Fourth Part
Q. Write in about five lines how colonialism accentuated social differentiation in Indian
society.
A. i) As for agriculture, the land settlements (Permanent, Raiyatwari and Mahalwari) created certain new elements like a market economy and did away with some customary rights like forest & pasturage rights. The agrarian policies coupled with other developments encouraged money lending particularly in the context of cash payments of land revenue. In the context of sharpening social differentiation, money lending got associated with a complete control of the rural economy and society by a few moneylenders. And, if it was a tribal tract, this interaction also implied the process of peasantisation i.e. conversion of tribals into peasants.
ii) Secondly, social differentiation was not a new feature but colonialism accentuated the differences and created a sharper polarization between those who owned lands; had acquired wealth, and through their new ownership rights, had access to the courts to defend themselves and their property, and those whose customary rights got undermined. This differentiation had certain implications. Besides strengthening and polarizing, these differences centered around class (rich-poor), differences around caste and religion also got strained for example if in a particular area the landowner belonged to a particular caste or religion and the peasants were of another caste or religion then the caste/religious
differences got strained on account of class differentiation we have noted above. Tribal areas saw the emergence of 'outsiders' who were moneylenders and landlords, and who ruthlessly exploited the population.
iii) Another major aspect of colonial policy was to forcibly commercialize agriculture, with the obvious idea of providing raw material for British industries. This proved hazardous for the peasants who were forced to grow commercial crops (like indigo and cotton) instead of food grains, even in years of scarcity.
iv) As for the artisans, colonialism spelt doom for them. The colonization of India implied that India was to be a market for British goods. These were factory-made goods cheaper and finer than the products of the India artisans. This led to the wiping out of the traditional Indian industries like cotton and salt. Besides throwing a large section of the artisans out of employment, it increased the pressure on land as the artisans tried to turn to agriculture.
Q. Leaders and Movements
A. Chakra Bisoi --------- Khonds of Ghumsar in Orissa in 1854-56
Sido & Kanhu ---------- Santhal Rebellion in Bengal in 1855-57
Radhakrishna Dandasena ------------ Savara Rebellion in Parliakhemedi in 1856-57
Q. What led to Santhal Rebellion.
A. The colonial policies of exploitation led to the precipitation of grievances against the system , but initially the rebellion started against some merchants and moneylenders from Northern and Eastern India, who had complete control over the existence of Santhals through interests on loans, with rates ranging from 50% to 500% .They grabbed lands of the Santhals. Some of the intermediaries of the Zamindars were ruthlessly exploitative. Recruitments of forced labor and the sexual exploitation of tribal women at the railway sites were also some reasons. When the movement started it was not ostensibly anti-British, but was directed chiefly against the mahajans and traders. The Santhals declared that their new God had directed them to collect and pay their revenue to the state at the rate of two annas on every buffalo plough and half anna on each cow-plough. They also fixed interest rates on loans which were to be on the lower side. The Santhals were punished for night 'attacks' on
mahajans, whereas their oppressors were not even touched . Rebellion increased in 1854, with an increase in the number of 'dacoities', 'burglaries', 'thefts' of mhajans, whose wealth was ill-earned. Two Santhals--Sido and Kanhu were the leaders of this movement . From an essentially anti-mahajan and anti-trader movement it incorporated a new element - the Santhals made no secret of their opposition to the police, white planters, railway engineers and the officials, thereby revealing their opposition to the colonial order as well.
The movement lasted for six months. Many villages were 'attacked' hy the Santhals after being given prior notice. A lot of pressure was exerted on the zamindars and the Government by the rebels. In many areas the zamindars helped in the suppression of the rebellion.
Q. Rebels and Movement
A. Tomma Dora ----------- Koya Rebellion
Sambhunath Pal --------- Pabna Uprising
Birsa Munda ------------- Munda Revolt
Q. Discuss in about ten lines the basic characteristics of the popular movements during this period.
A. 1) These movements were inspired from the past privileged life of their before the colonization . The existing system was exploitive in nature. Attacking the established order of the sahukar, zamindar and the British colonial administration was thus at the center of rebellion. On occasions they were led by the traditionally affluent sections whose privileges had been undermined as a result of the colonization of India.
2) The belief of new era of fair and just system ,where everybody would be equal and live happily.
3) Another noticeable feature was the association of these popular movements with religion and caste.
4) Another importilnt facet of these popular movements was their close association with 'lootings' and 'crime' directed against the affluent classes.
5) The sense of solidarity exhibited by peasants, tribals and artisans is another characteristic feature. Territorial boundaries & ethnic bonds transcended in the popular movements.
6) And, finally, these popular movements served to considerably narrow the gap between a section of the Indian Intelligentsia and the popular masses.
Tribal Revolts Before 1857
Chakra Bisoi --------- Khonds of Ghumsar in Orissa in 1854-56
Sido & Kanhu ---------- Santhal Rebellion in Bengal in 1855-57
Radhakrishna Dandasena ------------ Savara Rebellion in Parliakhemedi (Orissa) in 1856-57
Tribal Revolts After 1857
1) Indigo Riots- It started in Bengal in 1859. Indigo plantation was started in 1770 by East India Company and farmers were lured by loans and forcefully trapped , they resisted creating a lot of discontent since the peasants could not grow food grains which they needed for survival. By 1859 thousands of peasants had withdrawn their labor, formed organizations all over the indigo plantation districts and resisted the repression of the planters and their armed retainers. The contemporary newspapers like THE BENGALEE gave due coverage to the movement and reported how it was marked with success. Dinabandhu Mitra wrote Nildarpan in Bengali which highlighted the plight of the peasants. The indigo riots forced the Government to set up an official enquiry (1860). The movement also knocked down the plantation system in lower Bengal, forcing the planters to shift to Bihar .
2) Moplah Uprising - In the 1850-1900 period series of Moplah Uprisings occurred in Malabar. As the Jenmi landlords backed by the police, law courts and revenue officials tightened their grip over the Moplah peasants the latter rebelled against the landlords and the British. The rich-poor conflict between the Jenmi landlords and the Moplah peasants was given distinct communal coloring by the colonial state since the landlords were Hindus and the peasants were Muslims. By 1896 the Moplah peasants' struggle assumed an aggressively communal orientation.
3) Pabna - The Pabna movement took place between 1873-1885 in Bengal . Two prominent leaders of the Pabna peasants - Kesab Chandra Roy and Sambhunath Pal were Hindus. In 1873 the Pabna peasants formed an agrarian league which spread out the entire district very soon. Most of the newspapers which were pre-landlord (like Amrita Bazar Patrika) opposed the league. Majority of the peasant activists were Muslims (more than 2\3r'ds of the peasants, and about 70% of Pabna's population were Muslims) they painted it as a communal movement as the landlords were Hindus .
4) Deccan Riots - The basis of the Deccan Riots, which erupted in 1875, lay in the evolution of the ryotwari system itself. We come across the emergence of a class of moneylenders who fleeced the peasants through high interest on loans (25% to 50%). The decline of the collective system of tax collection implied that unlike in the earlier days the moneylender was not subject to the executive and judicial authority of the village. The courts and the new laws polarized the caste differences between the Vanis (village moneylenders) and the Kunbis (cultivator caste) by favoring the former. This implied an increase in the transfer of holding from peasants to moneylenders. The immovable property of the Kunbi could also be sold to recover loans. Along with these problems was an increase of the population, the dislocation of the economy and an ill-conceived attempt to enhance rents by the colonial administration. Like the pattern we have noticed earlier, class conflict was given the form of
a caste conflict.
5) Koya Rebellion - In 1879- 1880 there occurred the Koya rebellion in the eastern Godavari tract of present day Andhra Pradesh which also affected some portions of the Malkangiri region of Koraput district in Orissa. It was led by Tomma Dora, the Koya leader. The movement reflected the problems faced by the tribals like the erosion of customary rights over forests, the exploitation by moneylenders who began to control the life of the Koyas through loans and land transfers. Tomma Dora was hailed by the Koyas as the 'King' of Malkangiri.
6) Birsa Munda Revolt - It started in 1895, led by Birsa against Dikus(outsiders like money lenders , Christian missionaries etc.) in Chotanagpur region of South Bihar.
Q. Educated Gentry & Freedom struggle before 1900
A. Efforts of the Educated Gentry
The 1850-1900 phase saw scattered and unorganized struggles among the workers. In this phase we come across sections of the educated gentry coming forward to focus on the problems of the workers. In 1870 Sasipada Banerjee, a Brahmo Samajist, founded the 'Working Men's Club' and published a journal from Baranagar (near Calcutta) in 1874. The Calcutta- Brahmo Samaj founded in 1878 the 'Working Men's Mission' to propagate religious morality, etc. among the workers.
By 1878 we come across Sorabjee Saprujee Bengalee and Narayan Meghajee Lokhundy
working amidst cotton mill laborers in Bombay. These attempts led to the drafting of a memorandum in 1884 which incorporated demands for a rest day on ever; Sunday, a half an-hour break at noon; a 6.30 a.m. to sunset working day; wages to the worker paid-by the 15th of the month following the month they have worked and that in case of injury they should receive full wages till they recovered and if they got maimed they should get pension. This memorandum was signed by about 5,000 workers and was submitted to the commission of 1884 appointed by the Government of Bombay. It left its imprint of the first Indian Factories Act of 1891.
In 1890 (April 24) Lakhundy convened another meeting attended by about 10,000 workers.
Two woman workers spoke at this meeting. A memorial asking for a weekly holiday was drawn up and sent to the Bombay Mill Owners' Association. This request was granted on June 10, 1890, and although perceived as a victory by the workers, it was without any legal sanction and hence it could not be enforced. The demand for a rest day in a week became a popular demand in almost all the industrial centers.
Q. Matching year with strike
A. 1853 ------ River Transport
1862------- Railway
1877---------Nagpur Empress Mill
Q. Reform movements in 19th century.
A. The earliest expression of reform was in Bengal, initiated by Rammohun Roy. He founded the Atmiya Sabha in 1814, followed by Brahmo Samaj organized by him in 1829. The spirit of reform soon manifested itself in other parts of the country. The Pararnahansa Mandali and Prarthana Samaj in Maharashtra and Arya Samaj in Punjab and other parts of north India were some of the prominent movements among the Hindus. There were several other regional and caste movements like Kayastha Sabha in U.P. and Sarin Sabha in Punjab. Among the backward castes too reformation struck roots: The Satya Sodhak Samaj in Maharashtra and Sri Narayana Dharma Paripalana Sabha in Kerala. The
Ahmadiya and Aligarh movements, the Sing Sabha & the Rehnumai Mazdeyasan Sabha represented the spirit of reform among the Muslims, the Sikhs and the Parsees respectively. The following features are evident from the above account:
i) Each of these reform movements was confined, by and large to one region or the other. Brahamo Samaj and the Arya Samaj did have branches in different parts of the country yet they were more popular in Bengal and Punjab respectively, that anywhere else.
ii) These movements were confined to a particular religion or caste.
iii) An additional feature of these movements was that they all emerged at different points of time in different parts of the country. Eor example in Bengal reform efforts were afoot at the beginning of the nineteenth century, but in Kerala they came up only towards the end of the nineteenth century. Despite this, there was considerable similarity in their aims and perspectives. All of them were concerned with the regeneration of society through social and educational reforms even if there were differences in their methods.
Q. What were the various methods of reform adopted by the 19th century reformers?
A. Different methods employed were -
Reform from within -
This technique was initiated by Rammohan Roy and followed throughout the 19th century. They believed that any reform in order to be effective had to emerge from within the society itself. Their efforts was to create a sense of awareness among the people. They tried to do this by publishing articles and organizing debates and discussions on various social problems. Rammohun's campaign against sati, Vidyasagar's pamphlets on widow marriage and B.M. Malabari's efforts to increase the age of consent are the examples of this.
Reforms through Legislation - Keshub Chandra Sen in Bengal, Mahadev Govind Ranade in Maharashtra and Viresalingam in Andhra-believed that reform efforts cannot really be effective unless supported by the state. Therefore, they appealed to the government to give legislative sanction for reforms like widow marriage, civil marriage and increase in the age of consent.
Reform through symbol of change - The third trend was an attempt to create symbols of change through individual activity. This was limited to the 'Derozians' or 'Young Bengal' who represented a radical stream within the reform movement. They stood for a rejection of tradition and revolt against accepted social norms. They were highly influenced by "the regenerating new thought from the West" and displayed a noncompromisingly rational attitude towards social problems.
Reform through Social work -The fourth trend was reform through social work as was evident in the activities of Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, Arya Samaj and Ramakrishna Mission. There was a clear recognition among them of the limitations of purely intellectual effort if undertaken without supportive social work. Through social work they tried to disseminate ideas of reform and regeneration.
Q. Describe Rationalism and Universalism
A. Rationalism -
The early Brahmo reformers and members of 'Young Bengal' had taken a highly rational attitude towards socio-religious issues. They argue that all natural and social phenomena could be analyzed and understood purely in terms of physical and mechanical processes. Faith was sought to be replaced by rationality and socio-religious practices were evaluated from the standpoint of social utility. In Brahmo Samaj the rationalist perspective ' led to the repudiation of the infallibility of the Vedas . Aligarh movement founded by Sir Sayyid Ahmad Khan Holding that religious tenets are not immutable emphasized the role of religion in the progress of Society, if religion did not keep in step with the times and meet the demand of society, it would get fossilized as had happened in the case of Islam in India.
Universalism -
An important religious idea in the nineteenth century was universalism a belief in the unity of godhead and an emphasis on religions being essentially the same. Rammohan considered different religions as national embodiments of universal theism. He was a defender of the basic and universal principles of all religions-monotheism of the Vedas and unitarianism of Christianity-and at the same time he attacked the polytheism of Hinduism and trinitarianism of Christianity. Sayyid Ahmad Khan echoed almost the same idea: all prophets had the same din (faith) and every country and nation had different prophets.
Q. Make a list of five steps taken by Lord Lytton which tended to offend the Indians
A. Lytton followed anti-Indian policies -
Lytton sent an expensive expedition of Afghanistan which was financed out of Indian revenues. He removed import duties on cotton textiles to benefit British cloth industry at the cost of the nascent Indian textile industry. These steps were resented by politically conscious Indians. In domestic policy the Viceroy patronized these sections like the ruling princes and landholders who played a vital role in the continuance of the British rule. He viewed the aspirations of educated Indians with contempt. During his period the maximum age for appearing in the Indian Civil Service examination was reduced from 21 to 19 years. Since the examination was held only in London, it was in any case difficult for the Indians to take this examination. The lowering of the age was looked upon as a step calculated to prevent Indians from appearing in this examination. The Indian Association took up the issue and launched an agitation over it in the country. Public meetings were organized to protest against the passing of the Vernacular Press Act and the Arms Act. The former imposed restrictions on the newspapers and journals printed in Indian languages. This caused deep
resentment among the Indian societies. Amrita Bazar Patrika which was published in Bengali till then, changed overnight into an English medium so as to escape the restrictions imposed under this Act. Under the Arms Act, Indians were made to pay a license fee in order to possess a weapon but Europeans and Eurasians were exempted from doing so. Special concessions were also given to landholders.
Q. What do you understand by the ILbert Bill controversy?
A. Lord Lytton was succeeded by Lord Ripon in 1880. Ripon's approach was different. He held that the educated Indians possessed legitimate aspirations in keeping with their education and the pledges given by the British Parliament from time to time in this regard should be honored.He repealed the Vernacular Press Act, promoted lkal self-government institutions, encouraged the spread of education and brought the Afghan War to an end. A bitter agitation directed at Ripon and his pro-Indian policies erupted over the so-called Ilbert Bill among the Anglo-Indians who had been annoyed by him.
Ilbert Bill - The Criminal Procedure amendment Bill, or the Ilbert Bill putt Indian Judges on the
same footing as Europeans in dealing with all cases in the Bengal Presidency. Its purpose was to enable qualified Indians in the mofussil to try Europeans for criminal offenses (in Presidency towns they were already allowed to do so). The Bill was brought forward because Indians were now rising in the ranks of the judicial service. It involved the possibility of trial of Europeans by Indian judges for criminal offenses without a jury. It also gave right to Europeans to appeal to the High Court if they were not satisfied. But this provoked a storm of angry criticism amongst the Anglo-Indians. Ripon found that even the civil service was in sympathy with the opposition. In the press and in public meetings Indian character and culture were severely criticized. Ultimately the Government had to bow before this hostile opinion and the Bill was amended in such a manner that its very purpose was defeated.
Q. List the aim and objectives of the Congress as defined by its first President.
A. The objectives as:
1) Promotion of personal intimacy and friendship amongst the countrymen,
2) eradication of all possible prejudices relating to race, creed or provinces,
3) consolidation of sentiments of national unity,
4) recording of the opinions of educated classes on pressing problems of the day, and laying down lines for future course of action in public interest.
Besides these demands the President enumerated the blessings conferred by 'the British on India. He assured that the educated Indians were thoroughly loyal and consistent well wishers of the Government. The Congress leaders had tremendous faith in what they described as the British sense of justice. They were not thinking in terms of expelling the British . All they wanted was that the policies adopted by the Government of India should aim at the welfare and good of lndians which meant really the advancement of their interests. For this purpose they wanted greater share in running the government.
Q. Mention resolutions passed by the first Congress in its first meeting .
A. The first congress adopted nine resolutions:
# In one resolution demand was put forward for the appointment of a Royal Commission for enquiring into Indian affairs on which Indians would be adequately represented.
# The other resolution demanded the abolition of the Indian Council of the Secretary of State for India. The Congress wanted that the Secretary of State should be responsible directly to the British Parliament. This demand was based on the idea that the British people were just and fair and, if properly informed, they would never deviate from the right path.
# There was also a resolution on foreign policy which condemned the annexation of Upper Burma.
# Other resolutions covered subjects such as liberalizing the Constitution and functions of the Central and Provincial Legislative Councils, holding of simultaneous examination for the Civil Service in Britain and India and the need to reduce expenditure on the army, etc
Q. What do you understand by Safety Valve Theory? Write in about a hundred words.
A. If a body like the Indian National Congress had been founded by an Indian, it would have been accepted as something normal and logical. But the fact that the idea of an all-India political organization was given concrete and final shape by an Englishmen -A.O. Hume has given rise to many speculations. Hume was not just any Englishman: he belonged to the Indian Civil Service. It is
said that while in service he had come across a mass of material which suggested that as a result of the sufferings of the masses and alienation of intellectuals, much discontent had accumulated and this could pose a threat to the continuance of British rule. The memories of the great revolt of 1857 were still fresh. Moreover, Hume himself had said that his aim was to provide, to use his own expression, a safety valve' providing control to the "great and growing forces generated by" the British themselves. This has been juxtaposed with W.C. Bannerjee's statement that Hume was acting under the direct advice of Dufferin. These two facts studied together gave rise to the argument that the Indian National Congress grew out of the British conspiracy, the aim of which was to provide a peaceful and
constitutional outlet to the discontent amongst the educated Indians and thus provide against the threat to the Raj.
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