page_title: Tea-garden community of Assam
section_title: Demographics
hierarchical_section_title: Tea-garden community of Assam / Demographics
caption_attribution_description: A tea tribe girl of Assam.
context_page_description: Tea-garden community are multi ethnic groups of tea garden workers and their dependents in Assam. They are officially referred as "Tea-tribes" by Government of Assam. They are the descendants of tribals and backward castes brought by the British colonial planters as indentured labourers from the regions of present-day Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh into colonial Assam during 1860-90s in multiple phases for the purpose of being employed in the tea gardens industry as labourers. They are heterogeneous, multi-ethnic which includes many tribal and caste groups. They are found mainly in those districts of Upper Assam and Northern Brahmaputra belt where there is high concentration of tea gardens like Kokrajhar, Udalguri, Sonitpur, Nagaon, Golaghat, Jorhat, Sivasagar, Charaideo, Dibrugarh, Tinsukia. There is a sizeable population of the community in the Barak Valley region of Assam as well in the districts of Cachar, Karimganj and Hailakandi. The total population is estimated to be around 6.5 million of which estimated 4 million reside in residential quarters built inside 799 tea estates spread across tea growing regions of Assam.
context_section_description: An ethno-linguistic minority, the population of the community is primarily rural in nature and estimated to be around 6.5 million (65 lakhs) or 18% of Assam's total population.
  They live in almost every district of Assam but their density varies according to the number of tea plantations in different regions of Assam. They are more numerous in Upper Assam and Central Assam than Lower Assam. Some were not brought for tea garden labour. Many tribes (most notably Santhal, Kurukh and Munda people) were forcibly displaced by the British from the Chotanagpur region due to their rebellion against the British regime. They were dumped into Lower Assam regions of then undivided Goalpara and undivided Darrang districts as a punishment for their uprising against the regime (Santhal rebellion of the 1850s and Birsa Munda Rebellion of 1899–1900).
  The community dominates the districts of Upper Assam including Sonitpur due to the high density of tea gardens and plantations in this region. Districts of North Lakhimpur, Darrang, Barak Valley areas and Bodoland Territorial Area District (BTAD) areas of Assam also have a significant population of the community. They form nearly 17% and 11% of the total population in BTAD and the Barak Valley region respectively.
  Different political parties appeal to them during election seasons in Assam as their demographic numbers always influence politics in Assam.
  They are neither a single ethnic tribe nor a single caste but are the people of various ethno-linguistic origins, from different regions of eastern India composed of dozens of tribes and castes. The list of tribes and castes among them are Asur, Aryamala, Baiga, Bania, Banjara, Bedia, Bhumij, Bhuinya, Bhil, Binjhia, Birhor, Basphor, Birijia, Bauri, Bhakta, Beldar, Baraik, Bagti, Bondo, Bhatta, Basor, Chamar, Chero, Chik Baraik, Dhanwar, Dandari, Dhobi, Dushad, Dandasi, Dhandari, Dom,  Gour, Ghansi, Ganda, Gorait, Ghatowar, Gonds, Gossain, Ganjhu, Gowala, Hari, Holra, Julaha, Karmakar, Koiri, Kharia, Kalahandi, Karmali, Karwa, Kol, Kumhar, Kherwar,  Khonds, Khodal, Koya, Kondpan, Kohor, Kishan, Kudumi Mahato, Kewat, Lodhi, Lodha, Mahli, Malar, Mal Paharia, Mirdha, Modi, Munda, Manki, Madgi, Majwar,Nayak/Patnaik,  Nunia, Oraon, Parja, Pradhan, Pashi, Paidi, Panika, Patratanti, Pan, Rajput, Rajwar, Rajwal, Reily, Reddy, Rajbonshi, Rout, Rautia, Santhal, Sonar, Savar, Saora, Tanti, Tantubai, Turi, Tassa, Telenga, Teli.
caption: A Tea-tribe girl of Assam
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