The Kurmi (Bagheli) of India

The Kurmi (Bagheli) of India, numbering approximately 150,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a large agrarian community found across northern, eastern, and central India. Traditionally known as skilled cultivators and land-tilling farmers, they have played a major role in India's agricultural economy for centuries. They mostly adhere to Hinduism and Bagheli is their primary language.

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

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: India
People Cluster: Kurmi
Primary Language(s): Bagheli (bfy)
Primary Religion(s): Hinduism
Population: 150,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG046067

Pray for the Kurmi (Bagheli) 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: Bagheli
Language Family: Indo-European

100%
%
Bagheli Speakers

Media Resources in Bagheli:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Bible Resources in Bagheli:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
Wycliffe India, 2020✓✓

1 entry

Or check out the Bagheli bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Kurmi (Bagheli) 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 Kurmi (Bagheli):
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 Kurmi (Bagheli) of India

Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.
readMark 10:15

Pray for those who might be trapped in pride, that God will humble them and give them a childlike faith and complete dependence on Him through faith in Christ.

Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you!
readPsalm 67:3

Pray that God will be working in people's hearts, give them opportunities to receive the gospel, and bring many to faith in Himself.

Sanctify them in the truth, your word is truth.
readJohn 17:17

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will experience freedom from sin as God sanctifies them in the truth of His Word.

After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”
readRevelation 7:9-10

Pray that the promise in Revelation 7:9-10 will encourage believers from among them or from nearby people groups to share the gospel with people who have never learned it.

Kurmi (Bagheli) Across Countries (ROP3 - 116487) 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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