Bhil Pradesh: Demand for a Separate State

Context

Recently, the demands for a “Bhil Pradesh”, a separate state for tribal people in western India, have begun to be raised again.

Bhil social reformer and spiritual leader Govind Guru first raised the demand for a separate state for tribals back in 1913 after the Mangarh massacre.
- The massacre, which took place six years before Jallianwalla Bagh and is sometimes referred to as the “Adivasi Jallianwala”.
- It saw hundreds of Bhil tribals being killed by British forces on November 17, 1913 in the hills of Mangarh on the border of Rajasthan and Gujarat.
Post-Independence, the demand for Bhil Pradesh was raised repeatedly.
Earlier, the Dungarpur, Banswara, Udaipur region in Rajasthan and Gujarat, MP, etc. was part of a single entity.
- But post-Independence, the tribal majority regions were divided by the political parties, so that the tribals don’t organise and unite.

The word Bhil is derived from “Veel”, which means “bow” in the Dravidian language.
The Bhil tribe is called “Dhanush Purush of India” because they are highly adept at learning Dhanush.
Bhils are a group of tribal Indians scattered throughout India from Gujarat in the west to Tripura in the Far East.
As of 2013, they were the largest tribal group in India with the majority living in the states of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.
Bhils have a rich and unique culture. The Bhilala subdivision is known for its Pithora painting.
Ghoomar is a traditional folk dance of the Bhil tribe.
- Ghoomar is the symbol of femininity.
- The young women take art in this dance and declare that they are stepping into women’s shoes.