Castes and Tribes of Southern India/Kēvuto
Kēvuto.— It is recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1891, that "the Kēvutas are the fisherman caste of Ganjam, and they are said to be the descendants of the Kaibartas, a fishing caste of Bengal. Besides fishing in rivers, canals and lakes, they ply boats and catamarans, and some are also traders. Uriya Brāhmans and Bairāgis are their priests. From the fifth day after child-birth till the twenty-first, the Uriya Brāhmans read the Bhāgavata Purāna in the house, and on the last day they give a name to the child. The married girls and widows put a veil over their faces whenever they go out of doors."
The Kēvutos are low in the social scale, but not a polluting caste. They apparently recognise the following endogamous sub-divisions: — Bhettiya, Bilva, Jonka, Khottia, Koibarto or Dasa, Liyāri, Chuditiya, and Thossa. Of these the Thossas are cultivators, the Liyāris make a preparation of fried rice (liya), and the Chudityas are engaged in parching grain (chuda, parched rice). By reason of their change of occupation, the Liyāris and Chudityas have practically become distinct castes, and some deny that there is any connection between them and the Kēvutos. Telugu people sometimes call the Chuditiyas Neyyalu, and I am told that there is a street in Parlakimedi almost wholly inhabited by Kēvutos, who say that they are of the Neyyalu caste. Of gōtras which occur among the Kēvutos, nāgo (cobra), bhāgo (tiger), and kochipo (tortoise) are the most common. They also have exogamous septs or bamsams, among which are gogudiya (bells) and nolini (bamboo carrier). The titles which occur in the caste are Bēhara, Sitto, Torei, Jalli, Bejjo, and Paiko.
The marriage rite is performed at night, and the bride's father ties a gold bead (konti) on the neck of the bridegroom. The Kēvutos worship especially Dasarāj and Gangadēvi. The latter is worshipped at the Dasara festival, and, in some places, fowls and goats are sacrificed in her honour. In the neighbourhood of the Chilka lake, the goats are not sacrificed, but set at liberty, and allowed to graze on the Kalīkadēvi hill. There is a belief that animals thus devoted to Gangadēvi do not putrify when they die, but dry up.
In the Vizagapatam Agency tracts, the Kēvutos are said to be notorious for their proficiency in magic and necromancy.