The Hela are a
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
caste found in the state of
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...
in India. They are a sub-group within the larger
Bhangi community of
North India
North India is a loosely defined region consisting of the northern part of India. The dominant geographical features of North India are the Indo-Gangetic Plain and the Himalayas, which demarcate the region from the Tibetan Plateau and Central ...
.
[People of India Uttar Pradesh Volume XLII Part Two edited by A Hasan & J C Das page 603 to 605 Manohar Publications]
The Hela are a community of agricultural labourers. They are found mainly in the districts of
Varanasi
Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world.
*
*
*
* The city has a syncretic t ...
,
Ghazipur
Ghazipur is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Ghazipur city is the administrative headquarters of the Ghazipur district, one of the four districts that form the Varanasi division of Uttar Pradesh.
The city of Ghazipur also constitu ...
, Maharajganj, Kushinagar and
Mirzapur. They are divided into five sub-groups, the Supa Bhagat, Balmiki, Nourchinwa, Lalbegi and Shaikh-Hela. Traditionally, the community was hierarchical, with the Bhagat considering themselves superior to the other sub-groups.
The
2011 Census of India
The 2011 Census of India or the 15th Indian Census was conducted in two phases, house listing and population enumeration. The House listing phase began on 1 April 2010 and involved the collection of information about all buildings. Information ...
for Uttar Pradesh showed the Hela population as 52,314.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hela (Caste)
Scheduled Castes of Uttar Pradesh