The Bania (Punjabi) of India

The Bania (Punjabi) of India, numbering approximately 207,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a cluster of merchant and trading communities traditionally associated with commerce, finance, and accounting. They mostly adhere to Hinduism and Panjabi is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash-Lite: Bania (Punjabi)

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: South Asian Peoples
Country: India
People Cluster: Bania
Primary Language(s): Panjabi (pan)
Primary Religion(s): Hinduism
Population: 207,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, Dispersed CP Activity
People Group ID: PG048038

Pray for the Bania (Punjabi) 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

96%
%
Hinduism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Panjabi
Language Family: Indo-European

100%
%
Punjabi, Eastern Speakers

Media Resources in Panjabi:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
MagdalenaView Film
The SaviorView Film

3 films

Bible Resources in Panjabi:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
2000 Bible League International✓
Indian Revised Version✓✓

2 entries

Or check out the Panjabi bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Bania (Punjabi) 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 Bania (Punjabi):
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 Bania (Punjabi) of India

For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
readRomans 5:7-8

Pray for the many who don't yet understand the hope of the gospel, and pray that God will reveal to them that while they were in darkness, Christ died for them.

And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
readMatthew 24:14

Pray that the gospel of God's kingdom will reach more people and that they will respond in faith, becoming disciples of Jesus Christ.

The LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
readNumbers 6:25

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will remember that He has given them His favor and His presence.

And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled.
readMark 5:20

Pray that God will bring people who appear beyond hope to faith in Jesus and that they will then go and tell others of the marvelous things He has done.

Bania (Panjabi) Across Countries (ROP3 - 116369) 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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