The Kathodi of India

The Kathodi of India, numbering approximately 363,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a Scheduled Tribe of the Sahyadri foothills in Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Rajasthan whose name derives from kat, the acacia extract they once made. Agriculture and forest labor have replaced their traditional craft. They mostly adhere to Hinduism and Marathi is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: India
People Cluster: Marathi-Konkani
Primary Language(s): Marathi (mar)
Primary Religion(s): Hinduism
Population: 363,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, Concentrated CP Activity
People Group ID: PG041551
View on Joshua Project

Pray for the Kathodi 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: Marathi
Language Family: Indo-European

100%
%
Marathi Speakers

Media Resources in Marathi:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film

2 films

Bible Resources in Marathi:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
1993 Bible League International✓✓
Marathi New India Bible Version✓

2 entries

Or check out the Marathi bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Kathodi 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 Kathodi:
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 Kathodi of India

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
readMatthew 5:6

Pray for those who are lost to desire righteousness and to be filled with the peace and purpose that only comes from following Jesus.

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
readRomans 3:23

Pray that the gospel will advance and many will acknowledge that all have sinned, fall short of God's glory, and need a Savior to reconcile them to God.

But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.
readPhilippians 3:20-21

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will remember their citizenship is in heaven.

And Jesus said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men." And immediately they left their nets and followed him.
readMark 1:17-18

Pray that God will raise up believers from this place and/or other cultures nearby to proclaim the gospel to those who desperately need to encounter it.

Kathodi Across Countries (ROP3 - 112678) 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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