Myths of the World

The  Chenchus  are a  Dravidian  tribe, a designated  Scheduled Tribe  in the  Indian  states of  Andhra Pradesh ,  Telangana ,  Karnataka  and  Odisha .  They are an  aboriginal tribe  whose traditional way of life been based on  hunting and gathering . The Chenchus speak the  Chenchu language , a member of the  Dravidian  language family. In general, the Chenchu relationship to non-tribal people has been largely symbiotic. Some Chenchus have continued to specialize in collecting forest products for sale to non-tribal people. Many Chenchus live in the sparse and deciduous  Nallamala forest  of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.  The Chenchus are referred to as one of the Primitive Tribal Groups that are still dependent on forests and do not cultivate land but hunt for a living. Non-tribe people living among them rent land from the Chenchus and pay a portion of the harvest. Othe...

The  Baiga  are an ethnic group found in central  India  primarily in the state of  Madhya Pradesh , and in smaller numbers in the surrounding states of  Uttar Pradesh ,  Chhattisgarh  and  Jharkhand . The largest number of Baiga is found in Baiga-chuk in  Mandla district  and  Balaghat district  of Madhya Pradesh. They have sub-castes: Bijhwar, Narotia, Bharotiya, Nahar, Rai maina and Kath maina. The name Baiga means " sorcerer-medicine man ".  The Baiga tribe is officially recognized as  Scheduled Tribes  in eight states: Madhya Pradesh (414,526), Chhattisgarh (89,744), Uttar Pradesh (30,006), West Bengal (13,423), Jharkhand (3,583), Bihar (544), Odisha (338), and Maharashtra (333). In Uttar Pradesh, the Baiga population totals 47,393. Among them, the Baigas of  Sonbhadra district  are recognized as  Scheduled Tribes , numbering 30,006,  while in other districts of Uttar Pradesh, they a...