The Kurichiyas and Kurumbas were a fairly numerous tribal folk inhabiting the mountains of Wayanad in Malabar.
The Kurichiyas took possessions of all important passes leading to Wayanad and cut supplies and reinforcements to the ambushed British troops in the valley.
The magnitude of the insurrection is revealed by the fact that the sub collector of the division had to frantically requisition troops from Canara and Mysore as the local British regiment was insufficient to deal with the uprising.For a few days at least, British administration ceased to function in the Wayanad area.
The Kurichiya live in the forested areas of Kerala state, southern India, where they were the earliest known inhabitants.
The Kurichiya were the first migrants into the Wayanad hills and settled as the first farmers of the western region.
The Kurichiya are Hindus and their supreme deity is, Shiva, "god of the hunt." They worship a variety of gods and demons in addition to their own tribal gods.
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The Kurichiyas and the Kurumbas had formed a major part of the militia of the Raja.
The Kurichiyas and the Kurumbas were further joined by the Nayars and the Tiyyas of Waynad in an insurgency against the company and their revenue servants.
Although the Kurichiya revolt was a tribal revolt initiated by the tribals themselves, all other communities and castes had joined its mainstream.
More important is the amazing fact that the Congress which had won it eight times in a row has readily handed it over to the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML).
And the League, in turn, has nominated P. Balan, a member of the Kurichiya tribe, as the UDF candidate in the election scheduled on April 29.
The exchange of seats was to enable K. Muraleedharan, president of the Democratic Indira Congress (Karunakaran), an ally of the United Democratic Front (UDF), to contest from Koduvally where the IUML is believed to have enough votes to ensure his first victory in the Assembly elections.
They worship animals, birds, trees, rocks and snakes and believe in ancestor worship as well as practicing fl magic and sorcery.
The Kurichiya tribes live in the forested areas of Wayanad district.
When the Mughals and the British came into their territory, the Kurichiya rose against them in revolt supporting the Raja of Kottayam.
www.wayanad.net /tribe.html (511 words)
Tribal families in Kannur to get land - India News - Webindia123.com(Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-11)
After the scrutiny, the Government had decided to distribute the land to 840 genuine landless tribals in the district, he added.
Paniya community would get the major share of 827 followed by Kurichiya community and Karimbalan community would get ten and three respectively.
The Government would provide electricity and water facility at the land, he said adding that they have already provided roads in between the plots to reach the individual beneficiary to their land.
The three dozen adivasi communities of Kerala have had varying fortunes over the last three centuries, though all have suffered setbacks since independence.
In the Malabar region, the Paniyas and Adiyas, two groups heavily involved in the Wayanad occupation, became serfs to local landlords in the 18th century, unlike groups such as the Kurichiya and Kurumba.
The inland Wayanad region today has the highest concentration of adivasis, in large part as a consequence of the Grow More Food programme initiated in 1942-43, which pushed many adivasis off their lands.
[India Thinkers Net] News update - India Thinkers Net Archives at Zinester(Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-11)
Eight Adivasi youth who enrolled for the programme were paid a monthly stipend of Rs.600 each by the department.
Under the supervision of a team of senior tribal physicians led by Achappan Vaidyar, a tribal physician belonging to the Kurichiya community, the students were imparted training in identifying medicinal plants, manufacturing medicines and the intricate methodology of disease diagnosis.
The successful youth tribals later set up practice in their own place.
