Modhweth Festival

• 11 Jan 2025

Source: TH 

Why in News? 

The Toda tribe, one of the oldest Dravidian ethnic groups in the Nilgiris Hills of Tamil Nadu, celebrated their traditional 'Modhweth' festival to mark the New Year.  

What is the Modhweth Festival? 

• About: 
  • It is celebrated annually on the last Sunday of December or the first Sunday of January. 
  • It is held at the Moonpo temple in Muthanadu Mund village, located in the Nilgiri district. 
  • The Moonpo temple features a unique vertical spire with a thatched roof and a flat stone on top, making it one of the last Toda temples of its kind in the Nilgiris. 
• Rituals and Celebrations: 
  • Prayers are offered to the deity, Thenkish Amman, for good health, rains, and a bountiful harvest in the coming year. 
  • Participants perform a dance outside the temple as part of the celebrations. 
• Unique Customs: 
  • Toda youth showcase their strength and masculinity by lifting a greased boulder weighing around 80 kg. 
  • As per traditional customs, women do not participate in the celebrations.

What is the Toda Tribe?

• About: 
  • Toda Tribe is a pastoral tribe of the Nilgiri Hills of southern India. 
  • The Todas are classified as a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) in Tamil Nadu. 
  • The Toda language is Dravidian but is the most unusual and different among the languages belonging to the Dravidian family. 
• Significance: 
  • Toda lands are part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, designated as an International Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO. 
  • Their territory is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 
• Religion and Beliefs: 
  • Their religious practices revolve around a pantheon of gods, with Tökisy (goddess) and Ön (god of the underworld) as the central deities.

Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve 

• About: 
  • It was the first biosphere reserve in India established in 1986. 
  • The reserve spans across three Indian states: Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala. 
  • It is India's first biosphere reserve under UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Programme. 
  • Home to several tribal groups such as the Adiyan, Aranadan , Kader, Kurichian, Kuruman , and Kurumbas. 
  • It portrays the confluence of Afro-tropical and Indo-Malayan biotic zones of the world. 
• Fauna: 
  • Animals like Nilgiri tahr, Nilgiri langur, gaur, Indian elephant and freshwater fishes such as Nilgiri danio (Devario neilgherriensis), Nilgiri barbare are found here. 
• Protected Areas in NBR: 
  • The Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary, Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, Bandipur National Park, Nagarhole National Park, Mukurthi National Park and Silent Valley are the protected areas present within this reserve. 

UPSC Civil Services Examination, Previous Year Question (PYQ)

Q. Consider the following pairs: (2018)

  Craft      -           Heritage of 

1. Puthukkuli shawls — Tamil Nadu
2. Sujni embroidery — Maharashtra
3. Uppada Jamdani — Karnataka saris

Which of the pairs given above is/are correct? 

(a) 1 only  

(b) 1 and 2 

(c) 3 only  

(d) 2 and 3

Ans: (a)

Q. Which of the following hills are found where the Eastern Ghats and the Western Ghats meet? (2008)

(a) Anaimalai Hills  

(b) Cardamom Hills 

(c) Nilgiri Hills  

(d) Shevoroy Hills

Ans: (c)