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Question
Describe the rebellion which took place in the kingdom of Bastar in 1910. How was it suppressed? What were its consequences?
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Solution
The people of Bastar were already worried due to the severe forest policies of the colonial government. They were stopped from practising shifting cultivation. They were also deprived of hunting and collection of forest produce. In 1905, when the colonial government proposed to reserve two-thirds of the forest, they were deeply shocked.
For long, they had been suffering from increased land rents and frequent demands for free labour and goods by colonial officials. Then they were caught in the grip of the terrible famines in 1899−1900 and again in 1907−08. Reservations proved to be the last straw.
People began to gather and discuss these issues in their village councils, in bazaars and at festivals or wherever the headmen and priests of several villages were assembled. The initiative was taken by the Dhurwas of the Kanger forest, where reservation first took place. Although there was no single leader, many people speak of Gunda Dhur, from village Nethanar, as an important figure in the movement.
In 1910, mango boughs, a lump of earth, chillies and arrow, began circulating between villages. These were actually messages inviting villagers to rebel against the British. Every village contributed something to the rebellion expenses. Bazaars were looted, the house of officials and traders, schools and police stations were burnt and robbed and grain redistributed.
The British sent troops to suppress the rebellion. The adivasi leaders tried to negotiate but the British surrounded their camps and fired upon them. After that they marched through the villages flogging and punishing those who had taken part in the rebellion. Most villages were deserted as people fled into the jungles. It took three months for the British to regain control. However, they never managed to capture Gunda Dhur.
Although the rebellion was suppressed, it was not without consequence. Work on reservation was temporarily suspended and the area to be reserved was reduced to roughly half of that planned before 1910. It was a major victory for the rebels.
For long, they had been suffering from increased land rents and frequent demands for free labour and goods by colonial officials. Then they were caught in the grip of the terrible famines in 1899−1900 and again in 1907−08. Reservations proved to be the last straw.
People began to gather and discuss these issues in their village councils, in bazaars and at festivals or wherever the headmen and priests of several villages were assembled. The initiative was taken by the Dhurwas of the Kanger forest, where reservation first took place. Although there was no single leader, many people speak of Gunda Dhur, from village Nethanar, as an important figure in the movement.
In 1910, mango boughs, a lump of earth, chillies and arrow, began circulating between villages. These were actually messages inviting villagers to rebel against the British. Every village contributed something to the rebellion expenses. Bazaars were looted, the house of officials and traders, schools and police stations were burnt and robbed and grain redistributed.
The British sent troops to suppress the rebellion. The adivasi leaders tried to negotiate but the British surrounded their camps and fired upon them. After that they marched through the villages flogging and punishing those who had taken part in the rebellion. Most villages were deserted as people fled into the jungles. It took three months for the British to regain control. However, they never managed to capture Gunda Dhur.
Although the rebellion was suppressed, it was not without consequence. Work on reservation was temporarily suspended and the area to be reserved was reduced to roughly half of that planned before 1910. It was a major victory for the rebels.
People began to gather and discuss these issues in their village councils, in bazaars and at festivals or wherever the headmen and priests of several villages were assembled. The initiative was taken by the Dhurwas of the Kanger forest, where reservation first took place. Although there was no single leader, many people speak of Gunda Dhur, from village Nethanar, as an important figure in the movement.
In 1910, mango boughs, a lump of earth, chillies and arrow, began circulating between villages. These were actually messages inviting villagers to rebel against the British. Every village contributed something to the rebellion expenses. Bazaars were looted, the house of officials and traders, schools and police stations were burnt and robbed and grain redistributed.
The British sent troops to suppress the rebellion. The adivasi leaders tried to negotiate but the British surrounded their camps and fired upon them. After that they marched through the villages flogging and punishing those who had taken part in the rebellion. Most villages were deserted as people fled into the jungles. It took three months for the British to regain control. However, they never managed to capture Gunda Dhur.
Although the rebellion was suppressed, it was not without consequence. Work on reservation was temporarily suspended and the area to be reserved was reduced to roughly half of that planned before 1910. It was a major victory for the rebels.
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