==============+=======
Districts. |Number.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~+~~~~~~~
Dehra Dûn | 98
Sahâranpur | 4,151
Muzaffarnagar | 1,797
Meerut | 1,733
Bulandshahr | 11
Aligarh | 211
Mathura | 52
Agra | 118
Farrukhâbâd | 360
Mainpuri | 153
Etâwah | 209
Etah | 408
Bareilly | 1,813
Bijnor | 162
Budâun | 788
Morâdâbâd | 315
Shâhjahânpur | 666
Pilibhît | 472
Cawnpur | 149
Fatehpur | 289
Bânda | 250
Hamîrpur | 121
Allahâbâd | 1,998
Jhânsi | 21
Jâlaun | 83
Lalitpur | ...
Benares | 2,012
Mirzapur | 1,739
Jaunpur | 2,442
Ghâzipur | 652
Ballia | 439
Gorakhpur | 2,205
Basti | 2,416
Azamgarh | 1,189
Tarâi | 216
Lucknow | 378
Unâo | 355
Râê Bareli | 882
Sîtapur | 677
Hardoi | 287
Kheri | 90
Faizâbâd | 1,934
Gonda | 2,214
Bahrâich | 1,770
Sultânpur | 1,836
Partâbgarh | ...
Bârabanki | 1,335
+~~~~~~~
Total |42,075
==============+=======
Dalera. [275]—A tribe of basket-makers, day-labourers, and thieves
found in Bareilly and the Tarâi. The name is derived from the Hindi
daliya, “a basket.” A common half humourous derivation is from diler,
“venturesome.” According to the tribal tradition a Bargûjar Thâkur once
violated a Kahâr woman and was excommunicated. His descendants are the
present Daleras. They are supposed to be closely allied both to Khâgis
and Mallâhs. Their head-quarters in Bareilly are at the village of
Ginganwa, in Tahsîl Aonla. They are also found at Munjkhera, in the
Bulandshahr District. They have no distinct traditions regarding their
place of origin, except that they came from somewhere in the South
about a hundred years ago. The Bareilly story is that they were driven
from Meerut and Bulandshahr by a famine.
2. Their sections, of which the last Census Returns enumerate
forty-four, do not throw much light on their origin. Many are derived
from well-known tribes, as Bais, Barai, Bargûjar, Chauhân, Chiryamâr,
Gurkha, Jâdubansi, Kânhpuriya, Mallâh.
[Marriage rules.] 3. Some of these are perhaps of totemistic origin,
such as the Sirisiya of Bareilly, who will not cut or injure the siris
tree (acacia sirisa). Their marriages are carried out according to the
standard ritual in force among the higher Hindu castes.
[Methods of thieving.] 4. The Daleras will not thieve at night, and
carry on their operations principally at fairs, bathing places, and the
like. At such places a Dalera takes his seat near a pilgrim and
pretends to cook. While his neighbour’s attention is occupied, the
Dalera steals his vessels or other property. When he steals a brass
pot, he goes into the water and with an iron spike he carries, makes
holes in it, which prevent the possibility of identification. Sometimes
they make a mock disturbance in a bâzâr, and in the confusion snatch
articles from shops which they rapidly pass into the hands of a
confederate. Or they go dressed as Thâkurs or Brâhmans and make a boy
steal while they keep the shop-keeper engaged. If the lads are caught
they never give their correct age or address. The thief gets a double
share of the booty, and most of the gains are spent in drink. If a boy
is arrested his well-dressed companions intercede for him. In their
methods of crime they closely resemble those of the Barwârs and
Sanaurhiyas.