BACK TO HOME PAGEAhmadnagar's Kumbhar community
This industry is spread all over the district, and is mostly followed by the Kumbhar
community as a hereditary occupation. The 1961 Census enumerated 507 establishments of
potters engaging about 2,113 artisans. Potters are mostly concentrated around Ahmadnagar
city along the bank of Sina river, as well as in Kopargaon and Shrirampur talukas.
Black or red clay is available on the river-banks in the district. The clay found on the
river-banks in Ahmadnagar, Kopargaon and Shrirampur talukas is excellent for pottery as
well as for brick-making. Horse-dung, coal ash coke, ground-nut husk, half-burnt charcoal
and other types of burning waste are required as raw material for the industry. Fallen dry
leaves of banyan and pimpal are used for baking.
The potter's equipment mainly consists of a traditional potter's wheel moulds, pick-axes,
ghamelas and a kiln to bake the pots. Making of earthen articles involves a curious
process. There is a potter's wheel which rotates to give the proper shape for the earthen
articles with the help of hands. The Kumbhar gives a motion to the wheel by the help of a
wooden stick. The pots are then dried and baked in the kiln to make them usable. After
heating them, they are glazed and polished.
Potters make the traditional village pottery consisting of madakis, ranjans, ghagars,
lote, thalis (earthen dishes), panatis for Diwali festival and other various articles.
Besides these articles, flower pots and clay toys are also produced.
This industry provides employment to the artisans for about ten months in a year. During
the rainy season Kumbhars often take to agriculture to supplement their income. In the
villages the artisans are paid in kind, i.e., in terms of certain quota of food-grains,
vegetables, etc.
This industry does not require much capital investment. One artisan requires about Rs. 150
to Rs. 200 as working capital. The artisans are very poor, and sometimes they are unable
to raise even this amount. Efforts are being made to organise the industry on a
co-operative basis. There were five co-operative societies of potters, in 1961.
