_Ramosi, Ramoshi._--A criminal tribe of the Bombay Presidency, of which
about 150 persons were returned from the Central Provinces and Berar
in 1911. They belong to the western tract of the Satpuras adjoining
Khandesh. The name is supposed to be a corruption of Ramvansi, meaning
'The descendants of Rama.' They say [584] that when Rama, the hero of
the Ramayana, was driven from his kingdom by his step-mother Kaikeyi,
he went to the forest land south of the Nerbudda. His brother Bharat,
who had been raised to the throne, could not bear to part with Rama,
so he followed him to the forest, began to do penance, and made friends
with a rough but kindly forest tribe. After Rama's restoration Bharat
took two foresters with him to Ajodhia (Oudh) and brought them to the
notice of Rama, who appointed them village watchmen and allowed them
to take his name. If this is the correct derivation it may be compared
with the name of Rawanvansi or Children of Rawan, the opponent of Rama,
which is applied to the Gonds of the Central Provinces. The Ramosis
appear to be a Hinduised caste derived from the Bhils or Kolis or a
mixture of the two tribes. They were formerly a well-known class of
robbers and dacoits. The principal scenes of their depredations were
the western Ghats, and an interesting description of their methods
is given by Captain Mackintosh in his account of the tribe. [585]
Some extracts from this are here reproduced.