Pomla

Brief Details of Pomla

Pomla

The people call themselves Pomla while other community people refer them by different synonyms like Pomla. Topiwala, Chabriwala etc. In Indore city of Madhya Pradesh state, from where they are said to have migrated other community people refer to them as Barguda, as their traditional occupation was making broom (/horu). The Pomla has migrated to Baroda first and stayed in the open fields located in front of "Kal Bhavan" palace of the ruler of Baroda. Later they were granted land for constructing huts or houses from the Royal family during the reign of Sayaijirao Gaikwad. The Pomla are distributed in several districts i.e., Ahmedabad, Bharuch, Baroda, Surat, Panch Mahals, Kheda etc. Their population in Gujarat is 819 (2001 census). Mother tongue of the Pomla community is Pomla dialect. They use Gujarati script. Gujarati language is their second language which is spoken with others. Men are conversant with Hindi and Marathi languages too. Pomla is a very small scheduled tribe.

The Pomla community is non-vagetarian. Their staple food is rotla made of jawar or bqjra flour during summer season. However, they take rotla of wheat or bajra flour in the lunch while they eat rice in the evening. Dal, sak (vegetables) and occasionally non-vegetarian dishes (fish, meat or egg curry) constitute their full diet. Tur, moong and mosur pulses are preferred by them. Their cooking medium is pamolin oil and very rarely they use groundnut oil. Consumption of roots and tubers is not very common. Men take locally available alcoholic drinks, occasionally. They take fruits once in a while. Children of the Pomla community are given milk occasionally but consumption of milk products is rare. Smoking bidi is prevalent in the, community and chewing of tobacco and betel leaf is also common. Special dishes are prepared on festive occasions. Due to poor economic conditions, they are becoming vegetarian from non-vegetarianism.

This community has few social divisions like atak (clan). Only four ataks are reported among them. These are Satpara, Looria, Limari and Batti. Clan hierarchy exists in, their socio-political sphere. Batti atak kinsmen get chieftainship of the community. Traditionally, boys and girls of this clan used to be married with only Looria boys and girls. Now-a-days, this type of preferential marriage is not being practiced. These ataks have goddesses like Melari mata, Wanbati mata, Khatarpar mata, Makali mata, Chamunda mata. These clans govern the marital alliances. They suffix their community name as surname. Self-perception of this community about themselves is medium in this area. Perception of other communities regarding them is low.

The Pomla strictly follow community endogamy and clan exogamy. Both sorrorate (junior and senior) and levirate (junior and senior) type of marriages are allowed among them. The girls are married between seventeen to nineteen years of age while boys between eighteen to twenty years of age. Marital alliances are arranged by parents or elder members of the families of both sides. They follow monogamous form of marriage. Symbol of the married women are bangles made of Lac. Now-a-days married women are identified by plastic bangles also, which they wear. The system of bride-price is prevalent which is usually paid in cash and sometimes in kind also. Apart from this they also give gifts to one's daughter utensils, clothes, ornaments, some cash etc. Post marital residence is patrilocal. Divorce is permissible in their community but such cases are not common. Mal-adjustment between the spouses is the main cause for divorce. Either party can seek divorce. Children become the liability of father in divorce cases, except the infants who remain with mother. Widow and widower remarriages are, permissible. Male and female divorcees can also remarry. Child marriage has been given up. Vertically extended type of family is in majority among the Pomla. Now-a-days, a few nuclear families have also emerged. Avoidance relations are practiced between certain categories of relatives like mother-in-law and son-in-law and between a daughter-in-law and father-in-law. Joking relations are found; between a sister-in-law and brother-in-law (hu yr br). Every male child has an equal right in the paternal property. The eldest son succeeds as the head of the family after his father's: death. Inter-family linkages are cordial. Women of the Pomla community have a low status. They do not have any right of inheritance. But every woman participates in all social, ritual and religious activities along with their men folk. Most of the women are engaged in-making small baskets made of palm leaves. Besides, women also do household jobs like cooking, child rearing, collection of fuel wood, fetching water etc. The family expenditure is managed by the head of the family who is the eldest male member. During the seventh month of first pregnancy, a pre-delivery ritual called kholo bharna is performed n which the woman is presented one coconut, rice, sweets, and fcanku etc. and also rupees five from each affinal female relatives and friends. The kin are invited for a feast. Afterwards she is taken to her natal home for confinement. The delivery is conducted by an experienced dai (mid-wife). Some families take her to hospital, particularly in complicated cases. They ^observe birth pollution for forty five days. After six days of the birth of the child, naming ceremony is performed by child's fathe'r sister, or any of the close relatives. Name of the new born child is registered in the Municipality register on the same day. After forty-five days, child's mundan is performed by a nai (barber). On the occasion of the birth of the first son, sweets are distributed among children of the locality. Arranged type of marriage through negotiation is common. Sagai (betrothal ceremony) is performed by the groom's maternal uncle by presenting rice, vermillion, five and-a-half rupees, a sari and a coconut to the bride. The maternal uncle of the bride arranges a feast. Actual date of marriage is also fixed by parents and elders of both sides. On the marriage day, the groom in a procession called jan reach the bride's house where marriage is solemnized. He is dressed in his wedding attire, with turban on his head, sometimes mounted on a horse. Also he brings along various gifts for the bride. The mandap is decorated with various kinds of flowers, colorful papers etc. In the middle of the mandap, the fire is placed. Around the sacrificial fire, seven pheras (circum-bulations) are taken by the bride and the groom. It precedes the exchange of garlands by the bride and groom. Kanyadan follows presentations by the relatives and friends to the bride and groom. The bride's parents arrange feasts to the groom's party. Special dishes are prepared like rice, vegetables, pulses, meat and sweets. Alcoholic drinks are offered to the guests and invitees. Among the Pomlas, dead are cremated. But in case of death of a child up to ten years of age, they practice burial. In funeral procession, women accompany to a certain distance from where they return to the house. Four phera (circulation) is done around the funeral pyre. The eldest son first puts fire to the pyre. After two days they collect ashes and bones in an earthen pot. The last remains of the dead are immersed in the Narmada water. Some rituals are performed by a Brahman priest at the time of immersion. All the men in family get their head shaved by a Nai. Dead man's wife's (if she is of old age), head is also shaved off by a Nal Barma ritual is performed by family members on the twelfth day. A feast is offered to all relatives in which only vegetarian food is prepared. This concludes the funeral rites. In the past, the Pomla community traditionally depended upon making small rectangular shaped baskets from palm leaves for packing sweetmeats. But now-a-days this traditional occupation has been almost discarded. For twenty pieces of baskets, they are paid only two rupees in the market. Thus, they do not get adequate return against their labour. Due to this reason, they have shifted to casual labour. They are mainly 'a landless, community. Only women are still making baskets. They collect ten palm leaves from the forest of the Panch Mahals district. They cannot compete in the market due to the popularity of cardboard boxes, plastic packets, plastic sacks etc., which are now used for packing. A few families depend on embroidery work. Some families, who live in Surat district, are employed in textile factories at Surat. A good number of them are also employed in government jobs and are engaged in petty business. Some work as truck drivers. The mode of transactions is in cash. The system of traditional caste panchayat is found among them. Elder persons and educated youth form the traditional panchayat. The panchayat has a Mukhi or headman and ordinary members. The post of Mukhi is held by families belonging to Batti clan. They frequently meet-to settle cases of conflict, quarrel, adultery, divorce, theft etc. Actually, due to the small size of the community, conflicts and confrontations occur to a lesser extent. They settle the various disputes. Divorce is sanctioned by panch and some amqu.nt in cash is given as compensation by the guilty, depending upon the nature of the case. In case of inter-caste marriage, the couple is ex-communicated from their village. The heterogeneous statutory panchayat institutions plan and implement welfare and development programmes of the area .The Pomla are a Hinduized tribal group. They follow the norms of Hindu religion. But persons of older generation follow folk religion, so they believe in different kinds of evil spirits like chudel (witch), bhut (ghost), bitanda, dakan etc. According to their belief, systems, these spirits are responsible for different diseases. Only lagan (marriage ritual) and sradh ceremonies are performed by a Brahman priest. The Pomla worship their clan deities (Kuldei) at the time of Navratri festival. They also worship Krishna, Bhanbhatt, Jagadambay, Bahiicharaji, Ramchodji, Saibaba etc. The Budia is the witch doctor of Pomla community. There are many festivals observed by them like Holi, Diwali, Navaratri, Dassera, Ganapati, Tarasiri, Sankranti etc. They visit the temples of Krishna, Hanumanji, Saibaba etc. They also worship the Nagdevta. They first of all worship Ganapati in all rituals. They participate in several local fairs like Harnimela (Srauan), Patelaswan Shiv Mela (Srauan) etc. which are held in the Baroda city. The community has folk tales and sing folk songs on the occasion of marriage ceremonies. Devotional' songs are sung by men. Sometimes women perform dance. In marriage ceremony they use' a few musical instruments like dholak, tambwea etc. The Pomla have traditional linkages with other communities at the occupational level. Economic existence of Pomla community depends upon daily wage labour. They depend on the economically and socially better off communities like Bania, Thakur, Baria etc. for getting labour. They accept both cooked, un-cooked food and water from different neighboring communities like Bania, Thakur, Baria, Khatki, Vaghri etc. But' traditionally some of above mentioned communities do not accept water from them as well as various neighboring communities like Rabari, Marathi, Madrasi, Chamar etc. Some neighboring communities join and participate in all the ceremonial functions of Pomlas. The Pomla collect water from hand pumps and public taps which have been installed in their locality. They share common roads, school, crematorium, etc. with other neighboring communities. The literacy rate among the Pomla is quite low. Now-a-days boys are sent to primary schools while most of the girls are kept engaged in household jobs. Under census 2001 total population was 819 out which 234 male and 155 female were literate. They prefer to accept modern medical facilities. Primary health centre is situated within the easy reach of their society. They also go to private doctors for better treatment. Acceptance of family planning is gradually increasing among them. The fuel resources are fuel wood, kerosene oil and cow-dung cakes. Nutrition programmes conducted -through primary schools are availed of by their children. Government fair price shops are situated in their locality. They depend on money lenders at the time of crisis.