Kandha

Abstract

The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Research and Training Institute (SCSTRTI) has taken an endeavor to publish Photo Handbooks on other Scheduled Tribes of Odisha. The present Handbook is a vibrant photographic presentation of the life style and culture of the Kandha tribe. Among the 62 tribal communities, the Kandhas are numerically the largest and territorially widespread tribe of Odisha. Though their population is unevenly spread all over the State in all the 30 districts, their main concentration is in southern Odisha covering districts like Rayagada, Kandhamal, Kalahandi and Koraput. As such they are territorially and socio-culturally divided into a number of segments/sections bearing different names and exhibiting diversity as well as commonness of cultural traits among themselves. The Kandhas are at various stages of development. The Kutia Kandha of Belghar area and the Dongria Kandha of Bissamcuttack area represent the primitive sections and the Desia Kandha living in the plains of Phulbani district, and other districts represent the Hinduised section of the tribe. In between these two polarities are various sections of the Kandha who are at different stages of development. They belong to Dravidian linguistic group and speak Kui in Kandhamal and Kuvi in Koraput. While others call them Kandha, they identify themselves as 'Kuiloku' "Kuienju," or "Kuinga". Traditionally the Kandha women are distinguished by their tattooing designs on the face. They live in homogenous and heterogenous villages. Their sacred place (penu basa) is located at the centre of the village and their supreme deity - the Earth Goddess (Darni Penu) is located at one side of the village. The cremation ground (tunenji) lies in the nearby forest. They practice both shifting cultivation and plough cultivation. They live in the lap of nature and are keenly devoted to worship nature and natural objects throughout the year. Meria festival is a symbol of their cultural identity. In the past they used to sacrifice human beings on this occasion. Presently, the impact of planned change and modernization have brought changes in their way of life I hope this book will be a valuable document for the tourists, researchers and academicians alike