Baheliya
The Baheliya are a Hindu caste found in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. They have scheduled caste status. A small number of Baheliya have converted to Islam and now form a distinct community of Muslim Baheliya.[1] In Haryana, the community is known as the Chirimar.[2]
Origin
The Baheliya are a tribal community of hunters and bird catchers, and the origin of their name is from the Sanskrit vyadka, meaning one who pierces, . They are mainly involved in bird catching, extracting honey from beehives and picking peacock feathers for the manufacture of fans. They are divided into a six groups, the Aheria, Gehlot, Sissodia, Karaul, Pasi and the Muslim Baheliya. Other minor clans include the Chandel and Srivastav. Each of these groups claim a Rajput origin, with the Sissodia claiming to be superior over the other groupings. All these groups intermarry, except the Muslim Baheliya. They are found throughout Uttar Pradesh, and speak the various dialects of Hindi.[1]
Present circumstances
Traditionally the Behiliya economic activity revolved around bird catching and selling honey. In addition, there main economic activity remains manufacturing fans from peacock feathers. These fans are then sold to Bania middlemen, who sell them on in cities such as Kolkata and Delhi. As a Dalit community, they often suffer from societal discrimination. Each of their settlement contains an informal caste council, known as a biradari panchayat. This consist of five members who are elected by community members. The panchayat acts as instrument of social control, dealing with issues such as divorce and adultery.[1] Present Time Baheliyas are living in Lucknow, Kanpur, Meerut, Bareliy, Barabanki, Shajahanpur, Agra Farukhabad, Saharanpur and in many districts in Uttar Pradesh. They also live in Delhi, Haryana, and Punjab.And a large number of BAHELIYA peoples are living In Lucknow Uttar Pradesh,The main places where they living are in lucknow are Madheyganj, Kadam Rasool, Bhando Mohalla, Sahadatganj and in many places of the district and belongs to the category of Scheduled Caste (Dalit) in Uttar Pradesh.
The Chirimar of Haryana
The Baheliya in Haryana are also known as Chirimar, and the word chirimar in Hindi means a bird catcher. They are said to have immigrated from Uttar Pradesh some two centuries ago, and are now found in Ambala District. The Chirimar Baheliya now speak Haryanvi. They have three sub-divisions, the Banoudhiya, Pateria and Karaha. Each of these clans in exogamous. The Chirimar Baheliya are still founds involved in their traditional occupation of bird catching. These birds are then sold to merchants belonging to the Bania caste.[2]