The Mahar community is the second largest caste in Maharashtra, after the Marathas. According to the 2011 census, the population of Mahars in Maharashtra was more than 80 lakhs. In this article we are going to know detailed and important information about Mahar population in Maharashtra.
There are many castes or social groups in Maharashtra, among which the Marathas, Mahars, Malis, Kunbis and Dhangars are the five major ones. In the state, the Mahars are the 2nd largest community after the Marathas! The Maratha community constitutes 16% to 27% of the population in the state while the Mahar community constitutes 7% to 9%.
Mahar (महार) community has a large population in Maharashtra and its neighboring states. Mahar caste has been given ‘Scheduled Caste’ status in more than 15 states of India. Mahars are the largest community among Scheduled Castes in the two states of Maharashtra (60%) and Goa (50%).
This article provides detailed and important information about the Mahar population in Maharashtra using official data from the 2011 Census of India. India has not had a census in 2021, so we have the latest data from the 2011 census.
Groups of Mahar community
Traditionally, the Mahar lived outside the village and performed various types of service work for the entire village. They worked as guards, messengers, repairing walls, settling boundary disputes, clearing roads and picking up dead animals. Mahars also worked as agricultural laborers and some even owned land, although they were not essentially farmers.
As Mahars were untouchables, they had to face various discriminations, injustices and atrocities. Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar belongs to the Mahar community.
The Mahar community can be divided into the following three major groups. Scheduled Caste (SC) Mahar is the largest group.
- SC Mahars
- Hindu Mahars : Those reporting religion as Hinduism and caste as Mahar in the census
- Buddhist Mahars : Those recording religion as Buddhism and caste as Mahar in the census
- Sikh Mahars : Those recording religion as Sikhism and caste as Mahar in the census
- Non-SC Mahars : Those reporting religion as Christianity or Islam and caste as Mahar
- Former Mahars : Those recording religion as Buddhism but not recording caste Mahar in the census
Population of Mahar community
According to the 2011 census, about 16.6 percent or 20.14 crore population of India’s total population belongs to Dalits i.e. Scheduled Castes. There is a population of about 1 crore Mahar community in this. The largest population of Mahar community is in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. They are also settled in some numbers in Goa, Telangana, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Gujarat. Their languages are Marathi, Varahdi, Khandeshi language, Konkani, and Hindi. Dalits constitute 12 percent of Maharashtra and 7 percent of them are Mahars.
In the early 1980s, the Mahar community constituted 9 per cent of the total population of Maharashtra, accounting for about 70 per cent of the total Scheduled Caste population in the state.
According to the 2011 census, the population of Mahars belonging to Scheduled Castes (SC) in Maharashtra was 80.06 lakh, which was 7.12 percent of the total population of the state and 60.31 percent of the total Scheduled Caste population. It is important to understand that the figure of 80.06 lakh (8 mn) is not of ‘all Mahars’ but only of ‘SC Mahars’. The population of both SC Mahar and Non-SC Mahar groups should be over 1 crore.
SC Mahar or Scheduled Caste Mahar means a Mahar whose ‘religion’ is one of the three Hinduism, Buddhism or Sikhism. There are also some ‘Christian Mahars’ and ‘Muslim Mahars’ in the state, but legally they are not considered as ‘Scheduled Castes’. Hence they were not registered as ‘SC’ in the census and were not counted in the Scheduled Caste Mahar population. Additionally, the census also did not count ‘former Mahars’ in the Mahar population, who reported their ‘religion’ as Buddhist, but did not report their ‘[scheduled] caste’ as Mahar.
The population of Mahars, who follow Christianity, Islam or other religions, and former Mahars can range from 15 to 20 lakhs. Thus the population of all these Mahars is 9 percent. Since official statistics of non-SC Mahars and ex-Mahars are not available, we will understand the population of SC Mahars in detail only.
Mahar population in Maharashtra in 2024
Population of Maharashtra in 2024 is estimated to be 13,15,90,000 The Mahar population in Maharashtra in 2024 is about 93,69,000 to 1,18,00,000 (or 7% to 9%).
Mahars among Scheduled Castes
According to the 2011 census, Maharashtra has a population of 11.23 crore, of which 1.33 crore (or 11.8%) are Scheduled Castes. There are a total of 59 scheduled castes in Maharashtra, of which the most prominent caste is the Mahar.
Mahar caste group — ‘Mahar, Mehra, Taral, Dhegu-Megu‘ is at number 37 in the list of scheduled castes in Maharashtra. According to the 2011 census, the Mahar population in Maharashtra is 80,06,060, which is 60% among Scheduled Castes, and 7.12% in the state.
The Mahar community consisted of 40,70,230 (or 50.84%) males and 39,35,830 females (or 49.16%). Most Mahars live in rural areas. Of the total Mahars, 47,64,174 (or 59.51%) were from rural areas and 32,41,886 (or 40.49%) from urban areas.
The top 5 largest Scheduled Castes in Maharashtra are as follows (as per 2011 census) :
- Mahar caste group – 80,06,060 (60.31%)
- Mang caste group – 24,88,531 (18.74%)
- Chambhar caste group – 14,11,072 (10.63%)
- Bhangi caste group – 2,17,166 (1.64%)
- Dhor caste group – 1,16,287 (0.88%)
- Remaining 54 caste groups – 10,36,782 (7.81%)
- Total Scheduled Castes – 1,32,75,898 (100%)
Religion-wise population of Mahars
Traditionally the Mahar community is considered to be Hindu. But even earlier, in ancient times the Mahar community is believed to be the Naga clans, who were followers of Buddhism. At present, almost all Mahars are Buddhists, and follow Navayana Buddhism. However, many ‘Buddhist’ Mahars are religiously recorded as Hindus in India’s national census!
Legally, a Scheduled Caste person can only be Hindu, Buddhist or Sikh by religion, not any other than these three. Therefore, the Scheduled Caste population is divided into these three religions [Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism]. According to the 2011 census, Buddhists are found in 53 of Maharashtra’s 59 Scheduled Castes, but Mahar is the only caste in which Buddhists outnumber Hindus.
Mahar Population in Maharashtra – Although 99% of the Mahar community is Buddhist, a large section of the community (38%) was recorded as ‘Hindu’ by religion in the 2011 census. As a result, the number of Buddhists in the state seems to have decreased considerably. According to census data, in 2001, 56 percent of Mahars were Buddhists, which rose to 62 percent in 2011. That is, during these ten years, about 5.5 percent of the Mahars recorded their religion as ‘Buddhist’.
On the other hand, between 2001 and 2011, Mahars reporting Hinduism decreased from 43.7% to 38.15%. Had the census been held in 2021, Mahars reporting Buddhism would certainly have been seen at over 70%. In the next 2-3 decades, it is estimated that up to 90% of Mahars will officially register ‘Buddhism’ as their religion.
According to the 2001 census, the religion-wise population of the Mahars [References – 1, 2]
- Buddhist Mahars – 31,93,622 (56.24%)
- Hindu Mahars – 24,81,971 (43.71%)
- Sikh Mahars – 3,319 (0.06%)
- Total Mahars – 56,78,912 (100%)
According to the 2011 census, the religious population of the Mahars.
- Buddhist Mahars – 49,43,821 (61.75%)
- Hindu Mahars – 30,54,158 (38.15%)
- Sikh Mahars – 8,081 (0.10%)
- Total Mahars – 80,06,060 (100%)
- The total population of SC Mahars increased by 23,27,148 between 2001 and 2011.
- The total population of Buddhist Mahars increased by 17,50,199 between 2001 and 2011.
- The total population of Maharashtrian Buddhists increased by 6,92,490 between 2001 and 2011.
According to the 2001 census, Mahars constituted 54.70% of the total Buddhist population in Maharashtra. In the 2011 census, this ratio increased to 75.70%. During the decade 2001 to 2010, the population of Buddhist Mahars increased by 17.50 lakh, but the total Buddhist population increased by only 6.92 lakh.
Official figures from the 2011 census show that there were a total of 65,31,200 Buddhists in Maharashtra in 2011, of which 75.70 percent (49,43,821) belonged directly to the Mahar community, while the remaining 24.30% (15,87,379) were non-Mahar Buddhists.
- Buddhists in Maharashtra in 2001 – 58,38,710
- Buddhists in Maharashtra in 2011 – 65,31,200
The total population of Maharashtrian Buddhists increased by 6,92,490 between 2001 and 2011.
According to the 2001 census, the religion-wise population of Scheduled Castes in Maharashtra is as follows. [References – 1, 2]
- SC Hindus : 66,21,529 (67%)
- SC Buddhists : 32,54,144 (32.9%)
- SC Sikhs : 5,983 (0.1%)
- SC Total : 98,81,656 (100%)
According to the 2011 census, the religion-wise population of Scheduled Castes in Maharashtra is as follows. [Reference]
- SC Hindus : 80,60,130 (60.71%)
- SC Buddhists : 52,04,284 (39.20%)
- SC Sikhs : 11,484 (0.09%)
- SC Total : 1,32,75,898 (100%)
The total population of Scheduled Castes increased by 33,94,242 between 2001 and 2011.
The total Scheduled Caste Buddhist population in the state is 52,04,284 of which 49,43,821 (or 95%) belong to the Mahar caste group alone. The remaining 2,60,463 (or 5%) SC Buddhists belong to other 58 Scheduled Castes.
Among the three religious groups of Scheduled Castes in the state, namely Hindus, Buddhists and Sikhs, the largest population is Mahars. Mahars are the highest among SC Hindus at 38%, SC Buddhists at 95% and SC Sikhs at 70%.
Below are some of the major reasons why Buddhist Mahars are recorded as Hindus.
1) Buddhists fear that if Hinduism is not registered along with the Mahar caste, their reservation for Scheduled Castes will be canceled and they will not be able to enjoy the benefits or concessions of reservation. Hence millions of Mahars who practice Buddhism record their religion as ‘Hinduism’ in censuses, school certificates and elsewhere.
2) Some Buddhists also have the misconception that if Mahar is to be registered as a caste then her ‘religion’ is only Hinduism. Because, according to them, Mahar is a caste and caste is in Hinduism. In fact Mahar is a caste group in almost all major religions.
If the ‘Hindu’ Mahars had been recorded as ‘Buddhist’
If 30.54 lakh Hindu Mahars were registered as Buddhist Mahars, the number of Buddhists in the Scheduled Castes would have increased and the number of Hindus would have decreased as follows.
- SC Buddhists : 82,58,442 (62.21%)
- SC Hindus : 50,05,972 (37.71%)
- SC Sikhs : 11,484 (0.09%)
- Total SCs : 1,32,75,898 (100%)
If the 38% or 30.54 lakh Mahars recorded as Hindus in the census 2011 were recorded as Buddhists, the changes would have been as follows.
1) The combined population of Buddhist Mahars and Hindu Mahars in the state of Maharashtra would have been ’80 lakh [Buddhist Mahars]’. Almost all Mahars would have become Buddhists.
2) In Maharashtra, the proportion of 80.60 lakh (or 61%) Dalit Hindus and 52.04 lakh Dalit Buddhists (or 39%) in Scheduled Castes would have changed to 82.58 lakh (or 62%) Dalit Buddhists and 50.06 lakh (or 38%) Dalit Hindus. That is, the population of Hindu and Buddhist communities in Scheduled Castes would have been reversed.
3) In the state, the total Buddhist population would have increased from 65,31,200 to 95,85,358. The proportion of Buddhists would have increased from 5.8 percent to 8.53 percent. At this time, 79.80% Hindus in the state would also have become 77.30%.
4) The Buddhist population of India would have increased from 84 lakhs (or 0.70%) to 1 crore 15 lakhs (or 0.95%). But even then, for 1% of the country’s population to be Buddhists, another 7 lakh people would have fallen short.
We knew that there are 80 lakh Mahars in the state. Apart from this there are 10 to 12 lakh former Mahars who have not registered themselves as ‘Mahar’ in the census. They recorded ‘Buddhist’ only in the column of religion, and left the column of [Scheduled] Caste blank. Such persons were counted among Buddhists but not included in the population of Mahars and Scheduled Castes. This slightly increased the population of Buddhists but decreased the population of Mahars and Scheduled Castes.
Descendants of the Mahars, these new initiated Buddhists do not consider themselves Mahars, as they consider Mahar to be a ‘Hindu identity’. Many Buddhists in Maharashtra consider ‘Mahar’ and ‘Hindu’ to be synonymous terms. If they think of themselves as Mahars, they think of themselves as Hindus. Actually, Buddhism is an alternative to Hinduism. A person can be a Buddhist by religion and a Mahar by Social group or caste at the same time. Becoming a Buddhist does not require giving up the Mahar identity but the ‘Hindu’ identity.
Are all Mahars Hindus?
A Scheduled Caste person or a Dalit person is generally considered to be a Hindu, but this is actually a myth. Legally, a Scheduled Caste person is not only Hindu but also Buddhist and Sikh. Therefore, writing cast Mahar does not automatically make religion Hindu. A person of Mahar community may record caste Mahar and religion Buddhist on school documents or in the census. The same is applicable for all scheduled castes including Mang, Chambar.
Are all Buddhists Mahars?
It is also a misconception that ‘all Buddhists’ are Mahars. According to the 2011 census, Buddhists are found in 53 of the total 59 Scheduled Castes and 40 of the total 45 Scheduled Tribes in Maharashtra. Many OBCs and nomadic and Vimukta castes (VJ-NTs) in the state are also Buddhists, but official statistics are not available. Buddhists belong to more than 100 castes or groups in Maharashtra. In fact the majority of Mahars are Buddhists and the majority of Buddhists are Mahars.
Official figures from the 2011 census show that there were a total of 65,31,200 Buddhists in Maharashtra in 2011, of which 75.70 percent (49,43,821) belonged directly to the Mahar community, while the remaining 24.30% (15,87,379) were non-Mahar Buddhists. However, among these 24% Buddhists there is also a large population of former Mahars.
What is Neo-Buddhist?
Now let us turn to term neo-Buddhist or neo-Buaddha. Many Mahars call themselves neo-Buddhists or neo-Buaddha. What is Neo-Buddhist? and Are neo-Buddhists only Mahars?
Neo-Buddhist (neo-Buaddha) is a government term. Neo-Buddhist is not a category, not a caste, not a scheduled caste, nor is it a religion. Although neo-Buddhists are definitely Buddhists, they have a slightly different identity. Neo-Buddhist means ‘Scheduled Caste Buddhist’. A neo-Buddhist is a ‘Buddhist person belonging to a Scheduled Caste’.
Neo-Buddhists come under the Scheduled Castes, come under the Buddhist religion. The former untouchables (or Dalits) who ‘converted to Buddhism’ became neo-Buddhists. Of the 52,04,284 Buddhists among the 53 Scheduled Castes in Maharashtra, all of them are neo-Buddhists. The population of neo-Buddhists in the country is 57.57 lakh.
Although the majority (95%) of neo-Buddhists are Mahars, not all neo-Buddhists belong to the Mahar community, and not all Mahars are neo-Buddhists. Alternative terms for neo-Buddhist or neo-Buaddha are ‘Scheduled Caste Buddhists’ (SC Buddhists) and ‘Dalit Buddhists’. Similar to ‘Dalit Hindu’ and ‘Dalit Sikh’, the term ‘Dalit Buddhist’ is used in the Hindi media. SC Buddhists in the state reject the terms ‘neo-Buddhist’ and ‘Dalit Buddhist’ for themselves, but the term ‘Dalit’ is found acceptable among SC Buddhists in other states.
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