The Sautar: In Search of Identity and Livelihood

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Sautar is an indigenous tribe residing mainly in West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand and Assam. Sautars belong to the Proto-Australoid racial group. Both men and women of the Sautar community are masters in archery. They are often considered a martial community by the masses. Since they are skilled fighters, they were often hired by the commoners during fights. Due to this practice, several Sautars were killed.

In Bihar, Sautar is one of the major communities, forming a majority of the state's tribal population. The Sautar mostly speak Sautari, a member of the Munda language family. In Bihar, the Sautars are mostly landless. Though, some people from the tribe engage themselves in agriculture.

This community has fallen prey to ignorance in the process of socialisation. The ignorance of the Sautar community developed gradually when most of their people were converted to Christianity. Some also became followers of Chauvinism. Due to this religious conversion, their original beliefs and culture got destroyed. In the cultural structure of India, the cultural identity and values of Sautars were ignored. This book is an attempt by the author to present the few aspects and facts behind the problems being faced by this community.

Dr. Birendra Prasad, an administrator, and a social scientist was born in the Jamui district of Bihar. He is a post- graduate in Veterinary Science. He has been selected in the country's most prestigious examination i.e., UPSC Civil Services Examination in 2004 to serve the nation. Dr. Birendra Prasad has contributed to many posts under Govt. of Bihar. Meanwhile, he has done Post- graduation in Economics and MBA in Finance. He has enormous affection for nature. He has authored books and research papers in the field of Veterinary Services, and Cultural and Social Services. He is a recipient of several awards and recognitions.