Context: Ulihatu, the birthplace of Birsa Munda and a village in Jharkhand, has seen noticeable development in recent years. The Prime Minister launched the Rs 24,000 crore Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) Development Mission from this place. The Central government has designated Birsa Munda’s birth anniversary on November 15 as ‘Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas’.
Who was Birsa Munda?
- Born in 1875.
- Between 1886 and 1890, Birsa spent time at a place which was near the centre of the Sardari agitation, a peaceful movement led by the Oraon and Munda tribes against British rule. This experience inspired him to join the anti-missionary and anti-colonial cause.
- By 1890, Birsa was deeply involved in the movement against British oppression of tribal communities.
- He emerged as a prominent tribal leader, uniting people to fight for their rights. He founded the Birsait faith and became a God-like figure to his followers.
- His movement attracted members from the Munda and Oraon communities, challenging British conversion efforts and reinforcing tribal unity and resistance.
- The Mundas, a tribe of former nomadic hunters turned farmers in the Chota-nagpur region of present-day Jharkhand, faced significant challenges due to adverse policies and events.
- Before colonial rule, they practiced 'khuntkatti’, a land ownership system based on customary rights that excluded landlords.
- However, the Permanent Settlement Act of 1793 ended this system, enabling colonial exploitation.
- The East India Company introduced the zamindari system for land revenue collection, creating a dual class system of land-owning zamindars, viewed as outsiders or ‘dikus’ by the indigenous people, and tenant farmers or ‘ryots’.
- This Act allowed the dikus to claim ownership through deeds specifying precise areas, displacing the indigenous inhabitants from their ancestral lands.
- Additionally, the community suffered from exploitative practices like the ‘begar’ system of forced labor, dependence on moneylenders for credit, and the replacement of traditional clan councils with colonial courts.
- Famines in 1896-97 and 1899-1900 further exacerbated their plight, leading to mass starvation.
The Ulgulan movement (1899-1900) and aftermath:
- The Munda Ulgulan (rebellion) stands as one of the most notable tribal revolts in the history of Indian Independence.
- The main cause of the Munda revolt was the 'unfair land grabbing practices’ by colonial and local authorities that demolished the tribal conventional land system.
- Their exploitation included high-interest loans and withheld receipts, leading to conflict with the dikus (outsiders).
- Additionally, large forest areas were declared protected, stripping the Mundas of their rights.
- The Mundas desperately needed a leader to guide their struggle for justice.
- Course of the rebellion:
- Birsa Munda emerged as a leader of the tribal movement.
- Birsa aimed for both religious and political independence, advocating for the Mundas' rights as the true landowners and visioned an agrarian order free from European influence.
- Birsa called on the Mundas to reject superstitions, abandon animal sacrifice, abstain from intoxicants, wear the sacred thread, and maintain traditional worship in the sarna (sacred grove).
- He wanted Munda society to get rid of foreign elements and restore its original character.
- By the 1890s, Birsa had mobilized the tribes, inciting rebellion.
- In 1894, he declared a revolt against the British and the dikus, aiming to establish a 'Munda Raj'.
- Under his leadership, villagers attacked police stations, churches, and government properties in 1899.
- However, in 1900, the rebels were defeated.
- Birsa was captured and died in jail, while nearly 350 Mundas were tried.
- Aftermath:
- Demonstrated the tribal people's ability to protest against injustice and colonial rule.
- The British enacted the Chota-nagpur Tenancy Act of 1908, which restricted the transfer of tribal land to non-tribal people, recognized Khuntkatti rights, and banned begari.
- Consequently, tribals gained legal protection for their land rights.