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Subject: Modern History

  • 100 years of Rampa or Manyam Rebellion

    Hundred years ago, in August 1922 the “Rampa Rebellion” or “Manyam Rebellion” took place in the forests of the Godavari Agency in the Madras Presidency.

    Rampa Rebellion

    • The Rampa Rebellion of 1922, also known as the Manyam Rebellion, was a tribal uprising led by Alluri Sitarama Raju in Godavari Agency.
    • It began in August 1922 and lasted until the capture and killing of Raju in May 1924.
    • Forced labour, embargoes on collecting minor forest produce and bans on tribal agriculture practices led to severe distress among the Koyas in the area.
    • Sitarama Raju did not belong to the tribal community, but understood the restrictions that the British colonial administration placed on the tribal way of life.

    Background of the revolt

    • The Rampa administrative area comprised around 1,800 square km and had a mostly tribal population of approximately 28,000.
    • They had traditionally been able to support their food requirements through the use, in particular, of the podu system, whereby each year some areas of jungle forest were burned to clear land for cultivation.
    • The British Raj authorities had wanted to improve the economic usefulness of lands in Godavari Agency, an area that was noted for the prevalence of malaria and blackwater fever.
    • The traditional cultivation methods were greatly hindered when the authorities took control of the forests, mostly for commercial purposes such as produce for building railways and ships.
    • This was done regardless of the needs of the tribal people.

    Why did people revolt?

    • The tribal people of the forested hills, who now faced starvation had long felt that the legal system favoured the muttadar (estate landowners) and merchants.
    • This had also resulted in the earlier Rampa Rebellion of 1879.
    • Now they objected also to the Raj laws and continued actions that hindered their economic position and meant they had to find alternate livelihood.
    • They objected to attempts at that time to use them as forced labour in the construction of a road in the area.

    Role of Raju

    • Raju was a charismatic sanyasin, believed by many tribal people to possess magical abilities and to have an almost messianic status.
    • He saw the overthrow of colonial rule in terms similar to a millenarian event and he harnessed the discontent of the tribal people to support his anti-colonial zeal.

    Course of revolt

    • Alluri Sitarama Raju, along with 500 tribal people, attacked the police stations of Chintapalli, Krishnadevipeta and Rajavommangi.
    • They walked away with 26 police carbine rifles and 2,500 rounds of ammunition.
    • Legend has it that Alluri himself would forewarn the British officers of an imminent attack and would challenge them to stop him with the superior resources that they had at hand.
    • He was finally captured, tied to a tree and shot dead.

     

    Try this PYQ:

    Q. With reference to the history of India, “Ulgulan” or the Great Tumult is the description of which of the following event?

    (a) The Revolt of 1857

    (b) The Mappila Rebellion of 1921

    (c) The Indigo Revolt of 1859-60

    (d) Birsa Munda’s Revolt of 1899-1900

     

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  • Centre asks firms to arrange Tricolours

    Independence Day 2020 | Independence Day: Facts about Indian tricolour that you may have missed | India News

    The Centre has reached out to manufacturers and e-commerce sites to boost the availability of the Tricolour, according to officials aware of the programme.

    Why in news?

    • The Centre is set to launch a large-scale campaign to encourage Indians to fly the National Fag at their homes to mark the 75th Independence Day.
    • The aim of the campaign was to inspire people, rather than carry out a distribution drive.

    How is it made possible?

    • In order to facilitate the campaign, the Union Home Ministry had last year amended the Flag Code, which earlier only allowed hand-woven or hand-spun flags to be made.
    • It has now allowed flags to be polyester and machine-made.

    Do you know?

    Earlier, the display of the national flag was governed by the provisions of The Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act, 1950 and the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971.

    What is the Flag Code of India?

    • The Flag Code of India is a set of laws, practices and conventions that apply to the display of the national flag of India.
    • The Code took effect from 26 January 2002 and superseded the “Flag Code-India” as it existed earlier.
    • It permits the unrestricted display of the tricolour, consistent with the honour and dignity of the flag.

    The Flag Code of India has been divided into three parts:-

    • First Part: General Description of the National Flag.
    • Second Part: Display of the National Flag by members of public, private Organisations & educational institutions etc.
    • Third Part: Display of National Flag by Union or State Governments and their organisations and agencies.

    Disposing of the national flag

    • A/c to the Flag Code, such paper flags are not to be discarded or thrown on the ground after the event.
    • Such flags are to be disposed of, in private, consistent with the dignity of the flag.

    Hoisting the national flag is a fundamental right

    • The bench headed by Chief Justice of India V. N. Khare said that under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution of India, citizens had the fundamental right to fly the national flag on their premises throughout the year.
    • However, it provided that the premises do not undermine the dignity of the national flag.

    About Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act

    • The law, enacted on December 23, 1971, penalizes the desecration of or insult to Indian national symbols, such as the National Flag, the Constitution, the National Anthem, and the Indian map, as well as contempt of the Constitution of India.
    • Section 2 of the Act deals with insults to the Indian National Flag and the Constitution of India.

    Do you know?

    Article 51 ‘A’ contained in Part IV A i.e. Fundamental Duties asks:

    To abide by the constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National Anthem in clause (a).

    Back2Basics: Story of our National Flag

    (1) Public display for the first time

    • Arguably the first national flag of India is said to have been hoisted on August 7, 1906, in Kolkata at the Parsee Bagan Square (Green Park).
    • It comprised three horizontal stripes of red, yellow and green, with Vande Mataram written in the middle.
    • Believed to have been designed by freedom activists Sachindra Prasad Bose and Hemchandra Kanungo, the red stripe on the flag had symbols of the sun and a crescent moon, and the green strip had eight half-open lotuses.

    (2) In Germany

    • In 1907, Madame Cama and her group of exiled revolutionaries hoisted an Indian flag in Germany in 1907 — this was the first Indian flag to be hoisted in a foreign land.

    (3) During the Home Rule Movement

    • In 1917, Dr Annie Besant and Lokmanya Tilak adopted a new flag as part of the Home Rule Movement.
    • It had five alternate red and four green horizontal stripes, and seven stars in the saptarishi configuration.
    • A white crescent and star occupied one top corner, and the other had Union Jack.

    (4) Final version by Pingali Venkayya

    • The design of the present-day Indian tricolour is largely attributed to Pingali Venkayya, an Indian freedom fighter.
    • He reportedly first met Mahatma Gandhi in South Africa during the second Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902), when he was posted there as part of the British Indian Army.
    • Years of research went into designing the national flag. In 1916, he even published a book with possible designs of Indian flags.
    • At the All India Congress Committee in Bezwada in 1921, Venkayya again met Gandhi and proposed a basic design of the flag, consisting of two red and green bands to symbolise the two major communities, Hindus and Muslims.

    (5) During Constituent Assembly

    • On July 22, 1947, when members of the Constituent Assembly of India, the first item on the agenda was reportedly a motion by Pandit Nehru, about adopting a national flag for free India.
    • It was proposed that “the National Flag of India shall be horizontal tricolour of deep saffron (Kesari), white and dark green in equal proportion.”
    • The white band was to have a wheel in navy blue (the charkha being replaced by the chakra), which appears on the abacus of the Sarnath Lion Capital of Ashoka.

     

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  • Who was Veer Kunwar Singh (1777-1858)?

    Political factions in Bihar has planned to organise the birth anniversary of the 1857 uprising hero Veer Kunwar Singh on April 23 at Jagdishpur in Bhojpur.

    Veer Kunwar Singh

    • Kunwar Singh also known as Babu Kunwar Singh was a leader during the uprising of 1857.
    • He belonged to a family of the Ujjainiya clan of the Parmar Rajputs of Jagdispur, currently a part of Bhojpur district, Bihar.
    • At the age of 80, he led a selected band of armed soldiers against the troops under the command of the British East India Company.
    • He was the chief organiser of the fight against the British in Bihar.
    • He is popularly known as Veer Kunwar Singh or Veer Babu Kunwar Singh.

    Role in 1857 Uprising

    • Singh led the Indian Rebellion of 1857 in Bihar. He was nearly eighty and in failing health when he was called upon to take up arms.
    • He was assisted by both his brother, Babu Amar Singh and his commander-in-chief, Hare Krishna Singh.
    • He gave a good fight and harried British forces for nearly a year and remained invincible until the end.
    • He was an expert in the art of guerrilla warfare.

    In popular culture

    • To honour his contribution to India’s freedom movement, the Centre issued a commemorative stamp on 23 April 1966.
    • The Government of Bihar established the Veer Kunwar Singh University, Arrah, in 1992.

     

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  • Back in news: Malabar Rebellion

    The Indian Council for Historical Research (ICHR) has deferred its decision on a recommendation to remove the 1921 Malabar Rebellion martyrs, including Variamkunnaathu Kunhahamad Haji and Ali Musliyar, from the list of India’s freedom fighters.

    Malabar Rebellion

    • The Malabar Rebellion in 1921 started as resistance against the British colonial rule and the feudal system in southern Malabar but ended in communal violence between Hindus and Muslims.
    • There were a series of clashes between Mappila peasantry and their landlords, supported by the British, throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries.
    • It began as a reaction against a heavy-handed crackdown on the Khilafat Movement, a campaign in defence of the Ottoman Caliphate by the British authorities in the Eranad and Valluvanad taluks of Malabar.
    • The Mappilas attacked and took control of police stations, British government offices, courts and government treasuries.

    Who was Variyankunna Kunjahammed Haji?

    • He was one of the leaders of the Malabar Rebellion of 1921.
    • He raised 75000 natives, seized control of large territory from the British rule and set up a parallel government.
    • In January 1922, under the guise of a treaty, the British betrayed Haji through his close friend Unyan Musaliyar, arresting him from his hideout and producing him before a British judge.
    • He was sentenced to death along with his compatriots.

    Back2Basics: “Dictionary of Martyrs” Project

    • The project for compilation of “Dictionary of Martyrs” of India’s Freedom Struggle was commissioned by the Ministry of Culture, to the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR) to commemorate the 150th anniversary of uprising of 1857.
    • In this dictionary a martyr has been defined as a person who died or who was killed in action or in detention, or was awarded capital punishment while participating in the national movement for emancipation of India.
    • It includes ex-INA or ex-military personnel who died fighting the British.
    • Information of about 13,500 martyrs has been recorded in these volumes.

    Who are included?

    • It includes the martyrs of 1857 Uprising, Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (1919), Non-Cooperation Movement (1920-22), Civil Disobedience Movement (1930-34), Quit India Movement (1942-44), Revolutionary Movements (1915-34), Kissan Movements, Tribal Movements, Agitation for Responsible Government in the Princely States (Prajamandal), Indian National Army (INA, 1943-45), Royal Indian Navy Upsurge (RIN, 1946), etc.

    Five Volumes

    • Volume 1: In this volume, more than 4400 martyrs of Delhi, Haryana, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh have been listed.
    • Volume 2: In this volume more than 3500 martyrs of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Jammu & Kashmir have been listed.
    • Volume 3: The number of martyrs covered in this volume is more than 1400. This volume covers the martyrs of Maharashtra, Gujarat and Sind.
    • Volume 4: The numbers of martyrs covered in this volume is more than 3300. This volume covers the martyrs of Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura.
    • Volume 5: The number of martyrs covered in this volume is more than 1450. This volume covers the martyrs of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

    Try this question from CSP 2020:

    Q. With reference to the history of India, “Ulgulan” or the Great Tumult is the description of which of the following event?

    (a) The Revolt of 1857

    (b) The Mappila Rebellion of 1921

    (c) The Indigo Revolt of 1859-60

    (d) Birsa Munda’s Revolt of 1899-1900

     

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  • In news: Pal-Dadhvav Massacre

    The Gujarat government has marked 100 years of the Pal-Dadhvav killings, calling it a massacre “bigger than the Jallianwala Bagh”.

    Pal-Dadhvav Massacre

    • The massacre took place on March 7, 1922, in the Pal-Chitariya and Dadhvaav villages of Sabarkantha district, then part of Idar state.
    • The day was Amalki Ekadashi, which falls just before Holi, a major festival for tribals.
    • Villagers from Pal, Dadhvav, and Chitariya had gathered on the banks of river Heir as part of the ‘Eki movement’, led by one Motilal Tejawat.
    • The movement was to protest against the land revenue tax (lagaan) imposed on the peasants by the British and feudal lords.
    • Tejawat, who belonged to Koliyari village in the Mewad region of Rajasthan, had also mobilised Bhils from Kotda Chhavni, Sirohi, and Danta to participate.

    The fateful day

    • Tejawat had been outlawed by the Udaipur state, which had announced a Rs-500 reward on his head.
    • The Mewad Bhil Corps (MBC), a paramilitary force raised by the British that was on the lookout for Tejawat, heard of this gathering and reached the spot.
    • On a command from Tejawat, nearly 2000 Bhils raised their bows and arrows and shouted in unison- ‘We will not pay the tax’.
    • The MBC commanding officer, HG Sutton, ordered his men to fire upon them creating a huge stampede.
    • Nearly 1,000 tribals (Bhils) fell to bullets. While the British claimed some 22 people were killed, the Bhils believe 1,200-1,500 of them died.

    Must read:

    Important Rebellions and Peasant Movements

     

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  • Legacy of Savitribai and Jyotirao Phule

    Maharashtra Governor has recently received flak for his remarks on the social reformist couple Jyotirao and Savitribai Phule.

    Who were the Phules?

    • Mahatma Jyotirao and Savitribai Phule stand out as an extraordinary couple in the social and educational history of India.
    • They spearheaded path-breaking work towards female education and empowerment, and towards ending caste- and gender-based discrimination.
    • In 1840, at a time when child marriages were common, Savitri at the age of ten was married to Jyotirao, who was thirteen years old at the time.
    • The couple later in life strove to oppose child marriage and also organised widow remarriages.

    The Phules’ endeavors and legacy

    • Education: Jyotirao, the revolutionary that he was, observed the lack of opportunities for education for young girls and women.
    • Leaders of the masses: He started to educate his wife at home and trained her to become a teacher. Together, by 1848, the Phules started a school for girls, Shudras and Ati-Shudras in Poona.
    • Widow shelter: The historic work was started by Jyotirao when he was just 21 years old, ably supported by his 18-year-old wife. In 1853, Jyotirao-Savitribai opened a care centre for pregnant widows to have safe deliveries and to end the practice of infanticide owing to social norms.
    • Prevention of infanticide: The Balhatya Pratibandhak Griha (Home for the Prevention of Infanticide) started in their own house at 395, Ganj Peth, Pune.

    The Satyashodhak Samaj:

    • Literally meaning ‘The Truth-Seeker’s Society’ was established on September 24, 1873 by Jyotirao-Savitribai and other like-minded people.
    • The Samaj advocated for social changes that went against prevalent traditions, including economical weddings, inter-caste marriages, eradication of child marriages, and widow remarriage.
    • The Phules also had far-sighted goals — popularising female education, establishing an institutional structure of schools in India, and to have a society where women worked in tandem with men.

     

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  • Back in news: Visva-Bharati University

    The stalemate continues in Visva-Bharati University as students demand the reopening of hostels and conducting of online examinations.

    Visva-Bharati

    • Visva-Bharati is a central research university and an Institution of National Importance located in Shantiniketan, West Bengal, India.
    • It was founded by Rabindranath Tagore who called it Visva-Bharati, which means the communion of the world with India.
    • Until independence, it was a college.
    • Soon after independence, the institution was given the status of a central university in 1951 by an act of the Parliament.

    Its establishment

    • The origins of the institution date back to 1863 when Debendranath Tagore was given a tract of land by the zamindar of Raipur, zamindar of Kirnahar.
    • He set up an ashram at the spot that has now come to be called chatim tala at the heart of the town.
    • The ashram was initially called Brahmacharya Ashram, which was later renamed Brahmacharya Vidyalaya.
    • It was established with a view to encouraging people from all walks of life to come to the spot and meditate.
    • In 1901 his youngest son Rabindranath Tagore established a co-educational school inside the premises of the ashram.
    • From 1901 onwards, Tagore used the ashram to organize the Hindu Mela, which soon became a center of nationalist activity.

    Try this PYQ from CSP 2021:

    Q. With reference to Madanapalle of Andhra Pradesh, which one of the following statements is correct?

    (a) Pingali Venkayya designed the tricolour Indian National Flag here.

    (b) Pattabhi Sitaramaiah led the Quit India Movement of Andhra region from here.

    (c) Rabindranath Tagore translated the National Anthem from Bengali to English here.

    (d) Madame Blavatsky and Colonel Olcott set up headquarters of Theosophical Society fi rst here.

     

     

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  • Who was Lachit Borphukan?

    The Prime Minister has paid tribute to Lachit Borphukan on Lachit Diwas.

    Who was Lachit Borphukan?

    • The year was 1671 and the decisive Battle of Saraighat was fought on the raging waters of the Brahmaputra.
    • On one side was Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb’s army headed by Ram Singh of Amer (Jaipur) and on the other was the Ahom General Lachit Borphukan.
    • He was a commander in the Ahom kingdom, located in present-day Assam.
    • Ram Singh failed to make any advance against the Assamese army during the first phase of the war.
    • Lachit Borphukan emerged victorious in the war and the Mughals were forced to retreat from Guwahati.

    Lachit Diwas

    • On 24 November each year, Lachit Divas is celebrated state-wide in Assam to commemorate the heroism of Lachit Borphukan.
    • On this day, Borphukan has defeated the Mughal army on the banks of the Brahmaputra in the Battle of Saraighat in 1671.
    • The best passing out cadet of National Defence Academy has been conferred the Lachit gold medal every year since 1999 commemorating his valor.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.What was the immediate cause for Ahmad Shah Abdali to invade and fight the Third Battle of Panipat?

    (a) He wanted to avenge the expulsion by Marathas of his viceroy Timur Shah from Lahore

    (b) The frustrated governor of Jullundhar Adina Beg khan invited him to invade Punjab

    (c) He wanted to punish Mughal administration for non-payment of the revenues of the Chahar Mahal (Gujrat Aurangabad, Sialkot and Pasrur)

    (d) He wanted to annex all the fertile plains of Punjab upto borders of Delhi to his kingdom

     

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  • Who was Narsinh Mehta?

    Recently Junagadh University discovered a new species of spider and named it Narsinhmehtai in honour of Narsinh Mehta, the 15th-century poet who was a devotee of Lord Krishna.

    Narsinh Mehta

    • Mehta is believed to have been born in Talaja in present-day Bhavnagar district in 1410 and died in Junagadh in 1480s.
    • The family had its origin in Vadnagar in north Gujarat, and the caste name is believed to be Pandya but as members of the family were officers in kingdoms of those days.
    • They were called Mehta (one who keeps books of accounts) which later on became the family name.
    • His father died when Mehta was just 5 and it is believed that Mehta learnt to speak only when he was eight years old, after a holy man asked him to utter the name of Lord Krishna.
    • His elder brother Bansidhar and Bansidhar’s wife raised Mehta and arranged his marriage.

    Miracles in his life

    • Mehta used to spend time in Krishna-bhakti (devotion to Lord Krishna) even after his marriage to Manekba, paying little attention to family duties.
    • Mehta is believed to have run away from home and done tapashcharya at a Shiva temple in Talaja for seven days.
    • After that, Mehta relocated with his family to Junagadh.
    • Nonetheless, folklore has it that Lord Krishna, by impersonating as Mehta, helped the devout poet organise shraadhha (a ritual performed post death of a family member) of his father, marriage of his son Shamaldas etc.
    • One of his bhajans narrates how Ra Mandlik, the then ruler of Junagadh had imprisoned him, accusing the poet of not having seen Lord Krishna and yet claiming to have done so.

    His poetry

    • Mehta penned more than 750 poems, called padd in Gujarat.
    • They mainly deal with devotion to Lord Krishna, gyan (wisdom) vairagya (detachment from worldly affairs).
    • Others like Shalmshano Vivah, Kunvarbainu Mameru, Hundi and Harmala are believed to be autobiographical accounts of different occasions in his life.
    • Vaishanavajn to tene kahiye, Mahatma Gandhi’s favourite bhajan is Mehta’s creation.

     

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  • In news: Tarapur Massacre of 1932

    Bihar CM has announced that February 15 would be celebrated as “Shahid Diwas” in memory of the 34 freedom fighters who were killed by police in Tarapur town of Bihar’s Munger district 90 years ago.

    Why such move?

    • The Tarapur massacre was the biggest carried out by the British police after the one in Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar in 1919.
    • The freedom fighters had never got their due, the CM said.
    • PM Modi too had referred to the Tarapur massacre in his Mann ki Baat radio address of January 2021.

    Tarapur Massacre: Course of events

    • On February 15, 1932, a group of young freedom fighters planned to hoist an Indian national flag at Thana Bhavan in Tarapur.
    • Police were aware of the plan, and several officers were present at the spot. Around 2 pm, even as the police carried out a brutal lathicharge, Gopal Singh succeeded in raising the flag at Thana Bhavan.
    • A 4,000-strong crowd pelted the police with stones, injuring an officer of the civil administration.
    • The police responded by opening indiscriminate fire on the crowd.
    • After about 75 rounds were fired, 34 bodies were found at the spot, even though there were claims of an even larger number of deaths.

    Trigger for protest

    • The hanging of Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, and Rajguru in Lahore on March 23, 1931, sent a wave of grief and anger around the country.
    • Following the collapse of the Gandhi-Irwin Pact, the Mahatma was arrested in early 1932.
    • The Congress was declared an illegal organization, and Nehru, Patel, and Rajendra Prasad were also thrown in jail.
    • In Munger, freedom fighters Srikrishna Singh, Nemdhari Singh, Nirapad Mukherjee, Pandit Dasrath Jha, Basukinath Rai, Dinanath Sahay, and Jaymangal Shastri were arrested.
    • A call given by the Congress leader Sardar Shardul Singh Kavishwar to raise the tricolour over government buildings resonated in Tarapur.

     

    Back2Basics:

    https://www.civilsdaily.com/news/explained-jallianwala-bagh-massacre/

     

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