The Mirdhas of India

The Mirdhas of India, numbering approximately 48,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are described as a Scheduled Tribe of Sambalpur and Koraput districts in Odisha, formed when a section of the Kora broke away. The Mirdha trace wider ancestry to the Oraon. Cultivation and agricultural labor remain primary They are an Indigenous people, with Mirdha as their ethnic/kinship group and are in the South Asian Tribal people cluster of the South Asian Peoples. Their primary religion is Hinduism. They primarily speak Kurukh.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite: Mirdhas

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: India
People Cluster: South Asian Tribal
Primary Language(s): Kurukh (kru)
Primary Religion(s): Hinduism
Population: 48,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG041923
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Pray for the Mirdhas of India

Join others around the world in praying for the lost to be saved, the gospel to advance, the global Church to grow, and for laborers to be sent out and sustained in the harvest.

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Hinduism
Religious Affiliation: Hinduism

100%
%
Hinduism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Kurukh
Language Family: Dravidian

100%
%
Kurux Speakers

Media Resources in Kurukh:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Bible Resources in Kurukh:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
Friends Missionary Prayer Band✓✓✓

1 entry

Or check out the Kurukh bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Mirdhas are Engaged yet Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations but there are sustained efforts at establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

Next steps for the Mirdhas:
Continue prayer and fasting for this group
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Begin training up local leaders to lead and develop strategies to reach their own people

Pray specifically for the Mirdhas of India

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
readRomans 6:23

Pray that those who do know about God's free gift will hear and believe that the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord and that they will joyfully accept this gift.

For I will proclaim the name of the LORD; ascribe greatness to our God!
readDeuteronomy 32:3

Pray that believers will proclaim the Lord’s name and declare the greatness of our God so that others might believe in Him.

And after she was baptized, and her household as well, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us.
readActs 16:15

Pray that God will bring entire families and households to faith in Him and raise up servant-leaders from among them.

Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father sends me, even so I am sending you."
readJohn 20:21

Ask God to raise up and send out believers cross-culturally who will go out in His authority and be sustained by His peace as they share the gospel with the lost.

Mirdas, Hindu Across Countries (ROP3 - 112980) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

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