Hakki Pikki
This is a collection of articles archived for the excellence of their content. |
Contents |
An overview
As in 2021
The Hakki Pikki community is a semi-nomadic tribe found primarily in the southern Indian states of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Puducherry. With a 2011 population of around 29,000, the Hakki Pikki people are known for their hunting and bird-catching skills.
History and Culture
The name Hakki Pikki means "bird catcher," and the community is believed to have descended from the legendary Kshatriya warrior, Ranapratap Singh. They migrated to southern India after being defeated by the Moghuls, and they are considered a scheduled tribe, indicating a low status in society. The Hakki Pikki people have four clans and are known for their rich folklore and traditional songs that reflect their way of life.
The Hakki Pikki tribe is a nomadic tribe . They are also known by other names such as Hakkipikki, Hakkipikkiyar, and Jenu Kuruba. Here are some details about the Hakki Pikki tribe in Karnataka:
Population:
The 2023 population of the Hakki Pikki tribe is estimated to be around 50,000 in Karnataka.
Language:
Their traditional language is Vaagri Booli The Hakki Pikki tribe speaks a language also called Hakki, which is a mix of Kannada and Tamil. They also speak Kannada, Tamil, and Telugu.
Culture:
The Hakki Pikki tribe has a rich culture and follows their own unique customs and traditions. They have a rich folklore and traditional songs that reflect their way of life.
Education:
The literacy rate among the Hakki Pikki tribe is low, and the government has taken several initiatives to provide education to their children.
Issues:
The Hakki Pikki tribe faces several challenges such as displacement due to the construction of dams and other infrastructure projects, lack of basic amenities like water and healthcare, and discrimination from other communities.
Challenges and Government Initiatives
The Hakki Pikki community faces several challenges, including displacement due to the construction of dams and other infrastructure projects, lack of basic amenities like water and healthcare, and discrimination from other communities. The literacy rate among the Hakki Pikki tribe is low, and the government has taken several initiatives to provide education to their children. The government has launched several schemes for the welfare of the Hakki Pikki tribe, such as the Tribal Sub-Plan, Integrated Tribal Development Program, and Vanbandhu Kalyan Yojana. These schemes aim to improve their standard of living, provide education and healthcare facilities, and protect their rights.
The government has launched several schemes for the welfare of the Hakki Pikki tribe, such as the Tribal Sub-Plan, Integrated Tribal Development Program, and Vanbandhu Kalyan Yojana. These schemes aim to improve their standard of living, provide education and healthcare facilities, and protect their rights.
B
Lifestyle
The Hakki Pikki community is a semi-nomadic tribe, and they live in small groups in temporary settlements made of bamboo and thatch. They are hunters and gatherers and rely on forest resources for their livelihood. They are non-vegetarians and mostly catch their prey themselves. Their children do not get enough education to compete in India's modernizing economy. However, the Hakki Pikki are known to learn a number of languages which helps them barter at a local level. They depend on selling their crafts and low-cost wares for their livelihood, and during the Covid 19 crisis, they faced major difficulties because of the lockdown.
Religion
Though the Hakki Pikki community is officially Hindu, they have their own deities, and the label is a catch-all for the various indigenous religions of South Asia. Hinduism makes up 98.88% of the community's major religion, and 0.81% of the population is Christian.
In conclusion, the Hakki Pikki community is a unique tribe in southern India with a rich cultural heritage, but they face several challenges in modern times. With government initiatives and support, the community's future can be improved, and their way of life preserved.
Details, as in 2023
Kiran Parashar, April 21, 2023: The Indian Express
Who are the Hakki Pikki?
The Hakki Pikki is a tribe that lives in several states in west and south India, especially near forest areas. Hakki Pikkis (Hakki in Kannada means ‘bird’ and Pikki means ‘catchers’) are a semi-nomadic tribe, traditionally of bird catchers and hunters. According to the 2011 census, the Hakki Pikki population in Karnataka is 11,892, and they live majorly in Davangere, Mysuru, Kolar, Hassan and Shivmogga districts. In different regions, they are known by different names, such as Mel-Shikari in northern Karnataka and Maharashtra.
MR Gangadhar, Vice Chancellor of Chamarajanagar University and an anthropologist who has conducted a study on the tribe, said, “The Hakki Pikki move in groups from place to place in search of livelihood. They are divided into four clans, called Gujaratia, Panwar, Kaliwala and Mewaras. These clans can be equated with castes in the traditional Hindu society. In the olden days, there was a hierarchy among the clans, with the Gujaratia at the top and the Mewaras at the bottom. The forest is the main natural resource of the Hakki Pikki.”
Where do they live?
Hakki Pikki people are believed to hail originally from the bordering districts of Gujarat and Rajasthan. According to Gangadhar, they came to the south in search of game. “To Karnataka, they seem to have arrived via Andhra Pradesh, as they still remember a place called Jalapally near Hyderabad as their ancestral home, where their forefathers lived for a considerable period. They are now spread across south India,” he said.
Till a few years ago, women used to wear the ghagra (skirt) common in Rajasthan, although now they wear saris and other garments.
What were their traditional jobs, and what do they do now?
Traditionally, Hakki Pikkis lived in forest areas, leading a nomadic life for nine months a year and coming back to their permanent camps for three. Locals in Pakshirajapura, a Hakki Pikki village in Mysuru district The Indian Express visited, said earlier, men of the tribe would hunt while women begged in villages. But as the wildlife protection laws became stricter, the Hakki Pikkis in Karnataka started selling spices, herbal oils, and plastic flowers in local temple fairs.
P S Nanjunda Swamy, state president of the Karnataka Adivasi Budakattu Hakki Pikki Jananga, an organisation that works for members of the tribe, said that the community moved to villages from the forests in the 1950s. “Earlier, we killed animals to make a living. But then some of our community members were booked and jailed under wildlife laws. So we shifted to selling herbal oils and other materials in villages and towns.” The herbal oil business took off, and now the tribe members go to many places across the globe to sell their products.
According to Nanjunda Swamy, the Hakki Pikkis in Tamil Nadu travelled to Singapore, Thailand and other places about 20-25 years ago to sell some marbles, in the process discovering there was a huge demand for Ayurvedic products in the African continent. They started selling their products in Africa, and Karnataka Hakki Pikkis followed them. People from the state have been traveling to African countries for the past 20 years now.
Education levels among the Hakki Pikkis are still low. For example, in the 2,000-strong population of Pakshirajapura, only eight people have completed graduation-level courses and one person works as a police constable.
What are their rituals and customs?
Hakki Pikkis in Karnataka follow Hindu traditions and celebrate all Hindu festivals. They are non-vegetarians. The eldest son in a family is not supposed to cut his hair so that he can be identified easily.
The tribe prefers cross-cousin marriages. According to locals, the usual age of marriage is 18 for women and 22 for men. The society is matriarchal, where the groom gives dowry to the bride’s family.D evaraj, 28, a Pakshirajapura resident, said he paid Rs 50,000 to his in-laws as dowry to get married to his wife. Monogamy is the norm.
How well do they earn in African countries?
The residents of Pakshirajapura said African countries offer them an opportunity to escape poverty faster.
“There is demand for our products in the African continent. If a person invests say Rs 5 lakh on raw materials (hibiscus powder, oil extraction, gooseberry, Ayurvedic plants, etc.), they have a chance to double or triple it in a matter of 3-6 months in African countries. But in India, you don’t have such a market and business. We do sell online and promote products on social media, including Facebook and YouTube,” said Anil Kumar, a community member.
The Sudan connection
Niranjan Kaggere, April 30, 2023: The Times of India
Ranjan, a native of Channagiri in Davanagere district of Karnataka, had landed in Sudan’s capital Khartoum about seven months ago hoping to make a fortune out of selling herbal cosmetics in the African country. Little did he know that he would end up being caught in the middle of a civil war. When he was evacuated by the Indian Embassy officials, he had almost given up hope.
Ranjan is one of the several thousand Hakki-Pikki tribals from Karnataka who have been making the trek to Sudan for many years carrying herbs, spices and ayurvedic medicines. The name Hakki-Pikki (which translates to ‘bird catchers’) is one of the semi-nomadic tribes of Karnataka that migrated from parts of Gujarat and Rajasthan several centuries ago in search of game (hunting) as the forest was their primary source of livelihood. “Though the Forest Rights Act, 2006 recognises the rights of forest-dwelling communities, these rights were diluted. Deprived of their livelihood, they took to selling ayurvedic medicines made from forest produce, and even plastic flowers and plants,” says anthropology professor MR Gangadhar from the University of Mysore, adding that their dialect is called Vaghri which is a unique mix of Gujarati, Rajasthani, Marathi, Telugu and Kannada. Mysuru district has some of the largest settlements of these tribals besides a few pockets in Bengaluru and Davanagere-Shivamogga districts.
So how did they end up in Africa? PS Nanjunda Swamy of Karnataka Adivasi Budakattu Hakki-Pikki Jananga and a gram panchayat member at Ummattur in Hunsur taluk in Mysuru district narrates their journey. “Almost two decades ago, a few of the tribals from Trichy in Tamil Nadu went to Gulf countries and gained a foothold there. As matrimonial alliances happened within the family, many in Karnataka also flew to these countries in search of livelihood. Even though initially we had knowledge only about herbs, our association with Keralites helped us in making medicines and oils from these herbs. A few of the African clients in these countries who were familiar with our products invited us to tap the growing market there,” says Swamy. Gradu- ally, the Hakki Pikkis began getting their family members, friends and relatives there. ”Every year about 3,000 to 4,000 tribals from the southern states visit Africa for business,” he adds. While the tribe members may not have fancy degrees, almost all of them have passports.
R Puneeth Kumar, president of Karnataka Hakki-Pikki Budakattu Sanghatane who spent six years in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo selling products like hibiscus oil and soapnut powder, says that most tribals go through agents in Mumbai and land in African countries on tourist visas for two to three months. “Many African airlines allow luggage up to 40-50 kgs and we take medicine powder and spices. Usually they do not object at immigration points. But if they do, we bribe them and clear the baggage. ”
The tribals travel around African cities visiting government offices, factories and shopping centers to market their products. Among the hot sellers are massage and hair oils as well as herbal aphrodisiacs. “While a bottle of hair oil in India costs Rs 100, it is sold for Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,500 there. When stocks go dry, we arrange for family members to visit us with products. ” It’s not without risks. “The local police always chase us for trading on tourist visas. There have been cases when police have put us in jails and we had to pay thousands of dollars as a bribe,” explains Puneeth.
“If one is not caught, one can earn about Rs 50 to 60 lakh a year after investing about Rs 4 to 5 lakh. Many tribals come here for a minimum of six months. Others go on to stay for three to four years. On returning to India, the first objective of many is to buy automobiles, build houses etc. When others in the community see this lavish lifestyle, they also aspire for it,” Puneeth says.
Back home, some tribe members have had skirmishes with the law for illegal poaching, robbery and burglary. “The community is deprived of education. We appeal to the government to at least train and certify us in traditional medicines so our ayurvedic and naturopathy products get a bigger market overseas, and the community can prosper,” he says.
See also
Hakki Pikki
