Birsa Munda was a young freedom fighter and a great tribal leader who fought for the lives of tribals in India. He is remembered for his strong protest against British rule in India in the nineteenth century. His spirit of activism gave the tribal communities to fight for their rights. Mrsa Munda was born on November 15, 1875, and was brought up in the tribal belt around Bihar and Jharkhand. His accomplishments have been exceptional as a fact that he gained all of them before the age of 25. To recognise his achievement’s impact on the national freedom movement, the state of Jharkhand was created on his birth anniversary in 2000.
Jharkhand which is also known as the “The Land of Forest”, marks its state foundation day on November 15 every year. The state was carved out of Bihar becoming the 28th state in the country after the Parliament passed the Bihar Recognition Act, 2000. The purpose behind the formation of the Jharkhand state was to provide an identity to the tribal community for which Birsa Munda had fought long.
This date plays a great significance to the state as the foundation day coincides with Birsa Munda’s birth anniversary.
Also Read: This 83-Year-Old Man Becomes Oldest Person to Hike Appalachian Trail Record Book
Jharkhand is the homeland for many tribals who had dreamt of a separate state even before the freedom movement began in India.
Popularly known as “Bhagwan Birsa”, it was Munda who spearheaded a tribal religious millenarian movement that emerged from the Bengal Presidency which is present Jharkhand now, in the 19th century against the British Raj.
Birsa Munda who led the rebellion against the British government-imposed feudal state system was called the Ulgulan (revolt) or the Munda rebellion.
Much of Birsa Munda’s childhood life was spent migrating from one village to another with his parents. He bore his lineage to the Munda tribe of the Chhotanagrpur Plateau area.
The freedom fighter received his early education from Salga under the guidance of his teacher Jaipal Nag, who advised him to convert to Christianity in order to join the German Mission school. However, Munda left the school after a few years.
Christianity influenced Munda later in life. After he became aware of the British colonial rule and the measures the missionaries were taking to convert the tribals into Christianity, Birsa to challenge their actions started a faith called "Birsait". Soon the Oraon community started to join the Birsait sect, which gradually turned into a challenge to British conversion activities.
Also Read: Renowned historian, Padma Vibhushan awardee Babasaheb Purandare dies at 99
A large amount of his life’s time from 1886 to 1890, Birsa Munda had spent in Chaibasa that was closer to teh centre of the Sardars agitation, which had a strong impact on young Birsa’s mind. He then got associated with the anti-missionary and anti-government programs. By the time Munda left Chaibasa in 19890, he was fully rooted in the movement against the British oppression of the tribal communities.
The British police in the year 1900, on March 3 had arrested Birsa Munda when he was sleeping with his tribal guerilla army at Jamkopai forest in Chakradharpur. Lodged in the prison, Munda died at the young of 25, in Ranchi jail on June 9, 1900. Despite his short life and the sad part that the movement went silent soon after his death, Birsa Munda’s is still known for mobilising the tribal movement against the British and had also forced the British colonial officials to introduce laws preserving the land rights for the tribals.
Birsa Munda’s a young tribal revolutionary is celebrated for his achievements and over all these years have successfully made a space for himself in people’s heart as their leader and is recognised popularly in folk literature, academia, and mass media.