Jaunsar bawar
Encyclopedia
Jaunsar-Bawar is a hilly region, 85 km from Mussoorie
, in Chakrata
tehsil, in Dehradun district
, it represents the geographical region inhabited by the 'Jaunsari' tribe, which traces its origin from the Pandavas of Mahabharata
.
Ethnically, Jaunsar-Bawar comprises two regions, inhabited by the two predominant tribes: 'Jaunsar', the lower half, while the snow-clad upper region is called 'Bawar', which includes, the 'Kharamba peak' (3084 mts.). Geographically adjacent, they are not very different from each other. the Bawar lies in the upper regions of the area. they are a unique tribal community because of the fact that they have remained cut off from the external world for centuries, leading to the retention of their unique culture and traditions, which have attracted historians, anthropologist and studies in Ethno-Pharmacology to this region for over a century.
the Jaunsaris with their light eyes, fair skin and facial features clearly distinguish from other people of Garhwal, living close by.
and by river Tons
in the west, the northern part comprises Uttarkashi district, and some parts of Himachal Pradesh
, the Dehradun
tehsil forms its southern peripery.
Modes of livelihood in this region are agriculture and animal husbandry, which in the upper region is mostly for self-sustenance, as merely 10 percent of cultivated area is irrigated. Milk, wool and meat are an integral part of the local economy. Jaunsar-Bawar it is the place where even today people don't lock their houses and if somebody left behind in completing any farming activity then all the other villagers would help them in order to celebrate their little festival that is
tehsil, prior to which it had been a part of Punjab state of Sirmur
, till the British conquered it along with Dehradun after the 1814 war with the Gurkhas.
Before the establishment of British Indian Army
cantonment in 1866, the entire was known as Jaunsar-Bawar, and the name continued to be in popular use for the region, till early 20th century. While western Hindi was popular in most of the neighbouting hill areass, 'Jaunsari' language, part of the Central Pahari languages
was spoken by most of the people of the region.
river to Delhi
. gate system which was begin since the time of Britishers is now had came to an end
, Kumaon
and Himachal Pradesh
, a fact demonstrated by the presence of polygamy and polyandry in the local traditions, with richer tribesmen practicing polygamy, while their poor counterparts, choose to share a wife (polyandry), though the husbands should be brothers, a fact which is often connected to, the five Pandava
brothers in the Mahabharata
, marrying Draupadi
, from whom Jaunsaries trace their ethinic origin. Though, anthropology
studies in the 1990s revealed that these practises were fast phasing out, and is being replaced by monogamy
An important aspect of their culture are festive sports and dances like the folk dance named 'Barada Nati'/Harul/Raso/ during all festive occasions, like 'Magh Mela' which is the most important festival of the Jaunsaries, it is marked by an animal sacrifice ritual, which celebrates the killing of 'Maroj', an ogre, which according to local legends, stalked the valleys for years.
During festivals, people wear the Thalka or Lohiya, which is a long coat. The dancers - both boys and girls - wear colorful traditional costumes. Bissu is an important festival of Jaunsars and Bawars.
and Ethnopharamcological
studies.
in 1988.
1. BHANJRA Bhanjra is a small village which is 30 km from Kalsi and Klasi iS 40 km from Dehradun comes under the Tehsil of Kalsi, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India. The name of this village is derived from the name of the person BIJA BHAKAN a real thakut of Rana families of Himachal, Jaunsar & Babar. The residents and ruler of this village are RANA (Rana Dynasty) and in the history they have close relations with Ruler of Bhakanua (Himachal), Bastil & Makti (Jaunsar)etc.
Mussoorie
Mussoorie is a city and a municipal board in the Dehradun District of the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is located about 35 km from the state capital of Dehradun and 290 km north from the national capital of New Delhi...
, in Chakrata
Chakrata
Chakrata or Chakrauta is a cantonment town in Dehradun district in the state of Uttarakhand, India.It is situated between the Tons and Yamuna rivers, at an elevation of 7000–7250 feet, 92 km from state capital, Dehradun, it was originally a cantonment of British Indian Army...
tehsil, in Dehradun district
Dehradun district
There are five railway stations in Dehradun:* Raiwala* Rishikesh* Doiwala* Harrawala* DehradunAirport...
, it represents the geographical region inhabited by the 'Jaunsari' tribe, which traces its origin from the Pandavas of Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
.
Ethnically, Jaunsar-Bawar comprises two regions, inhabited by the two predominant tribes: 'Jaunsar', the lower half, while the snow-clad upper region is called 'Bawar', which includes, the 'Kharamba peak' (3084 mts.). Geographically adjacent, they are not very different from each other. the Bawar lies in the upper regions of the area. they are a unique tribal community because of the fact that they have remained cut off from the external world for centuries, leading to the retention of their unique culture and traditions, which have attracted historians, anthropologist and studies in Ethno-Pharmacology to this region for over a century.
the Jaunsaris with their light eyes, fair skin and facial features clearly distinguish from other people of Garhwal, living close by.
Jaunsar-Bawar region
The Jaunsar-Bawar region, is a tribal valley, spread over 1002 km² and 400 villages, between 77.45' and 78.7'20" East to 30.31' and 31.3'3" North. It is defined in the east, by the river YamunaYamuna
The Yamuna is the largest tributary river of the Ganges in northern India...
and by river Tons
Tons River
The Tons is the largest tributary of the Yamuna and flows through Garhwal region in Uttarakhand, touching Himachal Pradesh. The Tons thrust is named after this river....
in the west, the northern part comprises Uttarkashi district, and some parts of Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh is a state in Northern India. It is spread over , and is bordered by the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir on the north, Punjab on the west and south-west, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh on the south, Uttarakhand on the south-east and by the Tibet Autonomous Region on the east...
, the Dehradun
Dehradun
- Geography :The Dehradun district has various types of physical geography from Himalayan mountains to Plains. Raiwala is the lowest point at 315 meters above sea level, and the highest points are within the Tiuni hills, rising to 3700 m above sea level...
tehsil forms its southern peripery.
Modes of livelihood in this region are agriculture and animal husbandry, which in the upper region is mostly for self-sustenance, as merely 10 percent of cultivated area is irrigated. Milk, wool and meat are an integral part of the local economy. Jaunsar-Bawar it is the place where even today people don't lock their houses and if somebody left behind in completing any farming activity then all the other villagers would help them in order to celebrate their little festival that is
History
In 1829, Jaunsar-Bawar was incorporated in ChakrataChakrata
Chakrata or Chakrauta is a cantonment town in Dehradun district in the state of Uttarakhand, India.It is situated between the Tons and Yamuna rivers, at an elevation of 7000–7250 feet, 92 km from state capital, Dehradun, it was originally a cantonment of British Indian Army...
tehsil, prior to which it had been a part of Punjab state of Sirmur
Sirmur
Sirmur was an independent kingdom in India, founded in 1616. It became a part of Greater Nepal, before becoming a princely state in British India, located in the region that is now the Sirmaur district of Himachal Pradesh. The state was also known as Nahan, after its main city, Nahan...
, till the British conquered it along with Dehradun after the 1814 war with the Gurkhas.
Before the establishment of British Indian Army
British Indian Army
The British Indian Army, officially simply the Indian Army, was the principal army of the British Raj in India before the partition of India in 1947...
cantonment in 1866, the entire was known as Jaunsar-Bawar, and the name continued to be in popular use for the region, till early 20th century. While western Hindi was popular in most of the neighbouting hill areass, 'Jaunsari' language, part of the Central Pahari languages
Pahari languages
The Pahari languages are a geographic group of Indic languages spoken in the lower ranges of the Himalayas, from Nepal in the east to the Indian states of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir in the west.-Classification:The Pahari languages fall into three groups:*Eastern, consisting...
was spoken by most of the people of the region.
Geography
Traditionally, Jaunsar-Bawar region has been known as its rich reserves of forested areas, in the high hills region, with trees of Deodar, Pine, and spruce, made for it becoming an important destination for the timber even during the British period, when the logs were rolled down the slopes and floated on YamunaYamuna
The Yamuna is the largest tributary river of the Ganges in northern India...
river to Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
. gate system which was begin since the time of Britishers is now had came to an end
Culture
The culture of the local Jaunsari tribe is distinct from other hill tribes in GarhwalGarhwal Division
Garhwal is the north-western region and administrative division of the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand which is home to the Garhwali people. Lying in the Himalayas, It is bounded on the north by Tibet, on the east by Kumaon region, on the south by Uttar Pradesh state, and on the north-west by...
, Kumaon
Kumaon Division
For Kumaoni/Kumauni People see Kumauni PeopleKumaon or Kumaun is one of the two regions and administrative divisions of Uttarakhand, a mountainous state of northern India, the other being Garhwal. It includes the districts of Almora, Bageshwar, Champawat, Nainital, Pithoragarh, and Udham Singh Nagar...
and Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh is a state in Northern India. It is spread over , and is bordered by the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir on the north, Punjab on the west and south-west, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh on the south, Uttarakhand on the south-east and by the Tibet Autonomous Region on the east...
, a fact demonstrated by the presence of polygamy and polyandry in the local traditions, with richer tribesmen practicing polygamy, while their poor counterparts, choose to share a wife (polyandry), though the husbands should be brothers, a fact which is often connected to, the five Pandava
Pandava
In the Hindu epic Mahābhārata, the Pandava are the five acknowledged sons of Pandu , by his two wives Kunti and Madri. Their names are Yudhisthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva. Although, Karna is told by Lord Krishna that according to the laws and ethics he is the first son of Kunti making...
brothers in the Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
, marrying Draupadi
Draupadi
In the epic Mahābhārata, Draupadi, also known as ' is the "emerged" daughter of King Drupada of Panchāla and the wife of the five Pandavas. When Yudhisthira becomes the king of Hastinapura at the end of the war, Draupadi becomes the queen of Indraprastha...
, from whom Jaunsaries trace their ethinic origin. Though, anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
studies in the 1990s revealed that these practises were fast phasing out, and is being replaced by monogamy
An important aspect of their culture are festive sports and dances like the folk dance named 'Barada Nati'/Harul/Raso/ during all festive occasions, like 'Magh Mela' which is the most important festival of the Jaunsaries, it is marked by an animal sacrifice ritual, which celebrates the killing of 'Maroj', an ogre, which according to local legends, stalked the valleys for years.
During festivals, people wear the Thalka or Lohiya, which is a long coat. The dancers - both boys and girls - wear colorful traditional costumes. Bissu is an important festival of Jaunsars and Bawars.
Medicine
The Jaunsari tribe of the region has been using over 100 plants for the treatment of various ailments, which have remained a subject for many EthnobotanicalEthnobotany
Ethnobotany is the scientific study of the relationships that exist between people and plants....
and Ethnopharamcological
Ethnopharmacology
Ethnopharmacology is the scientific study of ethnic groups and their use of drugs.Ethnopharmacology is distinctly linked to plant use, botany, as this is the main delivery of pharmaceuticals. It is also often associated with ethnopharmacy...
studies.
Bonded labour
Traditionally, due to abject poverty, arising from infertile land and adverse climatic conditions in the region, bonded labour has been a fact of life, but the situation improved after the implementation of the 'Bonded Labour Abolition Act, 1976', when over 20,000 bonded labours were reported from the region, but practise never left the region, and in 2005, presence bonded labourers was reported again in the Jaunsar-Bawar region, especially amongst poorest of the tribal communities, like Koltas, Das and Bajgi communities, who are entrapped in the bonded labour for generations, by their rich counterparts in the tribal belt, this is despite the fact that, due to not availability of local land records, the government had made a separate legislation for this area, 'The Jaunsar Bawar Zamindar Abolition of Land Reform Act 1956 (U.P. Act XI of 1956)', which came into effect in July 1961.In Media
Raaste Band Hain Sab, a film based on the work of Dr. Jayoti Gupta, Dept. of Sociology, Delhi University, on Jaunsar-Bawar, and made by Manjira Dutta, won the National Film Award for Best Anthropological/Ethnographic FilmNational Film Award for Best Anthropological/Ethnographic Film
The National Film Award - Best Anthropological/Ethnographic Film winners:...
in 1988.
Further reading
- Himalayan Polyandry: Structure, Functioning and Culture Change. A Field-Study of Jaunsar-Bawar by D. N. Majumdar. New York, Asian Publishing House. 1962.
- The Abode of Mahashiva: Cults and Symbology in Jaunsar-Bawar in the Mid Himalayas by Madhu Jain. 1995, Indus Publishing Company, ISBN 81-7387-030-6.
- Ritual complex and social structure in Jaunsar-Bawar (Census of India, 1971, series 1, India), Office of the Registrar General, India 1974.
External links
) Geo Links for Jaunsar-Bawar region1. BHANJRA Bhanjra is a small village which is 30 km from Kalsi and Klasi iS 40 km from Dehradun comes under the Tehsil of Kalsi, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India. The name of this village is derived from the name of the person BIJA BHAKAN a real thakut of Rana families of Himachal, Jaunsar & Babar. The residents and ruler of this village are RANA (Rana Dynasty) and in the history they have close relations with Ruler of Bhakanua (Himachal), Bastil & Makti (Jaunsar)etc.