Siddi Tribal community:
The President of India expressed happiness that the Siddi tribal community, a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group, has achieved a literacy rate of over 72 per cent.
- The Siddi community is an Indo-African tribal community that descended from the Bantu community of Africa.
- It is believed that they first came to India in the 7th century with Arab merchants and in the 16th century with the Portuguese and British, largely as slaves, servants, blacksmiths, carpenters and masons.
- In the present day, the majority of them are found in the west and southwest of India, in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana states.
- In India, the Union government on January 8, 2003, classified Siddis under the list of Scheduled Tribes. They are included in the Centre’s list of Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups.
- Occupation: Traditional dependence on agriculture, forest produce, and manual labor
- Language: They speak either Konkani, Urdu or Marathi as their main language.
- Culture: They are known for their folk music and dances, such as Dhamal and Rasda, with men performing the Dhamal dance.
