The Bind' are a caste found in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, West Bengal and Tripura. Bind are under the OBCs category of the central list. The government of India's draft defines them as a nomadic tribe in Tripura. The Assam government and MP government categorise them as a tribe. The nearest name which comes closer for them is Nishad. The Bind are originally from the Vindhya.
History and origin
The Bind community is originally a tribe which traces its history to the Vindhya range. The very word Bind is derived from "Vindhya" which literally means hunter in Sanskrit. The Bind were historically engaged in a community around the Vindhyachal region before they spread throughout central and eastern parts of the country. The 1881 Census found out that there were around more 2 lakh Binds India, mainly residing in Bengal, Assam and North-West province. The census also noted that there were toddy drawer and cultivators. The main part of job as toddy drawer was to make palm jaggery. In the Purvanchal region there were traditionally boatmen, cultivators and artisans. They used to craft baskets, bags and mats from arundo, giant reed, plant. The artisanship among Binds is lost as there have been marginalisation of the community which couldn't maintain to revive its artisanship at community level. The crafts made by Binds used to be sold seasonally in fares across the Purvanchal region. A rough estimate is that there are 9.50 lakh Binds in India. It is one the numerically weaker sections of the society. The nearest group which comes closer to the Bind are Nishads. The Bind community has a distinct identity as a group from other groups, which were also engaged in the similar jobs, because it is basically a tribe. And, it is important to maintain its distinct identity. The Bind or Bin are sub-divided into seven occupational groups. These sub-groups are the Suraia, Nisadh, Kulawat, Mallaah, Guria, Kewat and Bind or Bin proper. Each of these sub-groups have specialised occupations. The speciality of the Kewat, Nisadh and Kulawat is to catch fish; the Mallaah and Guria are traditionally boatmen. In Bihar, Assam according to their traditions, the Bind once belonged to the Jaliya caste. The Noniya were forced to become grave-diggers by the early Muslim rulers, while the ancestors of the Bind fled to the forests, and evolved into a community. They have two sub-divisions, the Jethaut and the Kharaut. They are found in the districts of Samastipur, Begusarai, Darbhanga and Saran.
Present circumstances
The Bind are among 17 Other Backwards Class communities that have been proposed for Scheduled Caste status by the Samajwadi Party-controlled Government of Uttar Pradesh. However, this proposal, which relates to votebank politics and has been made in the past, has been stayed by the courts; a prior attempt was also rejected by the Centre. The Bind have a traditional caste council and, like other occupational castes, maintain strict social control over members. They are Hindu, and customs similar to other similar groupings such as the Kewat. They are concentrated in eastern Uttar Pradesh, and speak Bhojpuri. In Bihar, the Jethaut are mainly engaged in fishing, well sinking and basket making, the Noniya are salt manufacturers, while the Kharaut are mainly farmers. They speak the Maithili dialect of Hindi.
Religion and Culture
The Bind have two important septs, the Narayaniha and Maiwarha. The Narayaniha are worshippers of the orthodox Hindu gods, Mahadev, Parvati, Mahabir or Hanuman, and, in particular, Satya Narayan or Vishnu. The Maiwarha themselves derive their name from the town of Mau in the Azamgarh District. They are chiefly worshippers of the Shakti, goddess Durga or Kali in more localised forms, which is more popular Sept of the Bind. There is controversial part when the community was mistakenly believed to be the Panchopirihas. The Bind have been paganist in the past. The Bind community was significantly Hinduised, as Nath sampraday started making a presence among the folk with the Bhakti movement.
