spelled '''Kondha''', '''Kandha''', '''Khondho''' etc.) are an ethnic indigenous tribal people of [[India]]. They are a designated [[Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes|Scheduled Tribe]] in the states of [[Andhra Pradesh]], [[Bihar]], [[Chhattisgarh]], [[Madhya Pradesh]], [[Maharashtra]], [[Odisha]] and [[West Bengal]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://censusindia.gov.in/Tables_Published/SCST/ST%20Lists.pdf |title=List of notified Scheduled Tribes |publisher=Census India |accessdate=15 December 2013}}</ref> Traditionally hunter-gatherers, they are divided into the hill-dwelling Khonds and plain-dwelling Khonds for census purposes; all the Khonds identify by their clan and usually hold large tracts of fertile land but still practise hunting, gathering and slash and burn agriculture in the forests as a symbol of their connection to and ownership of the forest. The Khonds speak the [[Kui language (India)|Kui language]].
'''Khonds''' (also spelt '''Kondha''' and '''Kandha''') are an indigenous [[Adivasi]] [[tribal]] community in [[India]]. Traditionally [[hunter-gatherers]], they are divided into the hill-dwelling Khonds and plain-dwelling Khonds for census purposes, but the Khonds themselves identify by their specific [[clan]]s. Khonds usually hold large tracts of fertile land, but still practice hunting, gathering, and [[slash-and-burn]] agriculture in the forests as a symbol of their connection to, and as an assertion of their ownership of the forests wherein they dwell. Khonds speak the [[Kui language (India)|Kui]] language and write it in the [[Odia script]].


The Khonds are the largest tribal group in the state of [[Odisha]]. They are known for their rich cultural heritage, valourous martial traditions, and indigenous values, which center on harmony with nature. The [[Kandhamal district]] in Odisha has a fifty-five per cent Khond population, and is named after the tribe.
==History==


They are a designated [[Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes|Scheduled Tribe]] in the states of [[Andhra Pradesh]], [[Bihar]], [[Chhattisgarh]], [[Madhya Pradesh]], [[Maharashtra]], [[Odisha]], [[Jharkhand]] and [[West Bengal]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://censusindia.gov.in/Tables_Published/SCST/ST%20Lists.pdf |title=List of notified Scheduled Tribes |publisher=Census India |access-date=15 December 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131107225208/http://censusindia.gov.in/Tables_Published/SCST/ST%20Lists.pdf |archive-date= 7 November 2013 }}</ref>
===Meriah sacrifice===
The Khonds came to the limelight during the British Raj for their Rebellion against the British intrusion into their territories for timber in 1836. The British sought to project their invasion of tribal territories as a civilizing mission to prevent for the practice of [[human sacrifice]] by the Kondhs. These sacrifices were known as ''Meriah'' and were considered to be essential for maintaining the fertility of the earth. It was incumbent on the Khonds to purchase their victims. Unless bought with a price, they were not deemed acceptable. They seldom sacrificed Khonds, though sometimes Khonds, out of piety, or promise to an ancestor spirit, did sell their children, often for a token amount, and they could then be purchased as ''Meriahs''. Persons of any race, age or sex were acceptable if purchased. Many were bought and kept and well treated as full members of the community. The intended Meriah victims were encouraged to marry and start families.''Meriah'' women were encouraged to become mothers. On the day of the sacrifice, the Meriah was bathed, anointed with oil and tumeric, dressed in new clothes, garlanded and led in a procession to the sacrificial altar, which usually was a carved timber planted in the ground. The victim usually was encultured to view his sacrifice as honourable, though during the actual ceremony the Meriah was heavily narcotised. The intoxicated victim was tied to the cross piece of the sacrificial altar and an tame elephant spun the cross piece around during which the entire community, men, women and children sing and dance till they entered a trance. The victim was dispatched usually by the Kondh Pradhan- the chieftain of all clans, or by the local Jani or priest by strangulation, after which flesh from the thighs was carved out, chopped into pieces and distributed among the members of the community. This piece of flesh was buried by each cultivator into the land he cultivated was supposed to ensure a good crop.<ref>Macpherson, Samuel.C., '''An Account of the Religion of the Khonds in Orissa''' In: ''Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland'', 1852, Vol.13 pp.216-74</ref>


==Language==
===The Kondh Rebellion===
The Khonds speak [[Kui language (India)|Kui]] and [[Kuvi]] as their native languages. They are most closely related to the [[Gondi language|Gondi]] language.{{citation needed|date=October 2018}} Both are [[Dravidian languages]] and are written with the [[Odia script]].
==Society==
The Khonds are adept land dwellers of the forest and hill environment. However, due to development interventions in education, medical facilities, [[irrigation]], [[plantation]], they have adapted to the modern way of life in many ways. Their traditional lifestyle, language, food habits, customary traits of economy, political organisation, norms, values, and world view have been drastically changed in recent times.


The traditional Khond society is based on geographically demarcated [[clans]], each consisting of a large group of related families identified by a [[Totem]], usually of a male wild animal. Each clan usually has a common surname and is led by the eldest male member of the most powerful family of the clan. All the clans of the Khonds owe allegiance to the "''Kondh Pradhan''", who is usually the leader of the most powerful clan of the Khonds.
The British sent Maj. George Edward Russel as the "Meriah Agent" to Ghumsar Native Princely State in 1836 to stop the brutal and inhuman practise of Human Sacrifice by the Khonds living in the forested tracts of Ghumsar, when some Christian missionaries sent to the Kondhs for converting them to Christianity were captured by Ghumsars and sold to the Khonds, who then offered the missionaries as Meriah Sacrifice.
The growing discontent among the tribals of Ghumsur Native Princely State from the beginning of British rule under the Madras Presidency, was due to the fact that the British did not pay proper attention to the prevailing status of Khonds as allies rather than subjects of the rulers of Ghumsur. While the Ruler of Ghumsar accepted the paramountcy of the British Crown and became a vassal, the Kondhs living in Ghumsar never accepted the British as rulers since they had never even acknowledged the Raja of Ghumsar as their ruler. In due course of time, the tribals of Ghumsur led by the '''Kondh Pradhan''' Kamal Lochan Dora Pradhan popularly called ''Dora Bisoi'' started rebellion against the British authority.


The Khond family is often nuclear, although extended joint families are also found. Female family members are on equal social footing with the male members in Khond society, and they can inherit, own, hold, and dispose of property without reference to their parents, husband or sons. Women have the right to choose their husbands, and to seek divorce. However, the family is [[patrilineal]] and [[patrilocal]]. Remarriage is common for divorced or widowed women and men. Children are never considered illegitimate in Khond society and inherit the clan name of their biological or adoptive fathers with all the rights accruing to natural born children.
'''Factors responsible for the discontent of Dora'''
[[File:Desia Kondh house.jpg|thumb|A traditional Khond house.]]
[[File:Khonds.jpg|thumb|Khond Girl]]


The Kondhs have a dormitory for adolescent girls and boys which forms a part of their enculturation and education process. The girls and boys sleep at night in their respective dormitory and learn social taboos, myths, legends, stories, riddles, proverbs amidst singing and dancing the whole night, thus learning the way of the tribe. The girls are usually instructed in good housekeeping and in ways to bring up good children while the boys learn the art of hunting and the legends of their brave and martial ancestors.
There were many factors which led Dora to revolt against the British.
First, the suppression of Meriah in the Kondh dominated area of Ghumsur was a direct attack of British on the traditional religious faith of the Kondhs. Along with that the activities of the Christian missionaries, infuriated the Kondhs and made them rebellious.


Bravery and skill in hunting determine the respect that a man gets in the Khond tribe. A large number of Khonds were recruited by the British during the [[World War I|First]] and [[World War II|Second World Wars]] and were prized as natural jungle warfare experts and fierce warriors. Even today a large proportion of the Khond men join the State police or [[Armed Forces of India]] to seek an opportunity to prove their bravery.
Secondly, for the first time land revenue was collected from the Kondhs living in Ghumsar through forceful means which wounded the sentiments of independence of the tribals, since earlier the Kondhs were exempt from paying any taxes to the Rajas of Ghumsar as they were regarded as allies not subjects. So, the tribals in Ghumsar became irritated and wanted to take revenge against the British.
Modern education has facilitated the entry of a large number of Khonds into Government Civil Service, and adaptation to modern life has ensured that the tribe is one of the most politically dominant in Odisha.


The men usually forage or hunt in the forests. They also practise the [[podu (agriculture)|podu system]] of [[shifting cultivation]] on the hill slopes where they grow different varieties of rice, lentils and vegetables. Women usually do all the household work from fetching water from the distant streams, cooking, serving food to each member of the household to assisting the men in cultivation, harvesting and sale of produce in the market.<ref>Jena M. K., et.al. ''Forest Tribes of Orissa: Lifestyles and Social Conditions of selected Orissan Tribes, Vol.1'', Man and Forest Series 2, New Delhi, 2002, pages -13-18.</ref>
Thirdly, the Bhanja rulers of Ghumsur had unfriendly relation with the British. Being apprehensive of capture by the British authority, Dhananjay Bhanja the ruler of Ghumsur fled to the jungles and sought the assistance of the Kondhs. The Kondh Pradhan wanted to help him as he was a traditional ally.


The Khond commonly practice clan exogamy. By custom, marriage must cross clan boundaries (a form of incest taboo). The clan is strictly exogamous, which means marriages are made outside the clan (yet still within the greater Khond population). The form of acquiring mate is often by negotiation. However, marriage by capture or elopement is also rarely practised. For marriage bride price is paid to the parents of the bride by the groom, which is a striking feature of the Khonds. The [[bride price]] was traditionally paid in tiger pelts though now land or gold sovereigns are the usual mode of payment of bride price.
Lastly, the dissolution of the Bhanja ruling family after the death of Dhananjay Bhanja in 1835 became the immediate cause of the rebellion. After his death, Brundaban Bhanja and Jagannath Bhanja, two members of the royal family became rebellious and got the support of Dora, the Kondh Pradhan of the Kondhs of Ghumsur.


===Religious beliefs===
'''Revolt of Dora'''
[[File:Castes and tribes of southern India. Assisted by K. Rangachari (1909) (14783429545).jpg|thumb|Meriah sacrifice post.]]
Traditionally the Khond religious beliefs were syncretic combining totemism, animism, ancestor worship, shamanism and nature worship. British writers also note that the Khonds practised [[human sacrifice]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Russell|first=Robert Vane|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gmbhAAAAMAAJ&q=khonds+doms&pg=PA470|title=pt. II. Descriptive articles on the principal castes and tribes of the Central Provinces|date=1916|publisher=Macmillan and Company, limited|language=en}}</ref> Traditional Khond religion involved the worship mountains, Rivers, Sun, Earth. Baredi is place of worship. Traditional Khond religion involved different rituals such as Jhagadi or Kedu or Meriah Puja, Sru Penu Puja, Dharni Penu Puja, Guruba Penu Puja, Turki Penu Puja, and Pitabali Puja. Matiguru involved worship of earth through before sowing seeds. Other rituals connected with land fertility were 'Guruba Puja', 'Turki Puja' and in some cases 'Meriah Puja (human sacrifice)' to appease Dharni (earth). Saru penu puja involved the sacrifice of fowls and feast. In Dehuri sacrifice goat and chicken were sacrificed. Gurba Penu Puja and Turki penu puja performed outside the village. Pitabali Puja was performed by offering flowers, fruits, sandal paste, incense, ghee-lamps, ghee, sundried rice, turmeric, buffalo or a he-goat and fowl.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.etribaltribune.com/index.php/volume-1/issue-7/shifting-cultivation-by-the-juangs-of-orissa|title=Shifting Cultivation by the Juangs of Orissa|publisher=etribaltribue|access-date=22 October 2022}}</ref>


The Traditional Khond religion gave highest importance to the Earth goddess, who is held to be the creator and sustainer of the world. The gender of the deity changed to male and became ''Dharni Deota''. His companion is ''Bhatbarsi Deota'', the hunting god. To them once a year a buffalo was sacrificed. Before hunting they would worship the spirit of the hills and valleys they would hunt in lest they hide the animals the hunter wished to catch.
The Kondh tribe rose in rebellion under the leadership of "Kondh Pradhan" Kamal Lochan Dora Pradhan. He was Kandha Pradhan of the Maliah Clan born in the village Binjigiri, located near Kullada of the lower Ghumsur area. He was appointed the 'Maliah Bisoi' or 'Tribal Ally' of the Raja of Ghumsar in his personal capacity as the chieftain of the clans of the Kondhs of Ghumsur area of Odisha. He was a good sword-fighter and a wrestler of high quality. He was also the hereditary leader of the Maliah clan of the Ghumsar Kondhs and 'Tribal Ally' to the king of Ghumsur. He was appointed as the Commander-in-chief of the Ghumsur and Kondh army. He had managed the military affairs of Ghumsur in a good manner. While fighting with the British army, he had given a tough fight to the British.


In Traditional Khond religion, a breach of accepted religious conduct by any member of their society invited the wrath of spirits in the form of lack of rain fall, soaking of streams, destruction of forest produce, and other natural calamities. Hence, the customary laws, norms, taboos, and values were greatly adhered to and enforced with high to heavy punishments, depending upon the seriousness of the crimes committed. The practise of traditional Khond religion has practically become extinct today.
'''British measures to stop the rebellion'''


Extended contact with the Oriya speaking Hindus made Khonds to adopt many aspects of [[Hinduism]] and Hindu culture. The contact with the Hindus led the Khonds to adopt Hindu deities into their pantheon and rituals. For example, the [[Kali]] and [[Durga]] are worshiped as manifestations of Dharani, but always with the sacrifice of buffaloes, goats, or fowl. Similarly, [[Shiva]] is worshipped as a manifestation of Bhatbarsi Deota with tribal rituals not seen in Hinduism. Jagganath, Ram, Krishna and Balram are other popular deities who have been "tribalised" in Khond adaptation of Hinduism.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/humanities/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/konds|title=konds|access-date=18 March 2020}}</ref>
In order suppress the rebellion of Dora, the British authorities took several measures. When the rebellion of Dora became intolerable, the British authority under the Madras Presidency sent George Edward Russel to suppress the rebellion under Dora. During this time, Dhananjay Bhanja who had left Ghumsur had taken shelter under the Kondhs of Ghumsur. However, it is supposed that instead of paying revenue to the British Government, he had taken much amount of money with him to continue and support the rebellion in association with the Kondhs of Ghumsur. In the mean while Russel reached Ghumsur on 11 January 1836 to suppress the rebellion. He had a grand army with him to fight with the Kondhs. In addition to that the British Government of India had ordered the superintendents of the Tributary Princely States to render all necessary military and logistical assistance to Russel to suppress the rebellion.


Many Khonds converted to Protestant Christianity in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century due to the efforts of the missionaries of the Serampore Mission. The influence of Khond traditional beliefs on Christianity can be seen in some rituals such as those associated with Easter and resurrection when ancestors are also venerated and given offerings, although the church officially rejects the traditional beliefs as pagan.
'''Preparations of Dora for the rebellion'''
Many Khonds have also converted to Islam and a great diversity of religious practises can be seen among the members of the tribe. There is widespread religious diversity within the tribe, and often within the same family.
However, the Khond tribal identity and affiliation predominates the social and ethical culture far more than individual religious faith.


Significantly, as with many indigenous peoples, the conceptual worldview of the natural environment and its sacredness subscribed to by the Khond reinforce the social and cultural practices that define the tribe. Here, the sacredness of the earth perpetuates tribal socio-ethics, wherein harmony with nature and respect for ancestors is deeply embedded. This is in stark contrast to non tribal, materialistic, economics-centred, resource extractive worldview that may not prioritise the primacy of the land or acknowledge environment as a spiritual and cultural resource and thereby promote deforestation, strip-mining etc. for development projects.
During this critical time Raja Dhananjay Bhanja died on 31 December 1835 leaving his family to the care of the Kondhs of Ghumsur. At this critical hour, military commanders and allies of Ghumsar like Brundaban Bhanja, Jagannath Bhanja, Madhu Bhanja, Baliar Singh, Chakra Bisoi, Sundaray Bisoi, Sangram Singh, Nanda Bisoi came forward to strengthen the hands of Dora in the rebellion against the British authority. As these leaders were quite well acquainted with the jungle area, they took the benefit of it and resorted to Guerrilla warfare against the British in this rebellion. Dora as the Commander of the rebellion fought against the British by concealing the rebels in the jungles and ghats causing severe attrition to the British army.
This divergence in worldviews of the Khonds with the Policy makers has led to a situation of conflict in many instances.<ref>Hardenberg, Roland, ''Children of the Earth Goddess:Society, Sacrifice and Marriage in the Highlands of Orissa in Transformations in Sacrificial Practices: From Antiquity to Modern Times ...By Eftychia Stavrianopoulou, Axel Michaels, Claus Ambos'', Lit Verlag Muster, 2005, pages -134.</ref>


==Economy==
'''The British operation'''
{{Unreferenced section|date=March 2017}}
They have an economy based on hunting and gathering, trapping game, collecting wild fruits, tubers and honey apart from [[subsistence agriculture]] i.e. [[shifting cultivation]] or slash-and-burn cultivation, locally called Podu.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.kbk.nic.in/tribalprofile/KANDHA.pdf|title=Kandha Hand Book|access-date=22 December 2021}}</ref> The Khonds are excellent fruit farmers. The most striking feature of the Khonds is that they have adapted to horticulture and grow pineapple, oranges, turmeric, ginger and papaya in plenty. Forest fruit trees like [[mango]] and [[jackfruit]], Mahua, Guava, Tendu and Custard apples are collected, which fulfill the major dietary chunk of the Khonds. Besides, the Khonds practice shifting cultivation, or ''podu chasa'' as it is locally called, as part of agriculture for growing lentils, beans and millets retaining the most primitive features of agricultural underdevelopment. Millets and beans along with game and fish form the staple diet of the Khonds.
A dietary shift from millets to carbohydrate-rich, processed foods has led to obesity and diabetes among tribals.
Turmeric grown in the Kandhamal district by the Khonds is a registered Geographical Indication product.


[[File:Niyamgiri rice.jpg|thumb|Traditional Rice cultivar of Khonds]]
In order to capture the family members of Dhananjay Bhanja, Captain Butler on 14 th February, 1836, led the British troop to the Ghats He had two point responsibilities to perform
The Khonds grow several native cultivars of fragrant and coloured rice. Parboiled rice is preferred as a staple.
(1) to capture the royal members and
(2) to rescue to treasury which had been taken by Dhananjay Bhanja. Dora had instigated the Kondhs to resort to aggression against the British troop. When the British troop reached the Ghats to make a head way to Ghumsar Udaygiri, they faced staunch resistance from the Kondhs. With their logistical lines disrupted, the British troops were forced to forage and some soldiers forcibly took away the livestock and grains of the Kondh villagers. By these acts they invited the hostility of the Kondhs of Ghumsur.


They go out for collective hunts as well collect the seasonal fruits and roots in the forest. They usually cook food with oil extracted from sal and mahua seeds. They also use medicinal plants. These practices make them mainly dependent on forest resources for survival. The Khonds smoke fish and meat for preservation.
'''Resistance by the Kondhs'''


==Uprisings==
In the mean time, the rebellious Kondhs attacked a British detachment between Ghumsar Udaygiri and Durgaprasad village. In that encounter, thirteen soldiers (sepoys) and two European officers Lieutenant Bromly and Ensign Gibbon were killed. Prior to that the British forces had captured some Kondhs and subsequently took others as prisoners after this incident, subjecting them to torture and public humiliation. This instigated the Kandhas under Dora to give a tough resistance to the British forces.
{{tone|section|date=April 2022}}
[[File:Kandha Chief with weapons Odisha 1864 drawing.png|thumb|Kandha (Khond) Chief with weapons from 1864]]
The Khonds maintained a formidable reputation that involved multiple revolts. From 1753 to 1856 in the century long Ghumsar uprising the Khonds rebelled against [[Company rule in India|the rule]] of the [[East India Company]] and carried out sustained guerrilla warfare as well as pitched combat against the British.<ref>{{cite book | title=Tribe British Relations in India |first=Maguni Charan |last=Behera |chapter=Against the British: Kandha Leadership in Ghumsar Uprising (1753–1856) |year=2021 |pages=237–257 |publisher=Springer |doi=10.1007/978-981-16-3424-6_15 |isbn=9789811634246 |s2cid=239219992 |chapter-url=https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-981-16-3424-6_15#:~:text=One%20such%20least%20known%20revolt,a%20century%20under%20different%20leaders.}},


</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Essays on Social Reform Movements |first=Raj |last=Kumar |publisher=Discovery Publishing House |year=2004 |isbn=978-8-17141-792-6 |page=266 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=C7SQW69LLSIC&pg=PA266}}</ref>
'''Special operation of British forces to arrest Dora'''


==Social and environmental concerns==
In order to arrest Dora, the British entered into Ambhajhara and Jiripada forests but they could not get success. Till that time Dora was playing as the key leader of the movement. The British searched in many places to arrest him. He moved from place to place and at last sought refuge at Angul. Having failured to capture Dora, the British, declared a prize of 5,000 rupees for his capture dead or alive. Following this, the Tributary Raja of Angul betrayed Dora. At the instigation of Henry Ricketts, the Commissioner of Odisha, Raja Somnath Singh of Angul handed over Dora Bisoi to the British forces in 1837 when Dora had visited him to seek military assistance.
The Dongria clan of Khonds inhabit the steep slopes of the Niyamgiri Range of Koraput district and over the border into Kalahandi. They work entirely on the steep slopes for their livelihood.
[[Vedanta Resources]], a UK-based mining company, threatened the future of homeland of the [[Dongria Khonds]] clan of this tribe who reside in the Niyamgiri Hills which has rich deposits of [[bauxite]].<ref>{{cite news |publisher=BBC|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/7486252.stm|title=Tribe takes on global mining firm |access-date=17 July 2008 | date=17 July 2008}}</ref> The [[bauxite mining]] also threatened the source and potability of the perennial streams in the Niyamgiri Hills.


The tribe's plight was the subject of a [[Survival International]] short film narrated by actress [[Joanna Lumley]].<ref>[http://www.survival-international.org/films/mine Survival International]</ref> In 2010 India's environment ministry ordered Vedanta Resources to halt a sixfold expansion of an [[aluminium]] refinery in Odisha.<ref>{{cite news |publisher=Guardian News and Media Ltd |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2010/aug/24/vedanta-mining-industry-india |title=India blocks Vedanta mine on Dongria-Kondh tribe's sacred hill |access-date=21 April 2012 | date=24 August 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |publisher=BBC|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-11596080|title=India puts stop to expansion of Vedanta aluminium plant |access-date=13 August 2011 | date=21 October 2010}}</ref>
'''Results of the revolt'''
As part of its Demand Dignity campaign, in 2011 [[Amnesty International]] published a report concerning the rights of the Dongria Kondh.<ref>[https://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA20/037/2011/en India: Generalisations, omissions, assumptions: The failings of Vedanta’s Environmental Impact Assessments for its bauxite mine and alumina refinery in India’s state of Odisha (Executive Summary) ] Amnesty International.</ref><ref name="guardian080412">{{cite news |publisher=Guardian News and Media Ltd |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/apr/08/indian-tribe-avatar-supreme-court |title=Indian tribe's Avatar-like battle against mining firm reaches supreme court |access-date=21 April 2012 | date=8 April 2012}}</ref>


Celebrities backing the campaign included [[Arundhati Roy]] (the Booker prize-winning author), as well as the British actors [[Joanna Lumley]] and [[Michael Palin]].<ref name="guardian080412" />
After the capture of their leader Dora, other rebellious leaders were captured subsequently. They were tried and awarded severe punishments. As a result of which Dora received life imprisonment and died in the Ootacamund prison in 1846. 40 rebels were awarded death sentences, 29 received imprisonment for life and 2 others received the same sentence for 8 years. Similarly, others got imprisonment who were involved in the rebellion of Ghumsur. After the arrest of Dora and other rebel leaders, the British Government made new agreement with the Kondhs. The British appointed Shyam Bisoi as the Chief of the Kandhas who had played a great role to capture of Kamal Lochan Dora. After this, the rebellion organized by Dora ended. The Kandha rebellion did not stop after Dora‟s imprisonment and death. His nephew, Chakra, took Dora‟s place and resolved to take revenge for his uncle‟s imprisonment and death. He posed a great threat to the British authority.


In April 2013, the [[Supreme Court of India|Supreme Court]] in a landmark decision, [[Orissa Mining Corporation Ltd vs Ministry Of Environment & Forest]] dated 18 April 2013, upheld the ban on Vedanta's project in the Niyamgiri Hills, ruling that development projects can not be at the cost of constitutional, fundamental cultural and religious rights of the Khonds and directed that the consent of the Khond community affected by the Vedanta project must be obtained prior to commencement.
'''Factors responsible for the rebellion under Chakra'''


The Khonds voted against the project in August 2013, and in January 2014 the [[Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change|Ministry for Environment and Forests]] stopped the Vedanta project.<ref>{{cite news|title=Vedanta Resources lawsuit (re Dongria Kondh in Orissa)|url=https://business-humanrights.org/en/vedanta-resources-lawsuit-re-dongria-kondh-in-orissa|newspaper=[[Business & Human Rights Resource Centre]]|access-date=4 December 2016}}</ref>
The Kondhs under Chakra were instigated to make rebellion against the British Raj. The following factors were responsible for this rebellion.
(1) the death of Dora, had left a scar in the mind of Chakra. He wanted to take revenge of the death of his uncle Dora.


The Niyamgiri movement and the resultant decision of the Supreme Court is considered a major milestone in indigenous rights jurisprudence in India.
(2) the actions of Captain S.C. Macpherson, the Meriah Agent disturbed the Kondhs a lot as he had interfered in the religion of the Kondhs. He rescued Meriahs and threatened the Kondhs of dire consequences who violated the law regarding Meriah. Further, he punished the Kandhas mercilessly.


==Communal unrest and insurgency==
(3) on the other hand, Captain Macpherson was defeated by the Kondhs and thereby humiliated in his camp at Bisipara in 1846. He was forced by the Kondh revolutionaries to surrender the Meriahs whom he had rescued from the Kondh area. Otherwise the Kondhs would have killed him. This achievement of the Kondhs under the leadership of Chakra made them courageous. Finally, the Kondhs installed Pitambar, the minor son of Dhananjay Bhanja as the king of Ghumsur. This emboldened them and being surcharged with enthusiasm, they looted the British camp. The above factors forced the British Government to plan to suppress the rebellion of the Kondhs under Chakra.
{{main|Religious violence in Odisha}}
On 25 December 2007, ethnic conflict broke out between Khond tribals and Pano Scheduled Caste people in Kandhamals.


On 23 August 2008, Hindu ascetic [[Swami Lakshmanananda]] Saraswati (who was said to have worked among the Khond tribals for their educational upliftment) was murdered along with four others, including a boy, by a team of Maoist gunmen which allegedly included Catholic Panos.
'''British plan to capture Chakra Bisoi'''
[[Naxalite-Maoist insurgency|Maoist]] rebels took responsibility for the multiple murders.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/001200810051766.htm |newspaper=The Hindu |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081008083915/http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/001200810051766.htm |archive-date=8 October 2008 |title=Majority of Maoist supporters in Orissa are Christians |agency=PTI |url-status=dead }}</ref> This led to large-scale riots between the Kandha tribe and the Pano communities. The underlying causes are complex, and cross political and religious boundaries.<ref name=bbc>
{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/7637087.stm | work=BBC News | title=India's remote faith battleground | date=26 September 2008}}
</ref> Land encroachment, perceived or otherwise, was the main source of tension between the Khond and Pano communities. It was widely believed by the Khonds that Panos were purchasing tribal land by forged documents wherein they were shown to be Khonds. The clash was predominantly ethnic, as both Hindu Kondhs and Protestant Christian Kondhs were on the same side, fighting against Catholic and Hindu Panos.


Later the conflict assumed communal overtones, as it was projected by western media to be a persecution of "Christian Minorities" rather than an ethnic conflict for land resources.
Looking into the above factors, Capt. Macpherson did not follow the policy of appeasement with the Kandhas. The British Government realized that his presence as the Meriah Agent was detrimental to the smooth functioning of British administration at Ghumsur. In order to bring the situation under control, the Madras Presidency appointed Lt. Col. Campbell as the Meriah Agent who succeeded Macpherson. However, Campbell was a man of different attitude. He followed a policy of compromise and tried to win over the Kandhas of Ghumsur. Also he was successful in protecting the Christian and Medical Missionaries who within a short while converted a large number of tribals to Christianity. So, the Kondhs began to abstain from Meriah sacrifice.


In April 2010, a special "fast track" court in Phulbani convicted 105 people.<ref name="hindu2010convictions">
'''Role of Somnath Singh in the rebellion'''
{{cite news | title = 7 sentenced in Kandhamal riots cases |url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/other-states/article347214.ece |author = Sib Kumar Das |newspaper = The Hindu |date = 1 April 2010 |location=Chennai, India}}
</ref> Ten people were acquitted due to lack of evidence.


Kandhamal district is currently a part of the [[Red Corridor]] of India, an area with significant Maoist insurgency activity.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://intellibriefs.blogspot.com/2009/12/naxal-menace-83-districts-under.html |title=83 districts under the Security Related Expenditure Scheme |publisher=IntelliBriefs |date=11 December 2009 |access-date=17 September 2011 |archive-date=27 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111027115807/http://intellibriefs.blogspot.com/2009/12/naxal-menace-83-districts-under.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> Suspected [[Naxalite-Maoist insurgency|Maoist]] rebels detonated a roadside [[land mine]] on 27 November 2010, blowing up an ambulance. A patient, a paramedic, and the vehicle's driver were killed.<ref>
By his strategy Campbell won most of the Christianized Kondhs to his side. However, Chakra did not come under the influence of the British authority. He organized rebellions of the Kondhs against the British forces. It was alleged that Chakra and Nabghan Konhoro were assisted by Somnath Singh, the King of Angul. After this, the British Government followed a new policy towards the rebellion. It pardoned both Chakra and Nabghan in order to suppress the rebellion. The policy bore fruit and Nabghan surrendered. However, Chakra did not surrender to the British authority. This made the British authority to become skeptic about Somnath Singh and wanted to take severe actions against Somanath Singh of Angul. As a result of which Somnath picked up his quarrel with the British in 1846. He forcibly took possession of a village of Hindol. For that offence he was fined Rs. 3,000/-. The King tried to protest but he could not get success. On the other hand, Lt. Col. Campbell was authorized to march towards Angul to suppress Somnath Singh. In 1848, Angul was confiscated and Somnath Singh was sent as a prisoner to the Hazaribagh Jail.
{{cite news|title = Report: Suspected rebels kill 3 in eastern India |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/feedarticle/9381552 |newspaper = The Guardian |date = 28 November 2010 |location=London}}
</ref>


==See also==
'''British attempt to Capture Chakra'''
*[[Kandhamal]], district

*Naxalite-Maoist Insurgency in India [[Red Corridor]]
Then the British made many attempts to capture Chakra. The capture of Rendo Majhi, the commander of the Kondhs of Kalahandi and the subsequent attack on the camp of Major A.C. Mac Neill who succeed Campbell as Meriah Agent led British to conclude that Chakra was behind the attack. Meanwhile, G.F. Cockburn who succeeded Samuells as the Superintendent of the Tributary Princely States wanted to take steps against Chakra. In the meanwhile, the Zamindar of Madanpur was accused of giving shelter to Chakra. So, he was removed from his zamindary. R.M. Macdonald arrested Dharam Singh Mandhata of Athagaon who had given shelter to Chakra.
*[[Lakshmanananda Saraswati]]

'''Chakra's strategy'''

Looking at the strategy of the British forces, Chakra never stopped in his mission against the British. He could know that the Sabara Tribals of Parlakhemundi were rising against the British under the leadership of Dandasena of Gaiba. Taking this opportunity, Chakra united the Sabaras and Kondhs and instigated them to set fire to and plunder those villages which did not support Dandasena. Captain Wilson moved to suppress this rebellion and captured Dandasena who was later hanged. After that Chakra moved from Parlakhemundi to the area of Tel valley. Looking at the threat of the British authority, the king of Patna could not help Chakra. So, in order to save himself, Chakra entered into the forests of Kandhamal. The Govt. of Bengal Presidency ordered the annexation of Kandhamals into the British territory in 1855, which succeeded only on paper because of practical difficulties of establishing British authority over a rebellious tribe in a densely forested region. From that time nothing was known about Chakra. He was never captured. He supposedly died in 1856. However, in 1857 G.F. Cockburn, the Commissioner of Odisha wrote to the Government regarding Chakra that perhaps he had abandoned the rebellion. For a decade from 1846 to 1856, the activities of Chakra were a threat to the British authority.<ref>'''1842 Lieut. Macphersons Report upon the Khonds of the Districts of Ganjam and Cuttack, Madras''',1863</ref>

'''Significance'''

The Kondh rebellion under Dora and Chakra is significant in the history of Odisha in particular and India in general. The role played by both Dora and Chakra in this Tribal uprising was commendable. However, it is beyond doubt that this tribal rebellion of the Kondhs had given a tough challenge to the British authority in the early part of the British administration in Odisha. Although, the rebellion could not bring much result, but it had the shaken the British authority in Odisha and would find resonance in the Great Mutiny of 1857.<ref>[https://books.google.co.th/books?id=Rbye1SEL1KAC&pg=PA24&lpg=PA24&dq=banki+orissa+raja&source=bl&ots=WXDLo9Jf7J&sig=4q2-DlyeabbXHF_fdbdl-upsSjY&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiRwpqW8KjKAhWLUI4KHcz9Aww4ChDoAQgZMAA#v=onepage&q=banki%20orissa%20raja&f=false L. E. B. Cobden-Ramsay, ''Feudatory States of Orissa: Bengal District Gazetteers'', Logos Press, 2011]</ref>

'''Language'''

The Khonds speak the [[Kui language (India)|Kui language]] as their mother tongue. It is most closely related to [[Gondi language|Gondi]], [[Konda language (Dravidian)|Konda]] and [[Kuvi language|Kuvi]] and more distantly to [[Telugu language|Telugu]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Krishnamurti|first=Bhadriraju|title=The Dravidian languages|date=2002|publisher=Cambridge University Press|location=Cambridge|isbn=0-521-77111-0|edition=1st}}</ref>

== Society ==

The Kondhs are from the Proto-Australoid ethnic group. Their native language is [[Kui language (India)|Kui]], a Dravidian language written with the Oriya script. The Kondh are adept land dwellers exhibiting greater adaptability to the forest and hill environment. However, due to development interventions in education, medical facilities, irrigation, plantation and so on, they are forced into the modern way of life in many ways. Their traditional life style, customary traits of economy political organization, norms, values and world view have been drastically changed in recent times. The traditional Kondh Society is based on geographically demarcated clans, each consisting of a large group of related families identified by a Totem, usually of a male wild animal. Each clan usually has a common surname, and is led by the Eldest male member of the most powerful family of the clan. All the clans of the Kondhs owe allegiance to the "''Kondh Pradhan''", who is usually the leader of the most powerful clan of the Kondhs.

The Kondh family is often nuclear, although extended joint families are also found. Female family members are on equal social footing with the male members in Kondh society, and they can inherit, own, hold and dispose off property without reference to their parents, husband or sons. Women have the right to choose their husbands, and seek divorce.However, the family is patrilineal and patrilocal. Remarriage is common for divorced or widowed women and men. Children are never considered illegitimate in Kondh society and inherit the clan name of their biological or adoptive fathers with all the rights accruing to natural born children. The Kondhs have a dormitory for adolescent girls and boys which forms a part of their enculturation and education process. The girls and boys sleep at night in their respective dormitory and learn social taboos, myths, legends, stories, riddles, proverbs amidst singing and dancing the whole night, thus learning the way of the tribe. The girls are usually instructed in good housekeeping and in ways to bring up good children while the boys learn the art of hunting and the legends of their brave and martial ancestors. Bravery and skill in hunting determine the respect that a Man gets in the Kondh tribe. A large number of Kondhs were recruited by the British during the First and second World Wars and were prized as natural Jungle warfare experts. Even today a large proportion of the Kondh men join the State Police or Armed Forces of India to seek an opportunity to prove their bravery. the men usually forage or hunt in the forests. They also practise a slash and burn (Podu) shifting cultivation on the hill slopes where they grow different varieties of rice, lentils and vegetables. Women usually do all the household work from fetching water from the distant streams, cooking, serving food to each member of the household to assisting the men in cultivation, harvesting and sale of produce in the market.<ref>Jena MK,et.al. ''Forest Tribes of Orissa: Lifestyles and Social Conditions of selected Orissan Tribes, Vol.1'', Man and Forest Series 2,New Delhi, 2002 , pages -13-18.</ref>

The Kondh commonly practice Clan Exogamy. By custom, marriage must cross clan boundaries (a form of incest taboo). The clan is strictly exogamous, which means marriages are made outside the clan (yet still within the greater Kondh population). The form of acquiring mate is often by negotiation. However, marriage by capture or elopement is also rarely practiced. For marriage bride price is paid to the parents of the bride by the groom, which is a striking feature of the Kondhs. The Bride Price was traditionally paid in tiger pelts though now land or gold sovereigns are the usual mode of payment of bride price.

===Religious beliefs===

Traditionally the Kondh religious beliefs were syncretic combining totemism, animism, Ancestor worship, shamanism and nature worship.The Kondhs gave highest importance to the Earth goddess, who is held to be the creator and sustainer of the world. Earlier Human Sacrifices called "Meriah" were offered by the Kondh to propitiate the Earth Goddess. In the Kondh society, a breach of accepted religious conduct by any member of their society invited the wrath of spirits in the form of lack of rain fall, soaking of streams, destruction of forest produce, and other natural calamities. Hence, the customary laws, norms, taboos, and values were greatly adhered to and enforced with high to heavy punishments, depending upon the seriousness of the crimes committed. The practise of traditional religion has almost become extinct today. Due to increased Hindu Religious influence (Sanskritisation) the Kondh pantheon now has the common Hindu gods and their own Gods have been reduced to the status of minor deities in the Hindu Pantheon, often as a child of a Hindu deity. The Hindu influence is clearly seen in the decline in consumption of beef (earlier a common food) among the Kondhs. Many Kondhs converted to Protestant Christianity in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century due to the efforts of the missionaries of the Serampore Mission. The influence of Kondh traditional beliefs on Christianity can be seen in some rituals such as those associated with Easter and resurrection when ancestors are also venerated and given offerings, although the church officially rejects the traditional beliefs as pagan. Many Kondhs have also converted to Islam and a great diversity of religious practises can be seen among the members of the Tribe. Significantly, as with any culture, the ethical practices of the Kondh reinforce the social and economic practices that define the people. Thus, the sacredness of the earth perpetuates tribal socio-economics,wherein harmony with nature and respect for anscestors is deeply embedded whereas non tribal cultures that neglect the sacredness of the land find no problem in committing deforestation, strip-mining etc., and this has led to a conflictual situation in many instances.<ref>Hardenburg Roland, ''Children of the Earth Goddess:Society, Sacrifice and Marriage in the Highlands of Orissa in Transformations in Sacrificial Practices: From Antiquity to Modern Times ...By Eftychia Stavrianopoulou, Axel Michaels, Claus Ambos'', Lit Verlag Muster, 2005 , pages -134.</ref>

==Culture and economy==
{{Unreferenced section|date=March 2017}}
The Kondhs, or the Kui as they are locally known, are one of the largest tribal group in Odisha. They are known for their cultural heritage and values which center on respecting nature. The [[Kandhamal district]] in Odisha (erstwhile a part of [[Phulbani district]]), has a fifty-five percent Kondh population, and was named after the tribe.

They go out for collective hunts eating the fruits and roots they collect. They usually cook food with oil extracted from sal and mahua seeds. They also use medicinal plants. These practices make them mainly dependent on forest resources for survival. The Kondhs smoke fish and meat for preservation.
The Dongria clan of Kondhs inhabit the steep slopes of the Niyamgiri Range of Koraput district and over the border into Kalahandi. They work entirely on the steep slopes for their livelihood. The Niyamgiri range provides a wealth of perennial springs and streams which greatly enrich cultivation. In recent times the Kondhs have been assertive of their Right to the forests and have at times violently resisted the attempts to establish Mining Companies or Government felling of trees in their traditional areas. A nascent Kondh Nationalism fuelling aspirations of secession from the Republic of India as a result of the local [[Maoist Insurgency]] is emerging.{{POV statement|date=March 2017}}


==References==
==References==
Line 123: Line 124:
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080216035917/http://www.cbmphoto.co.uk/India/Khond.html Pictures]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080216035917/http://www.cbmphoto.co.uk/India/Khond.html Pictures]
* [http://www.sinlung.com Sinlung] Sinlung - Indian tribes
* [http://www.sinlung.com Sinlung] Sinlung - Indian tribes
*[http://www.survivalinternational.org/tribes/dongria Dongria Kondh Survival International] (Includes Images)
* {{EB1911}}
*[https://www.theguardian.com/environment/video/2009/may/28/india-mining-dongria-kondh A 5 minute video about the tribe and the challenges they face from Vedanta Resources]


{{Scheduled tribes of India}}
{{Scheduled tribes of India}}
{{Scheduled tribes in Odisha}}
{{Scheduled tribes in Odisha}}
{{Reservation in India}}
{{Authority control}}


[[Category:Scheduled Tribes of Andhra Pradesh]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in India]]
[[Category:Social groups of Odisha]]
[[Category:Social groups of Andhra Pradesh]]
[[Category:Telugu society]]
[[Category:Telugu society]]
[[Category:Dravidian peoples]]
[[Category:Dravidian peoples]]
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[[Category:Scheduled Tribes of Madhya Pradesh]]
[[Category:Scheduled Tribes of Madhya Pradesh]]
[[Category:Scheduled Tribes of Maharashtra]]
[[Category:Scheduled Tribes of Maharashtra]]
[[Category:Scheduled Tribes of Odisha]]
[[Category:Scheduled Tribes of West Bengal]]
[[Category:Scheduled Tribes of West Bengal]]
[[Category:Human sacrifice]]
[[Category:Scheduled Tribes of Odisha]]

Latest revision as of 02:04, 8 May 2024

Khonds
A Khond woman in Odisha
Regions with significant populations
 India
Odisha1,627,486 (2011 census)[1]
Languages
Kui, Kuvi, Odia
Religion
Hinduism and some Christianity[2]
Related ethnic groups
Dravidian people  • Dangaria Kandha  • Gondi people

Khonds (also spelt Kondha and Kandha) are an indigenous Adivasi tribal community in India. Traditionally hunter-gatherers, they are divided into the hill-dwelling Khonds and plain-dwelling Khonds for census purposes, but the Khonds themselves identify by their specific clans. Khonds usually hold large tracts of fertile land, but still practice hunting, gathering, and slash-and-burn agriculture in the forests as a symbol of their connection to, and as an assertion of their ownership of the forests wherein they dwell. Khonds speak the Kui language and write it in the Odia script.

The Khonds are the largest tribal group in the state of Odisha. They are known for their rich cultural heritage, valourous martial traditions, and indigenous values, which center on harmony with nature. The Kandhamal district in Odisha has a fifty-five per cent Khond population, and is named after the tribe.

They are a designated Scheduled Tribe in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Jharkhand and West Bengal.[3]

Language[edit]

The Khonds speak Kui and Kuvi as their native languages. They are most closely related to the Gondi language.[citation needed] Both are Dravidian languages and are written with the Odia script.

Society[edit]

The Khonds are adept land dwellers of the forest and hill environment. However, due to development interventions in education, medical facilities, irrigation, plantation, they have adapted to the modern way of life in many ways. Their traditional lifestyle, language, food habits, customary traits of economy, political organisation, norms, values, and world view have been drastically changed in recent times.

The traditional Khond society is based on geographically demarcated clans, each consisting of a large group of related families identified by a Totem, usually of a male wild animal. Each clan usually has a common surname and is led by the eldest male member of the most powerful family of the clan. All the clans of the Khonds owe allegiance to the "Kondh Pradhan", who is usually the leader of the most powerful clan of the Khonds.

The Khond family is often nuclear, although extended joint families are also found. Female family members are on equal social footing with the male members in Khond society, and they can inherit, own, hold, and dispose of property without reference to their parents, husband or sons. Women have the right to choose their husbands, and to seek divorce. However, the family is patrilineal and patrilocal. Remarriage is common for divorced or widowed women and men. Children are never considered illegitimate in Khond society and inherit the clan name of their biological or adoptive fathers with all the rights accruing to natural born children.

A traditional Khond house.
Khond Girl

The Kondhs have a dormitory for adolescent girls and boys which forms a part of their enculturation and education process. The girls and boys sleep at night in their respective dormitory and learn social taboos, myths, legends, stories, riddles, proverbs amidst singing and dancing the whole night, thus learning the way of the tribe. The girls are usually instructed in good housekeeping and in ways to bring up good children while the boys learn the art of hunting and the legends of their brave and martial ancestors.

Bravery and skill in hunting determine the respect that a man gets in the Khond tribe. A large number of Khonds were recruited by the British during the First and Second World Wars and were prized as natural jungle warfare experts and fierce warriors. Even today a large proportion of the Khond men join the State police or Armed Forces of India to seek an opportunity to prove their bravery. Modern education has facilitated the entry of a large number of Khonds into Government Civil Service, and adaptation to modern life has ensured that the tribe is one of the most politically dominant in Odisha.

The men usually forage or hunt in the forests. They also practise the podu system of shifting cultivation on the hill slopes where they grow different varieties of rice, lentils and vegetables. Women usually do all the household work from fetching water from the distant streams, cooking, serving food to each member of the household to assisting the men in cultivation, harvesting and sale of produce in the market.[4]

The Khond commonly practice clan exogamy. By custom, marriage must cross clan boundaries (a form of incest taboo). The clan is strictly exogamous, which means marriages are made outside the clan (yet still within the greater Khond population). The form of acquiring mate is often by negotiation. However, marriage by capture or elopement is also rarely practised. For marriage bride price is paid to the parents of the bride by the groom, which is a striking feature of the Khonds. The bride price was traditionally paid in tiger pelts though now land or gold sovereigns are the usual mode of payment of bride price.

Religious beliefs[edit]

Meriah sacrifice post.

Traditionally the Khond religious beliefs were syncretic combining totemism, animism, ancestor worship, shamanism and nature worship. British writers also note that the Khonds practised human sacrifice.[5] Traditional Khond religion involved the worship mountains, Rivers, Sun, Earth. Baredi is place of worship. Traditional Khond religion involved different rituals such as Jhagadi or Kedu or Meriah Puja, Sru Penu Puja, Dharni Penu Puja, Guruba Penu Puja, Turki Penu Puja, and Pitabali Puja. Matiguru involved worship of earth through before sowing seeds. Other rituals connected with land fertility were 'Guruba Puja', 'Turki Puja' and in some cases 'Meriah Puja (human sacrifice)' to appease Dharni (earth). Saru penu puja involved the sacrifice of fowls and feast. In Dehuri sacrifice goat and chicken were sacrificed. Gurba Penu Puja and Turki penu puja performed outside the village. Pitabali Puja was performed by offering flowers, fruits, sandal paste, incense, ghee-lamps, ghee, sundried rice, turmeric, buffalo or a he-goat and fowl.[6]

The Traditional Khond religion gave highest importance to the Earth goddess, who is held to be the creator and sustainer of the world. The gender of the deity changed to male and became Dharni Deota. His companion is Bhatbarsi Deota, the hunting god. To them once a year a buffalo was sacrificed. Before hunting they would worship the spirit of the hills and valleys they would hunt in lest they hide the animals the hunter wished to catch.

In Traditional Khond religion, a breach of accepted religious conduct by any member of their society invited the wrath of spirits in the form of lack of rain fall, soaking of streams, destruction of forest produce, and other natural calamities. Hence, the customary laws, norms, taboos, and values were greatly adhered to and enforced with high to heavy punishments, depending upon the seriousness of the crimes committed. The practise of traditional Khond religion has practically become extinct today.

Extended contact with the Oriya speaking Hindus made Khonds to adopt many aspects of Hinduism and Hindu culture. The contact with the Hindus led the Khonds to adopt Hindu deities into their pantheon and rituals. For example, the Kali and Durga are worshiped as manifestations of Dharani, but always with the sacrifice of buffaloes, goats, or fowl. Similarly, Shiva is worshipped as a manifestation of Bhatbarsi Deota with tribal rituals not seen in Hinduism. Jagganath, Ram, Krishna and Balram are other popular deities who have been "tribalised" in Khond adaptation of Hinduism.[7]

Many Khonds converted to Protestant Christianity in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century due to the efforts of the missionaries of the Serampore Mission. The influence of Khond traditional beliefs on Christianity can be seen in some rituals such as those associated with Easter and resurrection when ancestors are also venerated and given offerings, although the church officially rejects the traditional beliefs as pagan. Many Khonds have also converted to Islam and a great diversity of religious practises can be seen among the members of the tribe. There is widespread religious diversity within the tribe, and often within the same family. However, the Khond tribal identity and affiliation predominates the social and ethical culture far more than individual religious faith.

Significantly, as with many indigenous peoples, the conceptual worldview of the natural environment and its sacredness subscribed to by the Khond reinforce the social and cultural practices that define the tribe. Here, the sacredness of the earth perpetuates tribal socio-ethics, wherein harmony with nature and respect for ancestors is deeply embedded. This is in stark contrast to non tribal, materialistic, economics-centred, resource extractive worldview that may not prioritise the primacy of the land or acknowledge environment as a spiritual and cultural resource and thereby promote deforestation, strip-mining etc. for development projects. This divergence in worldviews of the Khonds with the Policy makers has led to a situation of conflict in many instances.[8]

Economy[edit]

They have an economy based on hunting and gathering, trapping game, collecting wild fruits, tubers and honey apart from subsistence agriculture i.e. shifting cultivation or slash-and-burn cultivation, locally called Podu.[9] The Khonds are excellent fruit farmers. The most striking feature of the Khonds is that they have adapted to horticulture and grow pineapple, oranges, turmeric, ginger and papaya in plenty. Forest fruit trees like mango and jackfruit, Mahua, Guava, Tendu and Custard apples are collected, which fulfill the major dietary chunk of the Khonds. Besides, the Khonds practice shifting cultivation, or podu chasa as it is locally called, as part of agriculture for growing lentils, beans and millets retaining the most primitive features of agricultural underdevelopment. Millets and beans along with game and fish form the staple diet of the Khonds. A dietary shift from millets to carbohydrate-rich, processed foods has led to obesity and diabetes among tribals. Turmeric grown in the Kandhamal district by the Khonds is a registered Geographical Indication product.

Traditional Rice cultivar of Khonds

The Khonds grow several native cultivars of fragrant and coloured rice. Parboiled rice is preferred as a staple.

They go out for collective hunts as well collect the seasonal fruits and roots in the forest. They usually cook food with oil extracted from sal and mahua seeds. They also use medicinal plants. These practices make them mainly dependent on forest resources for survival. The Khonds smoke fish and meat for preservation.

Uprisings[edit]

Kandha (Khond) Chief with weapons from 1864

The Khonds maintained a formidable reputation that involved multiple revolts. From 1753 to 1856 in the century long Ghumsar uprising the Khonds rebelled against the rule of the East India Company and carried out sustained guerrilla warfare as well as pitched combat against the British.[10][11]

Social and environmental concerns[edit]

The Dongria clan of Khonds inhabit the steep slopes of the Niyamgiri Range of Koraput district and over the border into Kalahandi. They work entirely on the steep slopes for their livelihood. Vedanta Resources, a UK-based mining company, threatened the future of homeland of the Dongria Khonds clan of this tribe who reside in the Niyamgiri Hills which has rich deposits of bauxite.[12] The bauxite mining also threatened the source and potability of the perennial streams in the Niyamgiri Hills.

The tribe's plight was the subject of a Survival International short film narrated by actress Joanna Lumley.[13] In 2010 India's environment ministry ordered Vedanta Resources to halt a sixfold expansion of an aluminium refinery in Odisha.[14][15] As part of its Demand Dignity campaign, in 2011 Amnesty International published a report concerning the rights of the Dongria Kondh.[16][17]

Celebrities backing the campaign included Arundhati Roy (the Booker prize-winning author), as well as the British actors Joanna Lumley and Michael Palin.[17]

In April 2013, the Supreme Court in a landmark decision, Orissa Mining Corporation Ltd vs Ministry Of Environment & Forest dated 18 April 2013, upheld the ban on Vedanta's project in the Niyamgiri Hills, ruling that development projects can not be at the cost of constitutional, fundamental cultural and religious rights of the Khonds and directed that the consent of the Khond community affected by the Vedanta project must be obtained prior to commencement.

The Khonds voted against the project in August 2013, and in January 2014 the Ministry for Environment and Forests stopped the Vedanta project.[18]

The Niyamgiri movement and the resultant decision of the Supreme Court is considered a major milestone in indigenous rights jurisprudence in India.

Communal unrest and insurgency[edit]

Main article: Religious violence in Odisha

On 25 December 2007, ethnic conflict broke out between Khond tribals and Pano Scheduled Caste people in Kandhamals.

On 23 August 2008, Hindu ascetic Swami Lakshmanananda Saraswati (who was said to have worked among the Khond tribals for their educational upliftment) was murdered along with four others, including a boy, by a team of Maoist gunmen which allegedly included Catholic Panos. Maoist rebels took responsibility for the multiple murders.[19] This led to large-scale riots between the Kandha tribe and the Pano communities. The underlying causes are complex, and cross political and religious boundaries.[20] Land encroachment, perceived or otherwise, was the main source of tension between the Khond and Pano communities. It was widely believed by the Khonds that Panos were purchasing tribal land by forged documents wherein they were shown to be Khonds. The clash was predominantly ethnic, as both Hindu Kondhs and Protestant Christian Kondhs were on the same side, fighting against Catholic and Hindu Panos.

Later the conflict assumed communal overtones, as it was projected by western media to be a persecution of "Christian Minorities" rather than an ethnic conflict for land resources.

In April 2010, a special "fast track" court in Phulbani convicted 105 people.[21] Ten people were acquitted due to lack of evidence.

Kandhamal district is currently a part of the Red Corridor of India, an area with significant Maoist insurgency activity.[22] Suspected Maoist rebels detonated a roadside land mine on 27 November 2010, blowing up an ambulance. A patient, a paramedic, and the vehicle's driver were killed.[23]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "A-11 Individual Scheduled Tribe Primary Census Abstract Data and its Appendix". www.censusindia.gov.in. Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 3 November 2017.
  2. ^ "ST-14 Scheduled Tribe Population By Religious Community - Odisha". census.gov.in. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
  3. ^ "List of notified Scheduled Tribes" (PDF). Census India. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 November 2013. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
  4. ^ Jena M. K., et.al. Forest Tribes of Orissa: Lifestyles and Social Conditions of selected Orissan Tribes, Vol.1, Man and Forest Series 2, New Delhi, 2002, pages -13-18.
  5. ^ Russell, Robert Vane (1916). pt. II. Descriptive articles on the principal castes and tribes of the Central Provinces. Macmillan and Company, limited.
  6. ^ "Shifting Cultivation by the Juangs of Orissa". etribaltribue. Retrieved 22 October 2022.
  7. ^ "konds". Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  8. ^ Hardenberg, Roland, Children of the Earth Goddess:Society, Sacrifice and Marriage in the Highlands of Orissa in Transformations in Sacrificial Practices: From Antiquity to Modern Times ...By Eftychia Stavrianopoulou, Axel Michaels, Claus Ambos, Lit Verlag Muster, 2005, pages -134.
  9. ^ "Kandha Hand Book" (PDF). Retrieved 22 December 2021.
  10. ^ Behera, Maguni Charan (2021). "Against the British: Kandha Leadership in Ghumsar Uprising (1753–1856)". Tribe British Relations in India. Springer. pp. 237–257. doi:10.1007/978-981-16-3424-6_15. ISBN 9789811634246. S2CID 239219992.,
  11. ^ Kumar, Raj (2004). Essays on Social Reform Movements. Discovery Publishing House. p. 266. ISBN 978-8-17141-792-6.
  12. ^ "Tribe takes on global mining firm". BBC. 17 July 2008. Retrieved 17 July 2008.
  13. ^ Survival International
  14. ^ "India blocks Vedanta mine on Dongria-Kondh tribe's sacred hill". Guardian News and Media Ltd. 24 August 2010. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
  15. ^ "India puts stop to expansion of Vedanta aluminium plant". BBC. 21 October 2010. Retrieved 13 August 2011.
  16. ^ India: Generalisations, omissions, assumptions: The failings of Vedanta’s Environmental Impact Assessments for its bauxite mine and alumina refinery in India’s state of Odisha (Executive Summary) Amnesty International.
  17. ^ a b "Indian tribe's Avatar-like battle against mining firm reaches supreme court". Guardian News and Media Ltd. 8 April 2012. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
  18. ^ "Vedanta Resources lawsuit (re Dongria Kondh in Orissa)". Business & Human Rights Resource Centre. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  19. ^ "Majority of Maoist supporters in Orissa are Christians". The Hindu. PTI. Archived from the original on 8 October 2008.
  20. ^ "India's remote faith battleground". BBC News. 26 September 2008.
  21. ^ Sib Kumar Das (1 April 2010). "7 sentenced in Kandhamal riots cases". The Hindu. Chennai, India.
  22. ^ "83 districts under the Security Related Expenditure Scheme". IntelliBriefs. 11 December 2009. Archived from the original on 27 October 2011. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
  23. ^ "Report: Suspected rebels kill 3 in eastern India". The Guardian. London. 28 November 2010.

External links[edit]

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