Bakarwal

The Bakerwals of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh. In Jammu & Kashmir, these nomadic people are cow/buffalo herders (esp. Gujjars) and goat/sheep herders (esp. Bakharwals/dhangar). However, the two groups are very closely associated and intermarry, and commonly referred to as the "Gujjars and Bakarwals." Photographed in Rajouri, Jammu & Kashmir, India.

Bakarwal (or Bakharwal) is a nomadic tribe based in the Pir Panjal and Himalayan mountains of South Asia. They are mainly goatherds and shepherds. They are called as Dhangar in rest of India.

Etymology

'Bakarwal' is derived from the Gojri/Urdu/Punjabi/Kashmiri/Dogri/jammu terms, bakra meaning goat or sheep, and wal meaning "one who takes care of". Essentially, the name "Bakarwal" implies "high-altitude goatherds/shepherds".

The Bakarwals belong to the same ethnicity stock as the Gujjars, and inter-marriages don't take place among them.^[1] Although, Bakarwals have same gotra or clan like Gujjars, many local shepherds, who may not necessarily belong to the community, are often termed as Bakarwal. Economy and Society:

The Gujar-Bakarwals have divided themselves into three principal kinship groups:

(i) The dera (household),

(ii) Dada-Porte (lineage), and the gotra (clan).

The dera is the basic unit of social structure among the Gujjar-Bakarwals. They count their numbers and describe their grazing and qafila groups in terms of the number of deras.

A dera usually comes into existence when a person establishes an independent household, which happens normally after his marriage. Each son, thus, establishes his own dera as he gets married. A dera usually consists of five to six members. There is a division of labour among the members of the household on the basis of sex and age.

Females perform the domestic tasks of cooking, washing, fetching of water, upbringing of children, collection of wood, and spinning and making of woolen garments. On the other hand, males perform more arduous tasks like herding of flock and cattle, repairing of tools and equipment, collection of grass, herbs, deer-musk, hunting of wild animals, ploughing and harvesting of crops.

The household is, thus, a primary economic unit. A nuclear family is the production and consumption unit. A joint family which is generally large cannot survive on the meagre pasture resource as the transhumance are on the move for about 110 to 130 days in a year.

The elders want the eligible married youngsters to shoulder the responsibility of looking after the flock of sheep and goats independently. This would ensure greater security to the herds and sharing all responsible jobs by the adult members.

Several deras (households) constitute a lineage (dada-potra). The pastures are allotted to the lineage and not to the individuals. In a lineage, there may be about two hundred persons. Usually, a Gujjar-Bakarwal father divides his property (animal wealth) among his male children as and when they get married.

The lineage, thus, consists of several generations and includes cousins and distant relatives. They share the common pastures. The lineage unit is quite powerful administrative unit. Each lineage has a head who is responsible for the socio-economic and political activities of his group.

Geographical distribution

Bakarwals are spread throughout the northern part of the Himalayan Range. The states of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab (India) in India. In Pakistan, Bakarwals are found in the hilly northern parts of Punjab (Pakistan) as well as parts of the North West Frontier Province.

In the parts of Jammu and Kashmir controlled by India, Bakarwals are found in all three regions of the state including Jammu (comprising the districts of Jammu, Kathua, Udhampur, Poonch, Rajouri and District), the Kashmir Valley (comprising the districts of Srinagar, Baramulla, Kupwara, Pulwama, Budgam and Anantnag) and Ladakh (comprising the district of Ladakh and Kargil).

In Pakistan-controlled parts of Jammu & Kashmir, Bakarwals inhabit Gilgit, the Hunza Valley, Baltistan , Mirpur and Muzaffarabad.

They are also found in the PRC- controlled regions of Aksai Chin and the Shaksgam Valley. Around the 4th and the 5th centuries A.D., they occupied the territory around Mount Abu, the Peninsula of Kathiawad (Gujarat), and the adjacent hilly tracts of the Aravallis. Later on facing serious drought conditions they migrated from the south-western parts of Rajasthan and occupied the plains of Punjab.

Subsequently, they occupied the green pastures of the Siwaliks and the Himalayas in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The Gujri language is now recognized to be a form of the Rajasthani language. Their language is also known as Parimu or Hindki is wholly different from the Kashmir and the Dogri languages. They rarely intermix with the Kashmiris, though like them, they are Musalmans by religion. In appearance, the Gujjars are sharp-featured tall race. They are simple, less educated and inoffensive people. Their good faith is proverbial, and they are generous people.

Social status

As of 2001, the Bakarwal were classified as a Scheduled Tribe under the Indian government's reservation program of positive discrimination.^[2]

References

Further reading

• Prashad, Ram (1992). Tribal Migration in Himalayan Frontiers: Study of Gujjar Bakarwal Transhumance Economy class. Vintage Books. ISBN 81-85326-46-0.