Padhar

Brief Details of Padhar

Padhar

The Padhar live around a natural lake, Nal Sarovar in the Bhal area. This area is one of the most fertile regions of Ahmedabad and Surendranagar districts. The Padhar believe that their existence is due to the grace of Hinglaj mata, a goddess. A legendary account says that they have migrated to this area from Sindh. It is said that once Hinglaj mata and her sister Bhurekh had gone out for a walk. They were accompanied by twelve sons of Hinglaj mata and one pet bird Peausi. When they reached Sindh it was night the sons were very hungry. Hinglaj mata went to her sister's house in search of food. Her sister Sindhu was not present at home. While coming back, she met her sister. Sindhu gave her some fish and roots to eat. Hanglaj mata set off and came to the bank of Nal Lake. She threw the roots and fish into the Nal Lake which later on grew abundantly and became the main food items of the Padhar. The Padhar are distributed mainly in six villages of; Suirendranager and four villages of Ahmedabad districts. The villages occupied by the Padhars are Shahpur, Sahiyal, Dharji, Devadthal, Nam Katechi, Ranagadh, Ralal, Parali, Parnala, Godi and Anandpur. The Padhar belong to the scheduled tribe category arid are treated as one of the five primitive tribal groups in the state. According to the 1981 census, the population of this community was 10587 and according to census 2001 Padhar population was 22421, out of which 11550 were male and 10871 were female. They speak in Gujarati and use the Gujarati script. The Padhar are non-vegetarian. They take fish and mutton. Their staple food is jovar and rice. Rice is generally eaten by them in the evening in the form of khichdidi. Pulses of moong and moth make a part of their diet. The Padhar eat roots and tubers grown or; the bed of Nal sarovar. They dig out kanda (a kind of edible roots) consume them by making ratios (thick loaves). Now wheat floor is available and they prepare bread from it. They use groundnut and palmoline oils as cooking media. The Padhars domesticate cows, buffaloes and goats for milk. They consume milk and milk products like ghee. Consumption of alcoholic drinks is moderate due to prohibition. They smoke bidi and loose tobacco.

The Padhar have a number of clans which are equal in status and are referred to for marital alliances. Some of the clans of the Padhar are Domda, Bhuwatra, Samatiya, Pachani, Devthala, Lalni, Tanhada, Sapra, Kanotara, Dharijiya etc. Vatra and Tarajiya, Pachani and Lalni clans are considered brotherly so the members of these clans do not intermarry. The Dhomda clan people have started using the surnames of Makwana. The Chief deity of all the clans is Jhopali mata. Besides this, the Bhuwatra worship Mahakali and Hingleaj, the Samatiya worship Maladi, Pachani (Parmar) worship Chamunda, Devthala worship Maladi, Tahda worship Shakti and Meladi; Sapra worship Gel devi; Kanotra worship Khodiyar mata and the Dharjiyk worship Verai-mata. They have originated from the Koli community but when they resorted to eating flesh of dead animals, they were driven out to the area of Nalkhana frontiers. The Kolis consider them to be untouchables and do not exchange their daughters with them in marriage. Thus the Padhar are ranked in the lower strata of the local social hierarchy. Other communities place them in a very lower position of the regional hierarchy.

The Padhar are monogamous. Engagement is held at an early age of ten to fifteen years, but the marriages are performed when ^he girls attain the age of eighteen to twenty years and the boys reach 20 to 25 years. They practice arranged type of marriage in which marriage alliances are settled through negotiation between the parents of boy and girl. The symbol of a married-woman is kanku dot on the forehead. Bride-price to be given in marriage is Rs. 550/-. Rule of residence after marriage is patrilocal. Divorce and remarriage are permitted in the community. Widow Remarriage is also allowed and practiced. Divorce is granted after getting social approval from the panch. If the girl's party seeks divorce, they have to pay a fine of Rs. 50/- to the panch, while in case the boys' party seeks divorce, they have to pay Rs. 705/-. In case a woman has children and her husband leaves her, he has to pay Rs. 705/- while the girl's party has to pay Rs. 550/- if she initiates divorce from her husband. When she remarriages, the second husband has to pay Rs.800/- to the former husband. A heavy amount is fined if any one married a girl who has already been engaged to a boy. The amount charged in such cases is Rs. 5250/-

Out of this, Rs. 3000/- is given to the girl’s party, Rs.2000/- is taken by the panch and Rs. 250/- is paid to the boy's father with whom she was engaged. Widow remarriage is simply ritualized by presenting her a set of clothes (ghaghra, chaniyo and odwan). The woman brings a pot of water from the well and the man takes her pot down. Junior levirate is also possible. Marriage by mutual consent between the boy and the girl also takes place in the community.

Nuclear family is predominant in the Padhar community. The married sons separate out from their parental family on becoming a father. They build up a new house for them or partition the house itself with a separate cooking facility. Till his death, father controls the family land. Inter-personal relations within the family remain intense and cordial. The parents look after their children amicably. The children pay regards to them and obey their wishes. Avoidance relationships exist between daughter-in-law and father-in-law. She also maintains distance with the relatives of the same-order. Joking relationships are maintained between dever (husband's younger brother) and bhabhi (elder brother's wife) and jiya (elder sister's husband/ and sali (wife's younger sister). A rule of inheritance is male equigeniture. The eldest son succeeds to the authority in the family. Inter-family linkages are confined to within the community. Family members help each other in different agricultural operations, fishing and other social activities. On different occasions of life cycle rituals, they co-operate with each other.

The Padhar women do not inherit anything from their parental property. Women work as labourers in the fields and in road construction. Women also help in ploughing the field by hand -plough. They do grass cutting, digging roots and selling these in neighboring villages. After the rainy season accompanied by their males, they go to other areas in search of a livelihood. They take part in the local and ritual activities of the community, domestic chores and collect fuel and fodder. They bring potable water from the well. They also contribute to supplement the family's income.

The pregnant woman is taken to her parent's house after the celebration of kholbharna during the seventh month. She gives birth to her first child in her parent's house. At the time of delivery, help of midwives is taken who generally belong to their own community. A brass dish or door - chain is rung on the birth of a male child. Chhatti is celebrated on sixth day after child birth. Purificatory rite is performed on the fifth day. House is thoroughly cleaned. Father's sister gives name to the child on the sixth day. Pollution is observed for fifteen to twenty days after child birth. Jharmar jaharwa (well-worship) is celebrated on the fortieth day.

When the children become a little elder, betrothal is done at the girl's house taking jaggery and coconut, and presenting rupees fifteen to twenty to the girl's father and a coconut and rupees two to the girl. Bride price is fixed. The date for marriage is also fixed. The paper, on which date for marriage are mentioned, is kept on a wooden seat. Three people from the girl's side make seven rounds of this paper. Thereafter Jaggery is distributed. For performing the marriage ceremonies, the bride groom goes to the bride's house with gifts (things to be given to the bride's party) in; a bullock cart. Both men and women join the wedding party. This is known as jan. Marriage is solemnized in the girl's house. They make four rounds of the sacred fire. Marriage rituals are conducted by a Brahman priest. Coconut is broken at the shrines of the village deity. They are given fare well on the second or third day. The bride remains for a day in her husband's house after which she comes back to her home. After fifteen to twenty days, she again goes to her husband' house and lives there permanently.

In case of death, if the deceased is a small child up to the age of five to seven years, is buried while older ones are cremated. Pollution is observed for twelve days in case of death of an elder person. Bones and ashes are collected on the third day. They are washed with milk and kept in an earthen pot which is immersed into the river water near Prabhas Patan in Junagadh district of Gujarat, at the confluence of two rivers. Barma is celebrated on, the twelfth day. Laddu and dal-bhat (pulse - rice) is prepared in the house to feast the kin and relatives.

The Padhar is a land- owning community. But a majority of them are landless labourers. They cultivate the crops of paddy, jowar, millet, cotton, wheat, moong and moth. Fishing is another important occupation of the Padhars. They do fishing in Nal Sarovar for about six months from August to January. They consume fish and also sell the surplus in the nearby villages.' The Padhar have got nets and small boats for fishing. Child labour is also reported among the Padhar. The children work in the field, do fishing and work as labourers. The females work in the fields, roads and also go to other places to do labour to supplement their family income. Other occupations of Padhar men and women are grass cutting, digging out roots and selling these in other villages. Traditionally they are hunters and fishermen. They catch mostly ducks, hunt wild animals and eat them. Once they were sailors. Now-a-days, they do tailoring and prepare grass strings and ropes. The Padhars are in services too. Some of them are engaged in government as well as private jobs. During the tourist season, i.e. from August to January, the Padhars eke out their living by plying in Nal sarovar for ferrying tourists and doing other sundry jobs for them. They bring out roots from the lake for sale in the market as well as for their own consumption. So, throughout the year the Padhars are engaged in a variety of jobs.

The Padhar have the organization of traditional community-panchayat Evey clan is represented by a Agawan who heads the clan and commands respect within the clan as well as in the community. He settles the disputes which arise within the clan, and is also approached for approval of remarriage. Every Padhar village has a Patel whose post is hereditary. He looks after the cases at the village level and represents the village in the community meetings. The Patel is assisted by a Kotwal who belongs to the same community. His post is not hereditary'. The bigger panchayat is known as the Bara Gaon Ni Nyat. The meetings are held whenever any case is brought before the headman or Patel of the village. The headman is empowered to decide the cases of divorce. Mostly the cases of divorce, fighting between the husband and wife, adultery and quarrels among the family members are brought before the samjj panch (communty panchayat). The headman of the clan also acts as a Bhuwa (witch doctor) and Solves the magico - religious matters. The samjj panch is empowered to fine and punish the miscreants who violate the community norms. The statutory village panchayat plans and executes the development programmes in the village.

The Padhar are Hindu and mainly {propitiate Hinglaj mata. Other goddesses worshipped by the Padhar are Kalika, Jhupali (Zumpali), Meladi, But-mata, Mahakali, Verai mata, Khodiyar mata the different forms of goddesses Shakti. They also worship lord Krishna, Swaminarayan. They also go to the temple of Mahadeo, lord Ram and Ramdeopir. They go to the shrines of Charmaliya dada, Talsamiya dada on the day of Nagpanchami and Peer dada on the day of Bad Gyaras, after Navratra. Jhupali mata is specially worshipped during Navratra. The Padhar have got the temple of Hinglaj mata in the villages and they are known as messengers of Hinglaj mata. Every clan has also got the temple of its clan -deity who is worshipped periodically. Temple of Jhupali mata is situated at the outskirts of the village on a hill mount at Ranagarh. The Padhar celebrate the festivals of Holi, Dhuleti, Satam, Atham, Navratra, Diwali, Dussehra, Rakhi, etc. During Navratra, the Padhar men stage the dramas of Ram-Ravana fight, Daku (Kadu Makrami), Abhimanyu Veer Mangdawala etc. and the females perform Mataji ka garba. Ras garba is enjoyed by the males and females on the day of Satam-Sthami after Holi festival. They play with colours on the day of Dhuleti. There is an impact of Vaishnava and Swaminarayan cults on their religion.

The Padhar know the art of rope - making and weaving of fishing nets. They also prepare small boats for fishing and ferrying the tourists, they have got oral traditions. They sing and dance. They also dance garba and Dandtaras. The Padhar have formed bhajan mandalis. The folk dance of the Padhars of Ranagadh village has got such an excellence that it was appraised with distinction at the Republic Day Folk Dance festivals in Delhi, in the recent past.

The Padhar have got traditional inter-community linkages with the neighboring groups with whom they interact and serve each other in hours of need. Brahman priest officiates in marriage. They serve as agricultural labourers to the landowning groups. They accept water and food from the hands of castes considered higher castes. They share the wells for drinking water, but their crematorium is separate. They go to the temples, panchayat ghar and schools without any restrictions. There are clerks, peons and persons serving In other government departments. The level of education is low among the Padhars. They are politically active only at the village level. There are sarpanch and other officials at the village level. One Padhar man is acting as Chairman, Fisheries, one man is Pramukh of Khet Majur Mandali at Ranagarh. They do share-cropping. Landlord-tenant, cultivator-labour and employer-worker relationships are forged within the community.

The Padhar are sending their children to schools and providing them education. Children drop-out after primary, middle or higher secondary education. They make use of indigenous as well as modern Medicare. They are aware of family welfare programmes, and are adopting it also. Generally the women get operated. They get drinking water from the wells. The Nal Lake dries up in the month of February - March every year arid the water level falls down considerably. They have received employment under various programmes and got loans for opening grocery shops, purchase of carts. They use firewood, cow dung cakes and kerosene oil as fuel. They make minimum use of chemical fertilizers'. Compost manure is mostly used. Ploughing is done with the help of hand ploughs which is drawn by one person and pushed and pressed by another person. They take single crop in a year which is mainly based on rain-water. The children are provided mid-day meals in; the schools. They get the facility of public distribution system (ration). The villages are connected by bus routes, but the facilities are not satisfactory to the people. Thus, the Padhars are trying their best to extract maximum advantage from the possible resources available in their area and in order to march forward with other communities.