Uppara


Uppara or Sagara is a Telugu caste. The primary activity of Uppara members is the preparation of salt. This community traces its descent from Sagara Chakravarti who was a Kshatriya and he is one of the six legendary emperors known as ‘Shat Chakravarthis’.

History

According to Buchanan, the most important occupation of the Telugu Upparas at the beginning of the nineteenth century was the manufacture of salt.
Some members of the caste are Vaishnavites and others Saivites. They also worship various village deities, which vary according to the place of residence.
The one man commission constituted by the Government of Andhra Pradesh, chaired by Sri Anantha Raman in its report in 1968 made certain observations and recommendations regarding the Uppara or Sagara community. Some of the points mentioned in the report are as follows:
The "Chinnappa Reddy Report " indicates that the Uppara make up about 1.18 percent of the population of Karnataka.