Chhattisgarh
Tribes of Chhattisgarh
Major Tribes of Chhattisgarh and Their Distribution
Gond, Kanwar, Oraon, Halba, Muria, Maria and other tribes of Chhattisgarh: Census 2011 figures, regional distribution and languages for CGPSC.
Prerequisites
- Population and Census: the state’s overall Census 2011 numbers, into which the ST figures fit
- Physical Geography of Chhattisgarh: the northern hills, central plains and Bastar plateau, which map neatly onto tribal regions
- Administrative Structure: the 5 divisions and 33 districts named below
The Hook: Three Weekly Markets, Three Languages
Connect
Walk through the Sunday haat (हाट) at Jagdalpur and you will hear Halbi (हल्बी), the market language of Bastar. In a haat near Jashpur, Oraon women bargain in Kurukh (कुड़ुख). In the forest villages of Kabirdham, Baiga families sell bamboo and forest produce. All three are Scheduled Tribes of the same state, but they speak languages from different families and live in different landscapes.
Who are the major tribes of Chhattisgarh, how many are they, and where does each one live?
Why it matters: Prelims Paper I Part 2 regularly asks “which tribe lives where”, “which is the largest”, and “which language belongs to which tribe”. Mains GS-IV (Social aspects of Chhattisgarh) expects you to describe the tribal map of the state before you analyse it.
The Numbers (Census 2011)
| Indicator | Figure |
|---|---|
| ST population of Chhattisgarh | about 78.2 lakh (78,22,902) |
| Share of the state’s population | 30.6%: almost one person in three |
| Notified Scheduled Tribes | 42 communities in the state list (commonly cited count; the list has since been amended, see below) |
| Largest tribe | Gond (गोंड): more than half of the state’s ST population |
| Next largest | Kanwar / Kawar (कंवर), then Oraon (उरांव); Halba and Bhatra follow among the larger groups |
| Highest ST share by district (2011, 18-district map) | Bijapur (about 80%), Narayanpur (about 77%), Dantewada (about 77%) |
| Lowest ST shares | The central plains districts (Janjgir-Champa, Raipur, Durg and others), all well below the state average |
Who decides who is a Scheduled Tribe?
Under Article 342, the President notifies the tribes of each state by public order, after consulting the Governor. After that, only Parliament, by law, can add or remove a community. For Chhattisgarh, the Union Cabinet approved adding 12 communities (new entries such as Dhanuhar, Kisan, Saonra and Binjhia, plus spelling variants and synonyms such as Bhuinya/Bhuiyan for Bharia-Bhumia and Devanagari spellings of Pando) on 14 September 2022. The bill passed the Lok Sabha in December 2022 and the Rajya Sabha, with amendments, in July 2023. The “42 tribes” figure you see in most books predates this change, so state counts carefully in an answer.
Census 2011 is still the latest
All figures here are Census 2011. They were counted on the old 18-district map, so “Bijapur” or “Dantewada” means the district as it stood in 2011. Do not mix them with today’s 33 districts (as of 2026).
The Tribal Map: Three Belts
Chhattisgarh’s tribes are concentrated in two large forested belts, the north (Surguja division) and the south (Bastar division), with a thinner central and Maikal-range belt in between. The rice-growing plains around Raipur, Durg, Bilaspur and Janjgir have the lowest tribal share.
graph TD
N["NORTH: Surguja, Jashpur, Balrampur, Korba, Raigarh
Oraon, Kanwar, Korwa, Nagesia, Pando, Birhor, Majhwar, Gond"]
C["CENTRE and MAIKAL RANGE: Kabirdham, Mungeli, GPM, Gariaband, Dhamtari, Mahasamund
Baiga, Gond, Kamar, Bhunjia, Binjhwar, Sawara"]
S["SOUTH: Bastar, Kondagaon, Narayanpur, Kanker, Dantewada, Bijapur, Sukma
Muria, Maria, Abujhmaria, Halba, Bhatra, Dhurwa, Dorla"]
N --- C
C --- SSouthern belt: Bastar division
The Gond of Bastar are known by local group names. These are the ones the exam asks about:
| Tribe / group | Where | Identity markers |
|---|---|---|
| Muria (मुरिया) | Kondagaon, Narayanpur, Bastar (Jagdalpur) | Famous for the Ghotul (घोटुल) youth dormitory; Gondi speakers |
| Abujhmaria (अबूझमाड़िया) | Abujhmarh (अबूझमाड़) hills, mainly Narayanpur district, extending into Bijapur and Dantewada | A PVTG; traditional shifting cultivation called penda |
| Dandami Maria / Bison-horn Maria (दंडामी माड़िया) | Dantewada, Bijapur, Sukma | Named after the bison-horn headdress worn in their dance (Gaur Maria dance) |
| Halba (हल्बा) | Kanker, Bastar, Kondagaon, and parts of Dhamtari and Balod | Speak Halbi, the link language of Bastar; known for the 18th-century Halba rebellion |
| Bhatra (भतरा) | Bastar and Kondagaon, near the Odisha border | Speak Bhatri (related to Odia) |
| Dhurwa (धुरवा) | Bastar and Sukma | Also called Parja; speak Dhurwa/Parji (Dravidian) |
| Dorla (दोरला) | Sukma (Konta area) and Bijapur | Live along the borders with Telangana and Andhra Pradesh |
Anthropologists of Bastar
Two British-era studies are still cited in exam books: W. V. Grigson, The Maria Gonds of Bastar (1938), and Verrier Elwin, whose works include Maria Murder and Suicide (1943) and The Muria and Their Ghotul (1947).
Northern belt: Surguja division and the Raigarh–Korba area
| Tribe | Where | Identity markers |
|---|---|---|
| Oraon (उरांव) | Jashpur, Surguja, Raigarh, Balrampur | Speak Kurukh (Dravidian); totemic clans; youth dormitory Dhumkuria |
| Kanwar / Kawar (कंवर) | Korba, Jashpur, Raigarh, Bilaspur, Surguja | Second-largest ST of the state; traditionally claim descent from the Kauravas; settled cultivators |
| Korwa (कोरवा), incl. Pahadi (Hill) Korwa | Jashpur, Surguja, Balrampur, Korba | Hill Korwa are a PVTG; speak a Munda (Austroasiatic) language |
| Nagesia (नगेसिया), Kisan | Surguja, Jashpur | Cultivators of the northern plateau |
| Pando (पंडो) | Surguja, Balrampur, Surajpur, Koriya | Traditionally claim descent from the Pandavas; treated by the state as a special backward tribe |
| Birhor (बिरहोर) | Raigarh, Jashpur, Korba, Bilaspur | A PVTG; once nomadic rope-makers and hunters |
| Majhwar (मझवार), Kharia, Munda | Surguja, Korba, Jashpur | Smaller northern communities |
Central belt: Maikal range and the south-east plains edge
| Tribe | Where | Identity markers |
|---|---|---|
| Baiga (बैगा) | Kabirdham (Kawardha), Mungeli, Bilaspur, Gaurela-Pendra-Marwahi | A PVTG; bewar (बेवर) shifting cultivation, godna (गोदना) tattooing, reputation as healers |
| Kamar (कमार) | Gariaband, Dhamtari, Mahasamund | A PVTG; bamboo craft, forest gathering |
| Bhunjia (भुंजिया) | Gariaband (towards the Odisha border) | Treated by the state as a special backward tribe; the Chuktia Bhunjia’s sacred kitchen, Lal Bangla (लाल बंगला) |
| Binjhwar (बिंझवार) | Mahasamund, Baloda Bazar, Raigarh | Settled cultivators |
| Sawara / Saonra (सवरा) | Mahasamund, Raigarh, Bilaspur | Related to the Saora of Odisha |
| Gond | Everywhere, especially Kabirdham, Rajnandgaon, Mohla-Manpur, Kanker, Dhamtari | Found in every division; the state’s largest tribe |
Languages: Three Language Families
| Family | Tribal languages in Chhattisgarh |
|---|---|
| Dravidian | Gondi (Gond, Muria, Maria), Kurukh (Oraon), Dhurwa/Parji |
| Austroasiatic (Munda) | Korwa, Kharia, Mundari, Birhor |
| Indo-Aryan | Halbi, Bhatri, and Chhattisgarhi-related speech of many settled tribes |
Halbi as a link language
Halbi is an Indo-Aryan language, yet it is spoken across Bastar by many tribes as a common market and administrative language. Do not assume that a tribal language must be Dravidian or Munda.
Analysis for Mains: Why This Distribution?
- Geography as refuge: the dense sal forests and hills of Bastar, Abujhmarh, the Maikal range and the northern plateau were hard to reach, so tribal societies kept their land and customs while the open Mahanadi plains were settled by caste-Hindu peasants.
- Historical polity: much of the tribal belt lay in princely states and zamindaris (Bastar, Kanker, Surguja, Jashpur and others) rather than British khalsa land, which slowed land alienation until the 20th century. See British Rule, Princely States and Zamindaris.
- Resource overlap: the same belts hold the state’s iron ore (Bailadila), coal (Hasdeo, Korba, Mand-Raigarh) and bauxite. Most development-versus-displacement debates in the state play out on tribal land.
- Internal diversity: “tribal” is not one culture. The Kanwar and Halba are largely settled farmers; the Birhor and Hill Korwa were hunter-gatherers until recently. Policy has to differ accordingly, which is why PVTGs get a separate track.
- Constitutional footprint: these belts are the Fifth Schedule areas where PESA applies. See PESA in the Scheduled Areas.
Memory Tricks
Order of size: Go-Ka-O
“Go KAre O”: Gond, Kanwar, Oraon. Gond alone is more than half; Kanwar is second, Oraon third.
North vs South in one line
North reads “OK-Pando-BiRHOR”: Oraon, Korwa/Kanwar, Pando, Birhor.
South reads “MMA-HB-DD”: Muria, Maria, Abujhmaria, Halba, Bhatra, Dhurwa, Dorla.
Language families
“GoKuDhu are Dravidian, Korwa is Munda, Halbi is Aryan.” Gondi, Kurukh, Dhurwa are Dravidian; Korwa (with Kharia, Birhor) is Munda; Halbi and Bhatri are Indo-Aryan.
Don’t Confuse
| This | vs | That |
|---|---|---|
| Kanwar (Kawar): second-largest ST, Korba–Jashpur, traditionally claims Kaurava descent | Pando: small northern tribe, traditionally claims Pandava descent | |
| Muria: Ghotul, Kondagaon–Narayanpur | Maria: Abujhmaria (hills) and Bison-horn Maria (Dantewada–Bijapur) | |
| Halbi: Indo-Aryan link language of Bastar | Gondi: Dravidian language of the Gond | |
| Kurukh: language of the Oraon | Korwa: Munda language of the Korwa | |
| Kamar: PVTG, Gariaband–Dhamtari | Kanwar: large settled tribe, Korba–Jashpur | |
| Dhumkuria: Oraon dormitory | Ghotul: Muria dormitory |
Common Mistakes
Trap 1: largest vs second largest
Gond is the largest tribe. Options often offer Oraon or Halba as the second largest. The second largest is Kanwar (Kawar).
Trap 2: Kurukh is not a Munda language
The Oraon live in the same northern belt as Munda-speaking tribes, but Kurukh is Dravidian. A statement grouping “Kurukh, Korwa and Mundari” as Austroasiatic is wrong.
Trap 3: district figures on the wrong map
“Bijapur has about 80% ST population” is a Census 2011 figure for the district as it stood then. Do not apply 2011 shares to districts created in 2012, 2020 or 2022 without saying so.
Trap 4: 'the' number of tribes
“Chhattisgarh has exactly 42 Scheduled Tribes” is the commonly printed figure, but the ST list was amended after 2022. In Mains, write “about 42 notified tribes (Census-era list)” rather than an unqualified number.
Practice
These are original practice questions written in CGPSC style. They are not previous-year questions.
Level 1: Foundation
- According to Census 2011, Scheduled Tribes make up about ________% of Chhattisgarh’s population.
- The largest tribe of Chhattisgarh is the ________, and the second largest is the ________.
- The link language spoken across Bastar by many tribes is ________.
Answers
- 30.6
- Gond; Kanwar (Kawar)
- Halbi
Level 2: Prelims MCQs
Q1. Consider the following statements:
- Kurukh, the language of the Oraon, belongs to the Dravidian family.
- Halbi is an Austroasiatic language spoken mainly in Surguja.
- The Gond make up more than half of Chhattisgarh’s Scheduled Tribe population.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only (b) 1 and 3 only (c) 2 and 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer and explanation
(b) 1 and 3 only. Kurukh is Dravidian, and the Gond are more than half of the state’s ST population (Census 2011). Statement 2 is wrong on both counts: Halbi is Indo-Aryan, and it is the link language of Bastar, not Surguja.
Q2. Match List-I (Tribe) with List-II (Main area in Chhattisgarh):
| List-I | List-II |
|---|---|
| A. Oraon | 1. Abujhmarh hills |
| B. Abujhmaria | 2. Jashpur |
| C. Baiga | 3. Gariaband |
| D. Kamar | 4. Kabirdham |
(a) A-2, B-1, C-4, D-3 (b) A-2, B-1, C-3, D-4 (c) A-1, B-2, C-4, D-3 (d) A-4, B-1, C-2, D-3
Answer and explanation
(a) A-2, B-1, C-4, D-3. The Oraon are concentrated in Jashpur and the northern districts; the Abujhmaria in the Abujhmarh hills (mainly Narayanpur); the Baiga in Kabirdham and the Maikal range; the Kamar in Gariaband and Dhamtari.
Q3. Which tribe is the second largest in Chhattisgarh by population (Census 2011)?
(a) Oraon (b) Halba (c) Kanwar (d) Bhatra
Answer and explanation
(c) Kanwar. After the Gond, the Kanwar (Kawar) of the Korba–Jashpur–Raigarh belt are the largest group, followed by the Oraon. Halba and Bhatra are significant tribes of Bastar but smaller.
Q4. The “Bison-horn” Maria, named after the headdress worn in their dance, are found mainly in:
(a) Jashpur and Surguja (b) Dantewada and Bijapur (c) Kabirdham and Mungeli (d) Mahasamund and Raigarh
Answer and explanation
(b) Dantewada and Bijapur. The Dandami or Bison-horn Maria live in southern Bastar (Dantewada, Bijapur, Sukma). Their Gaur Maria dance uses a headdress of bison horns. The other options are northern and central districts.
Q5. Under the Constitution, who can add a community to the list of Scheduled Tribes of Chhattisgarh once the first notification has been issued?
(a) The Governor, by order (b) The President, by a fresh notification (c) Parliament, by law (d) The State Legislature, by law
Answer and explanation
(c) Parliament, by law. Article 342(1) lets the President issue the first notification after consulting the Governor. Article 342(2) says any later inclusion or exclusion can be made only by Parliament by law. That is why the 2022 proposal to add 12 Chhattisgarh communities went to Parliament as a bill.
Level 3: Mains Answer Writing
Q1. Describe the regional distribution of the major tribes of Chhattisgarh. (150 words)
Model answer outline
Intro: STs are about 30.6% of Chhattisgarh’s population (Census 2011), concentrated in the forested north and south.
Body:
- South (Bastar division): Gond groups (Muria, Abujhmaria, Bison-horn Maria), Halba, Bhatra, Dhurwa, Dorla; highest ST shares in Bijapur, Narayanpur, Dantewada.
- North (Surguja division, Korba, Raigarh): Oraon, Kanwar, Korwa (incl. Hill Korwa), Nagesia, Pando, Birhor.
- Centre and Maikal range: Baiga (Kabirdham), Kamar and Bhunjia (Gariaband), Binjhwar, Sawara; Gond everywhere.
- Plains: lowest ST shares (Janjgir-Champa, Raipur, Durg).
- Languages: Dravidian (Gondi, Kurukh), Munda (Korwa), Indo-Aryan (Halbi).
Conclusion: The pattern follows forest and hill cover. It overlaps with mineral belts and Fifth Schedule areas, which is why tribal policy is central to the state’s development.
Q2. “The tribes of Chhattisgarh are not a single homogeneous group.” Discuss with examples and explain why this matters for policy. (250 words)
Model answer outline
Intro: Over 40 notified tribes, spread across three ecological belts, differ in language, economy and social organisation.
Body (diversity):
- Language: Dravidian Gondi and Kurukh, Munda Korwa, Indo-Aryan Halbi.
- Economy: settled cultivators (Kanwar, Halba, Oraon) vs shifting cultivators and gatherers (Abujhmaria, Baiga, Hill Korwa, Birhor).
- Social institutions: Muria Ghotul vs Oraon Dhumkuria vs clan councils elsewhere.
- Religion and identity: nature worship (Bada Dev, Sarna), Hindu influence, Christianity in parts of the north.
Body (policy relevance):
- One-size schemes benefit the more advanced tribes first, which is why PVTGs get a separate track (PM-JANMAN).
- Education in the mother tongue needs different primers (Gondi, Halbi, Kurukh).
- Land and forest rights must respect different tenure systems (penda, bewar, settled fields).
- Representation: ST reservation can be captured by the larger groups.
Conclusion: Disaggregated data and tribe-specific plans, implemented through Gram Sabhas under PESA, are needed to reach the most vulnerable.
Quick Revision Table
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| ST population (2011) | About 78.2 lakh, 30.6% of the state |
| Notified tribes | 42 (commonly cited; list amended after 2022) |
| Largest / second / third | Gond (over half) / Kanwar / Oraon |
| Highest ST share (2011 districts) | Bijapur (~80%), Narayanpur (~77%), Dantewada (~77%) |
| South belt | Muria, Maria, Abujhmaria, Halba, Bhatra, Dhurwa, Dorla |
| North belt | Oraon, Kanwar, Korwa, Nagesia, Pando, Birhor, Majhwar |
| Central belt | Baiga (Kabirdham), Kamar and Bhunjia (Gariaband), Binjhwar, Sawara |
| Languages | Gondi, Kurukh (Dravidian); Korwa (Munda); Halbi, Bhatri (Indo-Aryan) |
| ST list changes | Art. 342: President notifies; only Parliament amends |
| 2022 proposal | 12 communities (Dhanuhar, Kisan, Saonra, Binjhia etc.), Cabinet 14 Sept 2022 |
| Classic ethnographies | Grigson (1938), Elwin (1943, 1947) |
Key Takeaways
Key Takeaways
- About 30.6% of Chhattisgarh is ST (Census 2011), roughly 78.2 lakh people in about 42 notified tribes.
- Gond > Kanwar > Oraon in size; Gond alone are more than half.
- Tribes cluster in the north (Surguja) and south (Bastar), with a central Maikal belt; the plains have the lowest shares.
- Three language families: Dravidian (Gondi, Kurukh), Munda (Korwa), Indo-Aryan (Halbi).
- Only Parliament can change the ST list after the first presidential notification (Art. 342).
What’s Next
- Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs): the five central PVTGs and two state-declared groups
- Tribal Social Organisation and Ghotul: clans, marriage, village councils and youth dormitories
- Tribal Revolts and the Bhumkal: the history of tribal resistance in Bastar
- Festivals and Traditions: Bastar Dussehra, Madai and other tribal festivals
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