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Though
there is still no unanimous opinion of Birth and Death regarding date and Place
of Birsa Munda, yet Govt. has accepted that Birsa was born on 15 Nov 1875 in
Ulihatu and died on 9 June 1900 in Ranchi central jail. Birsa Munda was son of
Sugna Munda. Sugna Munda has three sons namely- Kowa Munda , Birsa Munda and
Bhanu Munda. Sugna Munda, father of Birsa Munda, had two more brothers namely-
Bhanu Munda and Pasna Munda.
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Birsa
was born in year 1875, Thursday was the day of his birth, and he was named after
the day of his birth according to the Munda custom. Ulihatu was the birth-place
of Sugna Munda, father of Birsa. The claim of Ulihatu rests on Birsa' s elder
brother Komta Munda living in the village and on his house, which still exist in
a dilapidated condition. Birsa's father, mother and younger brother, Pasna
Munda, left Ulihatu and proceeded to Kurumbda near Birbanki in search of
employment as laborers or crop-sharers
(sajhadar) or riots. At Kurmbda Birsa's elder brother, Komta, and his sister,
Daskir, were born. From there the family moved to Bamba where Birsa's elder
sister Champa was born followed by himself Birsa was born in a house built of
bamboo strips without a mud plaster or even a secure roof; a crop-sharer or riot
could not boast of a better house. Folk songs relating to his birth seek to
embroider the event with the Biblical parallels: a comet or a flag-star moved
across the sky from Chalked to Ulihatu, a flag flew on a mountain top. Soon
after Birsa's birth, his family left Bamba. A quarrel between the Mundas and
their riots in which his father was involved as a witness was the immediate
reason for proceeding to Chalkad,
Sugana's mother's village, where Bir Singh, the Munda of the village, granted
them refuge. Folklore refers to his rolling and playing in sand and dust with
his friends, and his growing up strong and handsome in looks he grazed sheep in
the forest of Bohonda. When the grew up, he shared an interest in playing the
flute, in which he became adept, and so movingly did he play that all living
beings came out to listen to him. He went round with the tuila, the one-stringed
instrument made from the pumpkin, in the hand and the flute strung to his waist.
Exciting moments of his childhood were spent on the Akhara (the village dancing
ground). One of his contemporaries who went out with him, however, heard him
speak of strange things. Driven by poverty Birsa was taken to Ayubhatu, his
maternal uncle's village. Komta Munda, his eldest brother, who was ten years of
age, went to Kundi Bartoli, entered the service of a "Munda, married and
lived there for eight years, and then joined his father and younger brother at
Chalkad. At Ayubhatu Birsa lived for two years. He went to school at Salga, run
by one Jaipal Nag. He accompanied his mother's younger sister, Joni, who was
fond of horn. She was married, to Khatanga, her new home. He was found no good
for the job and was beaten by the owner of field. He left the village and went
to his brother at Kundi Bartoli, and stayed
with him for sometime. From there he probably went to the German mission at
Burju where he passed the lower primary examination.
Birsa
Munda as known amongst tribal, waged a massive war against the British rule in
mid 1890's. After the (suppression of the first rising, in decisive war against
the British). After a series of concerted attacks for nearly two years on the
places loyal to the British, the Munda warriors started congregating on "Dombari
Hill" at village "Sail, Rakab" (Nearly 20 Km from the Ranchi-Jamshedpur
Highway), on the call of Birsa. Documents revel that the Munda's, adopting
Guerilla warfare, attack the British in Ranchi and Khunti. Several persons,
mostly police men were killed and nearly 100 Buildings were set on fire. It
raised over this " UlguIan " (revolt), the, then commissioner Mr. A
fobes and Deputy Commissioner Mr. H.C.Stratified, rushed to Kunti with two
company of army to crush the mass struggle (UlguIan) of" Abua Disun" (
Self rule).
The
revolt had rocked the British administration to the extent that the commissioner
declared a reward of Rs. 500 for the arrest of Birsa. Subsequently British
forces attacked heavily on Munda warriors congregated at "Dumbari
Hill" and made indiscriminate firing like that of "Jaliyan Wala Bagh"
and killed several hundred people. The whole hill was littered with dead human
corpses. After Brutal slaughter the dead bodies were thrown into the deep gorges
and ravines of the hill. Many of the wounded were buried alive. According to
editorial published on March 25, 1900, the statesman, put the toll at 400.
However, the then administration suppressed the fact and claimed that only
eleven persons were killed and nine injured in two firings on January 7 and
January 9, 1900. Fear and panic show spread over the area that "Dombari"
was named by Munda's as
"Topped Buru" -mound of dead.
Birsa
Munda was nabbed while he was fast asleep at "Jarnkopai" forest in
Chakradharpur on March 3, 1900. Deputy commissioner Ranchi, vide
letter no CR-13 97 dated 12 Nov 1900 reveals that 460 tribals were made accused
in 1015 different
criminal cases, out of which 63 were convicted. One was awarded Capital
Punishment, 39 were sentenced to transportation for life and 23
were imprisoned for terms upto 1: 14 years. The six death, including that of
tribal hero Birsa Munda in the prison during trials in less than 10 months,
speaks of the probable in the jail on 9th June 1900. Dead body of Birsa Munda is
reported to have been criminated near the distillery bridge Kokar (Ranchi).
People say, actually Birsa was buried under the bridge (In 1900 there was no
bridge).
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Birsa's
long stay at Chaibasa from 1886 to 1890 constituted a formative period of his
life. This period was marked by the German and Roman Catholic Christian
agitation. Chiabasa was not far for the center of the Sardar's activities. Birsa
was amidst them Eliazer of Kasmar, Gidun of Pi ring. Yohanna of Chapari, Mika of
Dabgama, Tenga of Katingkel and Bhutka of Rugri was his own men. One day while Delivering
a sermon in the Chaibasa mission attended by Birsa; Dr Nottrott expatiated on
the theme of the Kingdom of Heaven, and assured them that if they remained
Christians and followed his instructions, he could get back all lands they had
lost. Birsa took, it to heart. But he received a rude shock when the bark with
the missionaries came in 1886-7 and the latter started calling the Sardars
cheats. He criticized Dr Nottrott and the missionaries in trenchant terms. They
refused to have him in their school any longer, and he was expelled. This was a
turning point in his life; he exclaimed sahib, sahib Ek topi hai (all whites,
the British and the missionaries, wear the same cap) it was also likely that the
sardars might have influenced Sugana Munda in withdrawing his son from, the
school. The sardar agitation in which Birsa was
caught up put the stamp of its anti-missionary and anti-Government
character on his mind. Soon after leaving Chaibasa, in 1890, Birsa and his fame
gave up their membership of the Germanmtsslon inline with the Sardar's movement
against it. He apostatized to the Roman Catholics and remained with them for a
little while before lapsing into heathenism. This also followed the pattern of
the Sardar agitation which turned to the Roman Catholic mission, seeking support
for their claims and the disappointed, returned to the old faith. For a year, he
also served in the house of Munda at Kander, where his eldest sister Daskir
lived.
It
was probably in 1890 that he went to Bandgaon and came in contact with Anand
Panre. He left Corbera in the wake of the mounting Sardar agitation. During
these years, he did not keep himself only
to the Panres. He participated in the agitation stemming form popular
disaffection at the restrictions imposed upon the traditional rights of the
Mundas in the protected forest, under the leadership of Gidiun of Piring in the
Porhat area. During 1893-4 all waste lands in villages, the ownership of which
was vested in the Government, were constituted into protected forests under the
Indian Forest Act VII of 1882. In Singhbhum as in Palamau and Manbhum the forest
settlement operations were launched and measures were taken to determine the
rights of the forest-dwelling communities. Villages in forests were marked off
in blocks of convenient size consisting not only of village sites but also
cultivable and waste lands sufficient of the needs of villages. Out- side the
blocks lay the protected forest areas in which rights were regulated, even
curtailed. These orders were sometimes not understood by local officers who
acted as if all right of forest swelling communities had been curtailed.
Petitions were submitted by Jeta Maniki of Gudri, Rasha Maki, Moni Maniki of
Durkarpir claiming the resumption of what they called were their old ancestral
right to free fuel, grazing etc. Birsa led a number of ryots of Sirgida to
Chaibasa with a petition for the
remission of forest dues. Men from six other villages had preceded him. Nothing
came of it. The Chotanagpur Protected, Forests rules framed under the Indian
Forest Act came into force in July 1894. Viewing Birsa's involvement in the
Sardar agitation with concern, Anand Panre advised him not to let him emotion
overpowers him; but he would not turn a deaf ear to the inner voice. His three
years' apprenticeship under the Panres came to an end in 1893-4.
Birsa
Munda (1875-1900) as he is known among his followers was a revolutionary who led
his men to rise against the imperial government and its policies. He and his
army would attacks the British regiments and landlords, armed with bows and
arrows and reclaim what was taken away from them. For his bravery and wide
support in the entire region, Birsa was a cause of distress for the British
government. The British army led several expeditions against him, when
ultimately he was captured in 1900, by the deceit of his own men. Birsa used the
myths and symbols of his society and culture and became a rallying point for
people to rise against foreign rule, oppression and injustice. His movement was
also infused with the spirit of religious reform, social justice and cultural
regeneration. Birsa Munda became Christian while schooling in a Christian
mission school at Bulj. It was renamed as Daud. Instead of improving his life,
Birsa Munda realised that his culture was destroyed and his life style came
down. Because thousands of Mundas were converted, the great martyr Birsa Munda
was aggrieved and rebelled against Christianity. He denounced Christianity and
become Munda again. The colonialist connection of Christianity was a powerful
tool of selling Christianity as the religion of the downtrodden. Any connection
between the rulers and the missionaries was however indirect. The districts
around Ranchi is still the stronghold of santhals. The tribals still continue to
be ex-ploited even 50 years after independence. 'Diku' in the local parlance
means the outsider who exploited' the inhabitants. Infact this particular region
is fertile and at the same time one of the most mineral rich regions in the
country. The santals are very peace loving and unpretentious tribals. However,
modern day civilization has looted them of everything they possessed, felled
their trees, took away their lands, minerals and made a mockery of their age-old
rituals and customs. Modern India distinguishes the entire territory as one of
its industrialized regions with birth of heavy engineering and mining, and
inspite of all the riches, the region continues to be one of the poorest and
economically underdeveloped regions. Thus, the fight of Birsa Munda is yet to be
over, nonetheless his contributions are immense to his tribe and the nation.
Birsa
Munda rose from the lowest rank of peasants to mobilise people against the
appropriation of tribal and disintegration of their way of life, economy, and
culture by the colonial system. He fought against the predatory tendencies in
the name of modernisation and the oppressive Zamindari system, invoking the
spirit of tribal order characterised by simplicity, absence of tyranny, and
living in harmony with nature.
He
used the myths and symbols of his society and culture and became a rallying
point for people to rise against foreign rule, oppression and injustice. His
movement was also infused with the spirit of religious reform, social justice
and cultural regeneration. He fought against British rule, suffered imprisonment
and subsequently became a martyr. Through his struggle, he became a cult figure,
a part of the folklore and was even deified by the people as 'Dharti Abba'. The
Bihar Regiment of the Indian Army invokes his name in one of their battle cries.
The British authorities suppressed Birsa Munda's struggle. But it did not go in
vain. His fight for the rights of the people for forest resources, land and
preservation of their distinct identity was subsequently recognised when the
then British Government, through a series of measures, guaranteed tribals right
to reclaim their land and empowered officials
to forcefully evict the occupation of tribal land by others. The Chotanagpur
Tenancy Act of 1908, which partially protected the rights of tribals, is
considered as an important outcome of Birsa Munda's fight. The arduous fight of
Birsa Munda against British rule and its ramifications found articulation in the
larger context of our struggle for independence when Surendranath Baneljea took
up the issue in the Legislative Council and many other leading newspapers of the
period editorially supported its cause. The impact of this movement was
significant enough that even the British Government that suppressed it,
recognised its gravity. This was reflected in the secret report of the then Lt.
Governor who wrote, "the disturbance may have quieted down but Simla
requires to be constantly reminded that it is sitting on a powder
magazine." The popularity, intensity and relevance of the movement launched
by Birsa Munda was so widespread that all the mainstream political groups
supported it and eulogised its contributions to arouse the common people to
stand against the mighty British empire. Acknowledging his crucial role in
awakening the masses of Chota Nagpur against British rule, the Indian National
Congress and the Forward Block ob- served Birsa Day in 1940 with great
enthusiasm. The awakening triggered by Birsa Munda found its tnanifestation in
the formation of Kisan Sabha by many tribal groups, which later joined the
struggle for freedom. The then British Government was perplexed by the willing
and large-scale participation of women in the agitation launched by Birsa. Birsa
Munda stood out as an early protagonist of tribal rights,
a pioneer in mobilising women for the cause of freedom and as an irrepressible
fighter for justice and human dignity. His movement launched in late 19th
century has significance for our own times. Today our tribals, in all parts of
our country, are fighting for their inalienable rights to land, forest resources
and cultural identity. In all such fights, we find an echo of Birsa Munda's
strivings. Today our tribal brothers and sisters are heroically standing against
the forces socalled modernisation which run anti-thetical to their life-style,
and understanding of nature and culture. They resist the alarming deterioration
of environment as they are the protectors and preservers of "Jal, Jungle
and Jantu" and draw our attention to the need for re-examining our concepts
of development and progress. They underline the need for truly sustainable
development projects. Since the days of our struggle for independence, we have
taken steps to guarantee the rights of our tribal brothers and sisters. Our
Constitution, the fundamental law of the land, stipulates the provisions for
their upliftment.
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The
British colonial system intensified the transformation of the tribal agrarian
system into feudal state. As the tribals with their primitive technology could
not generate a surplus, non-tribal peasantry were invited by the chiefs in
Chotanagpur to settle on and cultivate the land. This led to the alienation of
the lands held by the tribals. |
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