Summary of Indigo
Indigo is an excerpt from Louis Fischer’s book – The Life of Mahatma Gandhi. The writer talks about how Gandhi dealt with a particular incident regarding indigo sharecroppers in the Champaran district of Bihar. An illiterate peasant named Rajkumar Shukla from Champaran goes to Gandhi for help. British landowners were ruthlessly exploiting the sharecroppers of this district. It is a minor incident that leads to a prolonged fight against the British administration to finally release the suffering peasants from their plight and give them the courage to fight for their rights. Indigo Class 12 Summary – a part of CBSE Summary gives us a detailed understanding of this chapter. Students can refer to CBSE Notes for further information and study materials on this chapter and other topics related to the Class 12 CBSE English syllabus. Students can go to BYJU’S main website to access both CBSE Summary and CBSE Notes.
CBSE Class 12 English Indigo Summary
Louis Fischer starts the chapter by recalling his meeting with Mahatma Gandhi at his ashram in Sevagram in 1942. He remembers Gandhi explaining his urge to initiate the departure of the British from India. It started in 1917. He had gone to attend the annual convention of the Indian National Congress Party in Lucknow in December 1916. During this event, a farmer named Rajkumar Shukla came up to him, asking for help. He wanted Gandhi to help him, and his fellow farmers deal with the injustice imposed upon them by the landlord system in Bihar.
Rajkumar Shukla followed Gandhi to his ashram until the latter agreed to go to Champaran. It was decided that Rajkumar Shukla would take Gandhi to Champaran from Calcutta. After several months, when Gandhi went to Calcutta, he found Rajkumar waiting for him at the exact spot at the given time. Rajkumar took Gandhi to the house of Rajendra Prasad – a lawyer. The lawyer was not there. So, Gandhi decided to go to Muzaffarpur. He was greeted by a professor at the train station – J.B. Kripalani, whom many students accompanied. Although the local people were afraid of giving shelter to home-rule supporters like Gandhi, a government school teacher – Professor Malkani let him stay for two days at his house.
As a number of lawyers and farmers came to meet him, Gandhi understood the problem faced by the farmers. They were sharecroppers – tenants that worked on estates owned by British landlords. This system compelled the farmers to cultivate fifteen per cent of their land with indigo and hand over the complete harvest to the landlords. When the landlords discovered that Germany had developed synthetic indigo, they did not want the farmers to grow indigo anymore. So, they asked the farmers to pay some compensatory fees for being released from the fifteen per cent arrangement. Some farmers signed willingly, while others hired lawyers to fight against this. But when they came to know about the development of synthetic indigo, they wanted their money back.
Gandhi faced a lot of troubles while approaching the government officials about the Champaran issue. They made many excuses and turned him away a number of times. But he stayed put and filed a case with support from prominent lawyers and the local farmers. After long meetings with the Lieutenant-Governor, Gandhi was able to arrange investigations into the sharecroppers’ issues. A substantial amount of evidence was unearthed, and the official enquiry agreed to refund the farmers’ money that was taken from them through illegal and deceitful ways.
Gandhi asked for fifty per cent of the money while the official enquiry counter-proposed a twenty-five per cent refund. Gandhi agreed gladly. To him, the amount of money that was to be paid was less important than the fact that British landlords were compelled to surrender their money. Gandhi believed that the landlords were surrendering their prestige as well.
The outcome of this event was that the fearful and suppressed farmers developed a sense of self-reliance and courage to fight for their rights. The writer stresses the fact that Gandhi’s politics was not about being loyal to ideals, but it was about being loyal to the people – the human beings involved in it. He took up various initiatives to improve the lives of people in Champaran. He started schools along with health and sanitation campaigns to help the people of Champaran overcome poverty and misery. His wife, disciples and many other people volunteered to help Gandhi bring development to Champaran.
Conclusion of Indigo
Indigo Class 12 summary tells us about the journey of self-reliance and courage during the freedom struggle in British India. Gandhi had considered an improvement in the physical and mental conditions of people as a crucial factor in the contribution of nationalistic sentiment and resistance by farmers against the British. The chapter says that the Champaran incident was considered the first kind of Civil Disobedience victory in modern India.
A detailed understanding of the chapter can help students understand and recognise the concepts introduced in it. Students can refer to our website for further information and content related to Class 12 CBSE English for better understanding and preparation for CBSE board exams. They can also access topics like grammar and writing in English.
