Kewat

Kewat
Regions with significant populations
•  India
Languages
• Hindi
Religion
• Hinduism 100% •
Related ethnic groups
• Mallaah

The Kewat are a Hindu caste, found in the states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh in India. They are the traditional boatmen of North India.[1][2]

History and origin

The Kewat are a community of business man related to boat business & their own business. Their name comes from the Sanskrit word kaivarta,kaivarta means the god Vishnu. According to their tradition, they are descended from Nisad, son of the mythological king Venu. They r to be Suryavanshi Kshatriya. Their main sub-groups are the Banaphar, Dhivar, Balavarna, Chay, Sorahiya, Kairata, and Tiar. The Banaphar consider themselves to be superior to the other groups.[3] They have been granted Backward Caste status

Present circumstances

In Uttar Pradesh

The Kewat live by the all state of India mostly they live near of the river Ganga. They are the traditional businessman. The community is involved in own business.[4]

The major districts are Deoria, Gorakhpur, Kushinagar, Maharajganj, Santkabirnagar, Allahabad, Varanasi, Mirjapur, Bhadohi, Lucknow, Kanpur, & almost each districts. The Kewat have a four tier caste council, the charghat panchayat covers the Awadh region, the baraghat panchayat covers Allahabad. These caste councils deal with resolving disputes within the community.

In Rajasthan

The Kewat in Rajasthan are found in along the banks of the rivers Chambal, Benas and Kalinath rivers, in the districts of Kota and Sawai Madhopur. They are divided into eighty four clans, and their origin myth refers to them being created by god Vishnu. The community speak the Hadoti dialect of Rajasthani. There traditional occupation of being boatmen has declined,.[5]

In Bihar

In Bihar, they are both cultivators and businessman. The community are also known as Kewat Kaut. There is considerable difference of opinion as to the origin of the word Kewat. . They are found in the(all districts of bihar )bt mostly in Jhanjharpur, Nawani, Bhagalpur, Purnea, Katihar, Darbhanga, Munger, Muzaffarpur and Khagaria. Their villages are found mainly along the near of the Ganges river, and many have taken to cultivation. They speak Methali, Magadhi and Bhojpuri.

A major population of kewat/keot/kaut live in the district of Madhubani. The farmers of the Jhanjharpur region are more prosperous while those belonging to the kosi (the flood effected) belt not so properous with many of them taken to jobs outside the state. Maithili is the major language spoken in the district of Madhubani, Darbhanga, Jhajharpur etc. Quite a few leaders have emerged from the Jhajharpur region from the caste representing the aspirations of the people there. But the people have low level of involvement in politics. Whosoever has does it to become a leader himself. Some prominent leaders from the region include Projkewat Jagdish Narayan Chaudhry, sh kewatRam Autar Chaudhry, sh kewat Ramphal Chaudhry, sh kewat Magni Lal Mandal etc. The caste severely lack associations and platforms to raise their concerns. Still some work is done at regional level like Kaibart Kalyan Samiti operated from Kolkata by Sh Kashi Nath Bhandari and Ved Vyas Chetna Samiti by Sh Bijay Kumar Choudhry from Patna. Sh Bijay Kumar Choudhry (grandson of Prof kewat J N Choudhry) is doing a good work in the region in assimilation of various subcastes and has planned various educational initiatives to benefit the people of the caste.[6]

References

  1. ↑ People of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII Part Two edited by A Hasan & J C Das pages 776 to 783
  2. ↑ People of India Rajasthan Volume XXXVIII Part Two edited by B.K Lavania, D. K Samanta, S K Mandal & N.N Vyas pages 515 to 519 Popular Prakashan
  3. ↑ People of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII edited by A Hasan & J C Das page 777
  4. ↑ People of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII edited by A Hasan & J C Das page 778
  5. ↑ People of India Rajasthan Volume XXXVIII Part Two edited by B.K Lavania, D. K Samanta, S K Mandal & N.N Vyas pages 515 to 519 Popular Prakashan
  6. ↑ People of India Bihar Volume XVI Part One edited by S Gopal & Hetukar Jha pages 507 to 511 Seagull Books
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