Baghwa
| Baghwa बघवा बाबा दलान की नगरी | |
|---|---|
| village | |
  Baghwa   Baghwa Location in Bihar, India | |
| Coordinates: 25°28′N 86°17′E / 25.47°N 86.28°ECoordinates: 25°28′N 86°17′E / 25.47°N 86.28°E | |
| Country |
 India |
| State | Bihar |
| District | Saharsa |
| Elevation | 41 m (135 ft) |
| Population (2001) | |
| • Total | 5,000 |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Hindi, Maithili |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
| PIN | 852116 |
| Telephone code | 06478 |
| Vehicle registration | BR |
| Sex ratio | 906 females per 1000 males ♂/♀ ♂/♀ |
Baghwa is a village situated in the south and north corner of Saharsa district of north Indian stateBihar. It is the small village, by population but its area is not that small. It is surrounded by too water channels namely Sathrath(which merges in Ganga) and Balwa dhar(koshi) which part it from Khagaria. While Saharsa holds an important place in the Kosi division, Baghwa is credited for its numerous contributions to the district. The origin of the name Baghwa is famous due to in the ancient time a person named Shri Manmod Roy found a tiger in a forest which is near to Khajuri village and he decided to clean the forest area and stay. However the literal meaning of the village name indicates that Tiger's village and name that stands for Bagh (tiger) wa (place).
Baghwa is part of Simri Bakhtiyarpur Block and khagaria constituency. Some of the neighbouring places include Mahishi (5 km north), bangaon, Chainpur, khajuri (2 km east) and Balwa Haat (3 km east). Baghwa is divided into three sections (sub blocks) namely Baghwa Gaon, Majhwa and Gopalpur. The village population is estimated to be around 5,000. Each section of Bahgwa Panchayat is headed by a mukhiya (head of the panchayat). Panchayats are omnipresent in villages throughout the nation. The Mukhiya of panchayat is elected through voting. However these elections are not held regularly. As a result, the elected Mukhiya holds the position until the next election. The lessened interest of people in the panchaayati raj system and the lackadaisical effort by the state government for its revival are to be blamed the most.
This village has been known for having the highest number of top class civil servants, doctors, engineers, journalists, writers, artists, singers and other professionals in the state. In the entire Mithila region, this village is regarded with high esteem for its contributions in various walks of life.
Baba Manmod Roy, who was born in the nearby Khajuri village, spent his whole life for the welfare of the village. For his noble deeds, the villagers worship him as god for decades. Guy
Baba Manmod Roy and Baghwa
Baba Manmod Roy was a great person, philosopher, poet, social worker and wrestler whose charismatic acts earned him to be respected as God. Villagers worship him as God and his home as a temple named "DALAN" located at the western side of the village. Because of his Godly status, his ancient home is always open for incoming guests and villagers provide all necessary things to guests. He is referred as "Baba Dalan" by the villagers.
Land, farming and village life
Baghwa and its surrounding areas are part of the Kosi river basin.[1] This makes the land very fertile. The Kosi embankment is only 10 kilometers west. The farmers in the village mostly cultivate Dhaan (paddy crop), Makai (Maize/Corn), Gahum (Wheat crop) and Moong (a type of lentils) in their farms. Since the climate of this region is most suitable for Dhaan (the paddy crop), a good crop brings happiness to many farmers in the village. Though, people do try to grow wheat crops, only few farmers get good yields. Most of the farmers have moderate harvest and hence it is not as popular as harvesting of dhaan. Instead, maize is the second best crop for the farmers of this village. Therefore, they are tempted to grow garma dhaan (a unique type of paddy crop for summer farming) and makai (maize) crops together apart from harvesting regular crops. The timing of Dhaan harvesting is especially notable as the villagers are happy in general for several reasons. The reaping of the crop starts somewhere around mid November and is usually followed by some of the most important Hindu festivals namely Diwali and Shama Chakeba.[2] Six days after Diwali brings another festival called Chhath which is one of major festivals of Bihar. In between, Diwali and Chhath is another festival that is known as Bhardootiya(Bhai Dooj) in which brothers go to see their sisters. After Diwali and Chhath one more local and important festival named as Shama Chakeba,[3] this festival also shows the bond between bhai (brother) and bahin (sister). So before the onset of the harvesting the festive mood is already set and green fields that start showing the golden shades of ripe Dhaan crop are extremely pleasant to watch. Now for nearly two months it is the time for farmers to remain cheerful. The fresh crop of Dhaan reaches every home. Whether you are owner of the land, or the farmer or just the harvester, the Dhaan is bound to come to every household. It can be cooked straight or flattened to make Chura which makes an amazing food when combined with fresh Sakkar (Jaggery) and "Dahi" (Curd). In the rainy season (Savan aur Bhado) the whole agriculture land of this village is covered by rain water, so in this season the main food of the villagers fish and some aqua fruits.
Society, religion, culture and safety
The village population consists of Maithil Brahmins mostly. There are various surnames (e.g. : Roy, Jha, Mishra, Choudhary, Pathak etc..) found in this village, but Roy or Rai surname mostly found in this village. So the group of Roy surname peoples also known as "Rayyan" . Brahmins, by definition of the social classification in ancient India, are the highest ranked. The Brahmins are traditionally supposed to have teaching as their profession. The original habitats of this village also called as Kujilvars or Dihvars (landlords) have the surname title as "Roy or Rai" (a well known title of upper class Bengali) . They take pride in this title of Roy or Rai. Incidentally the main population of this village belongs to Shavarna Gotra whose ancestor Bhārgava, Vaitahavya, Savedasa. The most interesting and special thing is that villagers has very soft and kind heart, they giving Sadabart up to nowadays. Meaning of Sadabart is providing all facilities to any guest without any cost. Any one can't go hungry in this pious village of Baba Dalan. After independence this population of Maithil Brahmins have been involved in all profession like Administration, Engineers, Doctors, farming, business, serving the military and para-military forces to name a few. Apart from Brahmins, many others belonging to the lower castes also reside (though many of these lower caste people are moving out to adjacent places to village as they need more space for their growing family). These include, dusaadhs, chamaars, Musahars, Kumhaars, Nauwa (nai) and Paseeba (a caste whose living comes through serving Nature+homemade alcoholic beverages called "Taari".). All these people mentioned before, are Hindus. However, there is a small percentage of Muslims as well who mostly live in the Miyaaantoli last area of the village. These Muslims of the village rely predominantly on growing vegetables for their livelihood (often referred as Kujras). Some of the family members of these Muslim villagers also drive three-wheelers to make their ends meet. What characterises the Muslims of the village is the harmony they have kept for years. Baghwa is perhaps the rare places both in India and abroad where such a communal harmony can be seen. Muslims do participate in Hindu festivals and Hindus put offerings to their Tazhiyaa, a sight not seen that easily in a world so barren of peace. Some of the marriages of boys and girls are performed within the village community itself and it is also expected from the well settled boys to marry a girl from the village itself. A rare event normally not seen anywhere in the country.
It is blindly believed that Dalan Baba ji (Baba Manmod Roy) guards the village from all the evils and those who follow the road to sin, are taken care of by him. It is for this reason, no outsider eyes targeting Baghwa for committing crimes. The entire village is so well located that this area has not much been affected by the flood of Koshi river. Even in the worst flood of 1984 the main village was safe and the water entered in the outskirts of this village. The entire village is one piece of land in the Govt gazette and all disputes pertaining to the share of land among the families are resolved amicably within the village community. Also, the design of roads by the farsighted social reformer of the village, Late Ram Padarth Ji is acknowledged for the safety despite being so immensely populated. Late Ram Padarth Ji also founded the School in the village.
Natural calamities
The river Kosi, which is proverbially known as the sorrow of Bihar, has one of its embankment 10 km southwest to this village. Before this embankment came into existence, coping with flood was a routine thing for people of this area. However, since the 1950s when the embankment was made, there has been only one occasion when the village has been affected by the flood. This happened in September 1984 when the Kosi embankment breached near Nauhatta in Supaul district. Almost, all areas were submerged with the flood waters except the middle part of the village called the "Dhimka" (High land) which has sort of plateau shape. It is said then couple of villagers lost their lives in the water current. There was lot of damage to property and cattle. Barring this there hasn't been any incident of flood water entering to the village. In the recent flood and probably one of the most destructive floods ever, the village was totally unaffected. However, flooding or water logging due to heavy monsoon rains is a major reason for the poor connectivity of the area as bridges tend to get washed away. The scars of flood that came in 1984 and caused significant damage of property can still be seen in some parts. Apart from floods, the seismic activity of Himalayan region is responsible for earthquakes that this village has faced. It is believed that the Indian plate is penetrating into the Eurasian plate at a rate of 5 cm/year. Because of this movement, this reason is prone to earthquakes too. In 1934, there was a massive earthquake in the village that caused lots of damage. Back again in 1988, there was another quake of lot lower intensity which affected only the few buildings in the village. None of the homes were toppled. On the night of quake in 1988, the electricity went out minutes before the earthquake took place in the wee hours. The dogs started barking unusually and there was a whistle kind of sound that shocked everybody. The ground started shaking and people rushed outside to seek refuge. The tube wells and wells in the village started pouring water out but nobody was hurt. After that no earthquake has been experienced yet.
Festivals and other functions
Of all the Hindu festivals, Holi, Krishnastami, Durga Puja, Diwali and Chhath are celebrated with full religious fervor. Others festivals like Rama Navami, Bhardutiya or Bhaiya dooj (Bhau-beej), Saraswati Puja, Kojagara, Sirua, Sama Chakeba etc. are also celebrated however not everybody seems involved hundred percent. On Diwali and Sama Chakeva, one mela (fair) is organised for 3 to 4 days, lots of sweets and toys shops also available in this mela and artists from other places are invited to perform.
Holi
The celebration of Holi is sometimes two-day long. The first day being Dhurkhel (playing with dirt and dusts) and the second day for colours. Sometimes both of these are performed on the same day. It is interesting to note that the Holi festival in this village is normally celebrated one day in advance to the rest of the country. During the Holi festival, people get to meet each other. Many people from this village who live in other cities of India and abroad come back home on this occasion to be with their family. Traditionally, people used to go in groups beating drums and singing Holi songs and Jogiras. This festival serves as an occasion to see each other and say Hi!! At few places, there are big stocks of bhang (an intoxicant made of cannabis in the form of Dudhbhanga milk laced with bhaang extracts and dry fruits), Tikri (a type of Indian sweet stuffed with bhaang) and bhangjilebi (another Indian sweet laced with bhaang). Elders are greeted with this intoxicant but youngsters also find a way to have this. This tradition of greeting people with bhaang at Dwar (a place where the gents guests are entertained) has been maintained by the family. It is interesting to note that in all Western countries possession of marijuana is a crime but here it is a substitute of alcohol as those who drink alcohol are looked down upon. People generally believe that bhaang is a favourite beverage of Lord Shiva and therefore is acceptable, by and large, in the society. Once the durkhel and the colours are over, there is some classical music program where artists from other places are invited to perform. The classical music program used to be very popular amongst elders but most of the youngsters wouldn't seem interested.
Durga Puja
Durga Puja festival also brings many activities to the villagers. This is ten-day-long festival. Unlike other parts of the country here
Goddess Durga is worshipped in the form of Bhagwati. Bhagvati is an incarnation of Durga, whom Lord Ram had worshipped to be blessed with strength and weapons so that he can take on the mighty Ravan's army (a ruler of Lanka). The Bhagwati mandir is filled with devotees round the clock and there is non-stop Bhagwati Durga
On the eighth day of durga puja, a part of ritual, the goddess Durga is offered sacrifices in the form of Chhagars (young male goat kids) . Their sacrifices represent the end of Kaama (extreme carnal desires) and Krodha (extreme anger). The chhagars are, however, accepted as god offering and eaten by people. These chhagars and mostly skinned by local Paseebas who get skin, intestine, hoofs, balls and some money as their wage. The estimated number of Chhagars offered is around 100(at Baghwa Bramhasthal and Khajuri Bramhasthal) on that day itself. Durga Puja ends on the tenth day from its beginning.
Despite being considered one of the educated villages of the state, such orthodox practices like Bali (of male goats) and other non-essential rituals have continued in the name of tradition. Some of the well respected villagers are in the profession of promoting these types of practices in though there is a growing interest and unrest in some of the villagers to stop such cruelties against the animals. As a part of that, people are trying to reduce the numbers of sacrifices every year. On the tenth day, the People of the village celebrate Vijay Divas also called as Jatra and youngsters take the blessings of Bujurgs(experienced elders) by offering Vijay Pranam and the Bujurgs(experienced elders)reciprocate by saying Chiranjivi Bhav (have a long life) or Vijayi Bhav(Be a winner). On that day all male of the village they tie a Kush(a sacred grass from which Lord Ram's son Kush was born)at the portion of long hair backside (called Teek in Maithili). On that day Nawa (barber) shows mirror to the elder people of the village and takes some money as aashirwadi (blessing money). Then they come out from their homes in groups and try to locate a bird called Nilkanth(this bird has blue neck)as it represents Lord Shiva on that day.
Diwali
Diwali or Deepawali is main festival where all the villagers can be seen participating. The major events of this festival are Naatak (Drama organised by villagers), Natua Naach (Dance Program), Mela (Fair). Because of Mela, many relatives from nearby villages visit. This is very popular for kids and younger people as well as females of the village. Kids go to this fair for buying toys that can't usually be bought because of the unavailability. For example, Digdigiya (a toy which has a drum attached to it and its plays when you move it), Cilema (kaleidoscope) Fukka (balloons) and many others. This kids also seem very interested in buying coloured goggles taking a ride of Jhoola (swing) and simply watching Maut ka Kuwaan (a motorbike stunt game). On the other hand, females seem interested in shopping cosmetics and some household items. The elder males feel happy in taking their grandkids to the fair and shop for them. Usually elders are not seen shopping other than sweets and Paan. The writer of these lines still misses the Paan from Chaurasia Paan Bhandaar that used to come to the fair every year. During one of the mela nights, some artists from local orchestra parties would be invited. They would mostly play the peppy numbers. On some occasions a local male dancer, Bechana Natua (meaning the dancer named Bechana) would be seen attracting the mela goers. But these days it seems like power showing platform for the young person of the village.
Sports events and extras
Volleyball is the ancient and main sports event of the villagers, elder says that volleyball is in blood of villagers so they shows his esprit in this game.
A volleyball tournament ceremony is held on 15 January since that is the birthday of Baba Manmod Roy and so this tournament named as Baba Manmod Roy Memorial Volleyball Tournament. In this tournament there are various good teams of Koshi Kamisnari participated (e.g.: Sonbarsa Kachahri, Purnea Electricity Board, Pidhauli, Bangaon, Mahishi, Supaul District Board etc.)
It was started in 1990 by late Yogeshwar Roy. Others games like cricket and football are also played in this village. There is a big cricket ground in this village and the village cricket team is named as Tiger Ekadas (Tiger Eleven). There is a village-level cricket tournament every year organised by the younger cricketer and volunteer of this village.
Painting is also an interest of people of this village.
Economy
Agriculture is considered as the first occupation practised by people in this village. There are a huge amount of educated people in Baghwa. The occupation is mainly doctor, engineer, Govt services, many more IAS IPS can be seen in Baghwa village.
This village is characterised by its fertile agricultural lands. After agriculture, fish culture is considered as the main food and business by the people in this village. The economy level of this village is completely depend on agriculture and fish culture. In the month between July and October due to heavy rain and water left by Kosi river the whole agriculture lands of this village are covered by water, so in this time fish is the primary food of the villagers.
Agriculture
The major crop of this village is rice. Other crops produced in this district are wheat, maize, pulses, oil seeds and sugarcane. The village is also famous for mango has many mango orchards.
Fruits And Vegetable
Among the all agricultural products that are grown in the village the most important is the mango crop, which is famous in Bihar in general and in Baghwa in particular.
Baghwa's mango plantation can be distinguished by its unique and delicious taste. Recently, farmers have started to harvest the mango crop in the region. These mangoes are characterised nowadays by its acidulous taste and green colour. Locally the people like to eat these mangos when it is still juicy with a pinch of salt and dried red pepper, until gain its sweet taste and orange colour. In India, Dussehri and Langda varieties are most popular in the Northern states and in Baghwa village various different varieties of Mangoes are cropped. The famous varieties of mangoes, which generally cropped in Baghwa are listed below.
- Maaldeh
- Kalkatiya
- Gulab Khash
- Zardalu
- Mallika
- Kesar
- Krishn Bhog
- Ram Bhog
- Faizli
- Kumal Pahad
- Bakia
There are various types of vegetables are also cropped in this village, such as cauliflower, potato, cabbage, green chilies, pea pods, etc. But cauliflower is main vegetable which is cropped as a large scale in this village.
Nearest banks[4]
- State Bank Of India, Balwahaat
- Punjab national Bank, Garaul
- Bank Of India, Aran
- State Bank Of India, Kanp
- Punjab national Bank, Sahpur
Places of interest
- Thakur Baari
- Barhma Ghar
- Dalaan
- Mahadev Mathh
- Sokha Sambhu Naath Mandir
- Puranki Barhma Ghar
Language and culture
Education
Colleges
- 1. R.P.R.H.S Baghwa
Schools
- 1. Raam Padarath Ramayani High School[5]
Front view of R.P.R High School (Circa 2008). - 2. Middle School baghwa
See also
- Saharsa – the Municipality
- Saharsa district – the Municipality
- Villages in Bihar
- Sihaul
- List of villages of Saharsa
References
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Baghwa. |