Where Barter System Still Exists: Jonbeel Mela

We have all heard of the barter system, one of the oldest trade systems, where goods were exchanged, directly. But with the introduction of money, the system ceased to exist. Even so, what if I say, India has one place where people still practice the system. Yes, the Jonbeel mela which is a three-day annual indigenous Tiwa Community fair held in Marigaon, Assam, is known for keeping the barter system alive. No currency is utilized during the event, which is said to be the only regular event in the world where the barter system is still practiced.

The Jonbeel Mela (image source: Assam tourism)

A large bazaar is conducted during the event, with a lot of fresh produce and local poultry on exhibit, as well as some veggies that are rarely sold commercially, but none of it can be bought through money. Tiwa and other hill tribes bring ginger, turmeric, taro, chilies, wild fruits, and berries, along with it there’s smoked pork, smoked local chicken, shrimp, and crabs, to name just a few.

Jonbeel Mela is considered a hi-tech era barter system and also includes pitha and other items made from rice flour, roasted rice flour, different breeds of sticky rice, rye, and a variety of dried fish that are difficult to find in local markets.

People from Tiwa households and dozens of other communities in the region come out on the second day of the Mela to capture freshwater fish at the beel (lake). The local cockfight is another traditional event that the Jonbeel Mela prides itself on preserving. According to locals, cockfights have not always been a regular fixture of the Mela, despite the fact that breeding birds for fighting is an ancient practice in the region.

The theme of the mela is maintaining peace and harmony among the indigenous Assamese communities and tribes of Northeast India. The Gobha King, who monitors the fair's arrangements and performs a "durbar" on the final day to listen to people's concerns, is the patron of the Jonbeel Mela.

People perform traditional dance and music, creating a joyful and enjoyable ambiance. Even though such customs are mainly symbolic now, they support the survival of long-standing traditions.

The Jonbeel Mela (Tiwa: Chunbîl Melâ) usually starts on the first Friday after Magh Bihu, the harvest festival, at Dayang Belguri, a historic site in Jonbeel. The Joonbeel (Joon is the Assamese word for Moon, and Beel for wetland) is named after a vast natural water body that is formed like a crescent moon. The Tiwa community organizes the Jonbeel Mela, which draws participation from the Tiwa, Karbi, Khasi, and Jaintia communities from the state's Morigaon and Karbi Anglong districts, as well as several Meghalaya and Assam border villages. The Mela depicts the unity of various ethnic communities.

The fair is believed to have begun in the 15th century AD.  In some Ahom-Buranjis (chronicles of Ahoms), it is referred to as a venue for diplomacy where they discussed the prevailing political situations.

An Agni Puja (fire worship) is performed before the mela begins for the well-being of mankind and they begin it with a community fishing in the Chunbîl (Joonbeel) wetland.

food items in the mela (image source: pratidintimes)

A Gobha King (image source - firstpost)