The Kharvi, are a community found in

Goa Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...

and Maharashtra. Some are Christians, while others are Hindus. They have various sub-groups, among which are the Taris, Tarukars, and Ramponkars. Taris are the primary fishermen, Tarukars are the Taru owning landlords, etc. Though they are largely involved in fisheries, hence they have right of sacred thread. They are distinct from the Gabit community found mostly in northern Goa and the Pagi community found mostly in southern Goa, although they share a similar traditional occupation. Those who are not engaged in fishing always wear the sacred thread, whereas the fishermen wear it for seven days from the Srāvana Hunnami, or full-moon day of the month Srāvana (August–September), and then remove it. Most follow the Shaiva Shakta tradition, whereas some follow the Smarta tradition. Found chiefly in the coastal

taluka A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluka, or taluk) is a local unit of administrative division in some countries of South Asia. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administr ...

s of

Mormugao Mormugao is a seaport city situated in the eponymous Mormugao taluka (municipality) of the South district, in the Goa state, India. It has a deep natural harbour and remains Goa's chief port. Towards the end of the Indo-Portuguese era in 191 ...

Salcete Salcete ( Konkani: ''Saxtti''/''Xaxtti''; pt, Salcette) is a sub-division of the district of South Goa, in the state of Goa, situated by the west coast of India. The Sal river and its backwaters dominate the landscape of Salcete. His ...

and

Tiswadi Tiswadi ( pt, Ilhas de Goa, lit=Islands of Goa, or simply ''Ilhas'') is a sub-district in the district of North Goa, situated in the Indian coastal state of Goa. It is the largest and populous island of Goa situated in the basin of the Zua ...

, the Catholic Kharvis generally speak the

Konkani language Konkani () is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Konkani people, primarily in the Konkan region, along the western coast of India. It is one of the 22 scheduled languages mentioned in the Indian Constitution, and the official language of ...

but some use

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

. They write Konkani using

Roman script The Latin script, also known as Roman script, is an alphabetic writing system based on the letters of the classical Latin alphabet, derived from a form of the Greek alphabet which was in use in the ancient Greek city of Cumae, in southern Ital ...

. Arranged marriages are common but not prevalent, and monogamy is practised. The traditional

joint family An extended family is a family that extends beyond the nuclear family of parents and their children to include aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins or other relatives, all living nearby or in the same household. Particular forms include the stem a ...

arrangements are increasingly giving way to the nuclear family. Their principal diet is rice and fish curry but meat and vegetables are also important constituents. While the Kharvis are traditionally a significant group among the fishing community of Goa, many of the younger generation have moved away from that occupation and also from the area. They are increasingly to be found working in Europe and the Gulf countries. The traditional modes of fishing in Goa have increasingly been supplanted by mechanised methods and the investment required for this, plus the gains to be accrued, have led to an influx of non-Kharvi communities to the industry. This shift to mechanisation has been encouraged by both the national

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

and the state

Government of Goa The Government of Goa is a state government created by the Constitution of India and has executive, legislative and judicial authority of the state of Goa. It is headquartered in Panaji, the capital city of Goa. History The governor's role ...

since the 1970s, and it had first become evident after the

annexation of Goa The Annexation of Goa was the process in which the Republic of India annexed ', the then Portuguese Indian territories of Goa, Daman and Diu, starting with the armed action carried out by the Indian Armed Forces in December 1961. In India, ...

by India in 1961. ". As of the 1996, the Kharvi in Goa were designated as an

Other Backward Class The Other Backward Class is a collective term used by the Government of India to classify castes which are educationally or socially backward. It is one of several official classifications of the population of India, along with General castes, ...

in the central list maintained by the

National Commission for Backward Classes India's National Commission for Backward Classes is a constitutional body (123rd Constitutional Amendment Bill, 2017 and 102nd Amendment Act, 2018 in the constitution to make it a constitutional body under Article 338B of the Indian Constitutio ...

(NCBC). At that time their representation said that they prefer to be known as Kshatriya Marathas but the NCBC listed them as "Koli, Kharvi (including Christian Kharvi)".

References

Notes Citations {{Ethnic and social groups of Goa and Konkan Hinduism in Goa Social groups of Goa Other Backward Classes Christianity in Goa