The Bagdis are

indigenous people There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

, descended from people with

Dravidian Dravidian, Dravidan, or Dravida may refer to: Language and culture *Dravidian languages, a family of languages spoken mainly in South India and northeastern Sri Lanka *Proto-Dravidian language, a model of the common ancestor of the Dravidian lang ...

links, found in the

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...

and

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

, who were associated with professions like cultivation and fishing.Roy, Milan. "SITUATING SOCIAL STRUCTURE OF BAGDI CASTE IN BENGAL." ''CASTE, GENDER AND MEDIA: SIGNIFICANT SOCIOLOGICAL TRENDS IN INDIA'': 102. They are related to the Duley caste. The Bagdis are populous in

Bankura Bankura () is a city and a municipality in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of the Bankura district. Etymology It comes from the old Austric word ráŕhá or ráŕho which means “land of red soil”.P.R. Sarkar Rarh - ...

Birbhum Birbhum district () is an administrative unit in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the northernmost district of Burdwan division—one of the five administrative divisions of West Bengal. The district headquarters is in Suri. Other impo ...

and other districts in the western fringe of West Bengal. The Bagdi along with the Duley represent the most numerous Scheduled castes of

. Bagdis claim themselves as 'Barga Kshatriya'.

History

J.N Bhattacharya described the Bagdis as an aboriginal tribe, who were fishermen, woodcutters, and litter carriers. The Bagdis were also known as the ''criminal tribe'' of Bengal under

Criminal Tribes Act Since the 1870s, various pieces of colonialism, colonial legislation in India during British Raj, British rule were collectively called the Criminal Tribes Act (CTA). This criminalised entire communities by designating them as habitual criminals ...

of the British.

Population and Literacy Data

The Bagdis numbered 2,740,385 in West Bengal in the 2001 Indian census and were 14.9 percent of the Scheduled caste population of West Bengal. 47.7 percent of the Bagdis were literate – 60.4 percent males and 34.8 percent females were literate.

References

Bengali Hindu castes Ethnic groups in Bangladesh Ethnic groups in India Social groups of West Bengal {{India-ethno-stub

History

Population and Literacy Data

See also

References