Prototype rebuild by the IMB Innovation Team. The official site is peoplegroups.org.

People group profile · PG049601

The Barua of India

The Barua of India, numbering about 1,000 people, are Unengaged and Unreached. They are an ethnic Bengali-speaking Buddhist community of Tripura, Assam, and West Bengal. They are one of the oldest surviving Buddhist communities in Bengal, preserving Theravada practice in a region where Buddhism largely disappeared after the 12th century.

They are an indigenous people in the South Asian Buddhist people cluster of the South Asian Peoples. Their primary religion is Theravada Buddhism, and they primarily speak Bengali.

Pray for the BaruaPrint profile

AI-generated illustration representing the Barua people
AI-generated illustration, not a photograph. Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite: Barua

Fast facts

Country
India
Population
1,000
Affinity group
South Asian Peoples
People cluster
South Asian Buddhist
Primary language
Bengali (ben)
Primary religion
Theravada Buddhism
Strategic Progress Index ?
Unengaged and Unreached
Evangelical
No Known Evangelicals
GSEC ?
Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
Lostness priority ?
Frontier Unreached People Group
Region
Southern Asia, Asia

Where they live

Gospel status

The Barua are Unengaged and Unreached, which means fewer than 2% are evangelical Christians, and there has been no reported church planting activity in the past two years. In GSEC terms, this people group is less than 2% evangelical, some evangelical resources are available, but there has been no active church planting among them within the past two years.

  • Congregations exist No
  • Church planting in the last two years No Churches Planted

Next steps for the Barua

  • Pray that God would send workers to this people group
  • Begin sowing the gospel and seek out people of peace
  • Plant the first churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice

Primary religion

Theravada Buddhism · Buddhism

91% adherents

Primary language

Bengali · Indo-European family

100% speak Bengali

Gospel resources in Bengali

  • Bible available
  • JESUS Film available
  • Radio programs available
  • Gospel recordings available
  • Audio resources available
  • Bible stories available

Films

Bibles

Find more at the JESUS Film Project, Bible.com and Faith Comes by Hearing.

Pray for the Barua

  1. John 17:3. Pray that many will come to know the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom he has sent.
  2. Psalm 27:1. Pray that new believers will be strengthened in the face of persecution, with the Lord as their stronghold.
  3. Romans 12:4–5. Pray that believers from many cultures will work together as one body so that the church is built up.
  4. Revelation 7:9. Pray for the day when people from this group stand before the throne with every nation, tribe, people and language.

Download a prayer guide

Know something we don't? Submit updates to IMB Global Research.