Orissa Review * August - 2005

Status of Women Education in Sambalpur During Pre-Independence Period

Antaryami Behera

The importance of women education in the society 1822.4 In matters of education no interest was is as essential as a moon in a dark night. Women shown by the Company for a long time. But their were respected in our society during the Vedic early attempt did not mention anything about the period. education of women. It was the Despatch of Coming to the 'Smritis', we find that the 1854, which for the first time laid stress on the 5 women were considered incompetent during the education of girls. post-Vedic period to perform sacrifices and to Primary Education read the Vedas as they could not be initiated. Sambalpur had its own educational Manusmriti declares that initiation of women was backwardness. There had been a steady 1 instituted in their marriages. In ancient time the advancement in the education of girls in female education was entirely domestic and Sambalpur. In 1900-01 only 471 girls were vocational, they being prepared for the duties of attending schools. The number rose subsequently the household. The evil of child-marriage, which to 1332 in 1906-07 out of which 899 were also crept in made the education of girls virtually attending boys schools and 433 were in girl's 2 impossible. schools.6 There were only six upper primary girls Towards the end of the ancient period, the schools situated in Sambalpur town, Rampella, Hindu system of education evolved one type of Attabira, , Barpali and Padampur. These schools, the Tol or Pathasala which was the schools were formally controlled by the District Hindu School of higher learning.3 It imparted Council of Schools but subsequently transferred instructions through Sanskrit and provided a to the control of Government in 1903.7 curriculum, which covered all sectors of traditional The co-education was very popular in system prevailing in this country. Orissa mainly due to the provision for education During the British rule, the progress of in most of the Primary Schools for boys. During women education was very slow. It was only in the period, 1902-07, there were more girls in 1813, that the Charter Act entrusted them with primary boy's schools than in primary girl's the responsibility of educating the people of . schools. Hornell, the Director of Public Instruction It set a fund of Rupees One Lakh for this purpose. was of opinion that it should be encouraged by The female education made a beginning in Orissa every possible means as it was impossible to under the initiative of the missionaries as early as establish a girls school in every village.8 But in

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Sambalpur the co-education was not such popular The Government was almost completely due to the conservativeness of the parents, early indifferent towards the opening of secondary marriage and unavailability of female teachers.9 schools for the girls in Orissa. The Female Due to the above social evil the number of girl's Education Committee of 1914 did not lay any students decreased in the period 1912-17.10 The stress on this vital issue. As a result, the secondary following table indicates some facts. education for the girls of Orissa was in it's infancy 13 Number of girls schools Number of girls at schools in 1936. 1912 1917 1912 1917 Accoding to Nilamani Senapati, who was 103 135 8732 17121 the Deputy Commissioner and President of Zilla School, Sambalpur in 1930-31, a proposal came 149 157 6496 9432 for admission of girls in the high school classes. 50 127 3251 6135 He was in favour and all the non official members 19 22 2465 1996 were against the proposal, as they apprehended Sambalpur 8 8 2991 2304 that if girls were admitted then boys would be withdrawn. He ordered for admission of girls and The Female Education Committee of 1914 waited to see the results. But no girls came suggested to government some recources to be forward for admission. No body was withdrawn adopted for the expansion of primary education and virtually the door to high school education of girls. Firstly the Female Education Committee for girls remained closed for a decade later. There did not wish to discourage co-education but were two government high schools for girls in considered that if funds permitted separate girls 11 1936, one at Cuttack and another one at schools should be established. All the .15 There was no high school for girls recommendations of the Female Education in the district of Sambalpur till 1936. But a high Committee were accepted by the Government school was opened for girls in 1944 at the heart and were acted upon in due course. In Sambalpur of Sambalpur Town.16 district during the next two decades there was a steady progress in all classes of schools. Three Further the number of high schools for girls of the schools situated at Sambalpur, Bargarh and increased in the province from 2 in 1936 to 6 in Rampella become Middle Vernacular which were 1947,17 including one in Sambalpur. managed by the Government. Besides that these Special School (Adult Education Among were 15 lower primary girls schools and 5 upper Women) primary girls schools.12 A special type of education was imparted Secondary Education in Orissa as well as in Sambalpur, which was Secondary education plays a significant role known as "Zanana Education System". The in the educational system of Orissa, as it is the Zanana Education System was an important link between primary and higher education. aspect of the educational development in Orissa Secondary education enables the individual to in the 19th century. become a full member of the complicated society It aimed at making the women of and it is the stage, which develope the ability, aristocratic families literates. The "Zanana" interests and characters of the individual. service was a kind of tution undertaken by these

28 Orissa Review * August - 2005 missionary women for those families who were References observing strict "Purdah" or Hindu customs. 1. Veda Mitra, Education in Ancient India, New Delhi, 1964, pp.100-101. There were 4 Zanana Centres for the education of "Purdahnasin" women at district 2. Y.B.Mathur, Women Education in India, Bombay, 1973, p.2. headquarters of Cuttack, Puri, Balasore and 3. Ibid. Sambalpur conducted by Peripatic Mistress 4. P.K Patra, History of Baptist Missionary Society under the supervision of District Inspector of in Orissa, Cuttack, 1943, p19. 19 Schools till 1945. The Zanana Centre of 5. J. C Agrawal, Landmarks in the History of Sambalpur was closed in the middle of the year Modern Indian Education, New Delhi, 1993, 1945,20 because during 1945 only 5 illiterate p.17. women were taking its benefits. But subsequently, 6. District Gazetteers: Sambalpur, 1909, under the supervision of Pravabati Devi, the great pp.194-195. freedom fighter of Sambalpur, who established a 7.Ibid. P.195. "Sikhya Sibir"for women at Bargaon (situated at 8. S. Tripathy, Role of Women in the History of a distance of 15 kms from Sambalpur town on Modern Orissa : 1900-1947, Cuttack, 1998, p.46. the left bank of the river ) in 1945.21 9. BDG, op.cit.196. Later on it changed its name to "Matrumangal 10. Tripathy, op.cit.47. Kendra." The Matrumangal Kendra played a 11. The Second Quinquennial Report on the vital role for the education of women illiterates Progress of Education in and Orissa. 1917- 22, Par.234. and widows of till 12. Orissa District Gazetters: Sambalpur, Cuttack, independence. p.455. The progress of female education was 13. Tripathy, Op.cit.49. hindered by a number of factors, mostly the socio- 14. O.D.G, Op.cit.456. economic and cultural backwardness of the 15. Orissa Historical Research Journal, Vol.XXXIII people of Sambalpur. A mazor percentage of the No.1 & 2, p.75 population was conservative. They did not like 16. ODG, Op.cit. that the girls should go to schools and come in 17. OHRJ, Op.cit.76. contact with boys, teachers or any other residents. 18. R.K. Saxena, Education and Social Similarly the system of early marriage presented Amelioration of Women, Jaipur, 1978, p.31. an almost unsurmountable barriers to education 19. Report on the Progress of Education in Orissa, beyond the primary stage. 1942-43, par.62. 20. Quinquennial Report on the Progress of The outstanding contribution of Pravabati Education in Orissa, 1942-47, p.20. Devi and local bodies had infused a new spirit 21. State Committee, Who's Who of the Freedom among educated women and widen their outlook Workers in Orissa : Sambalpur, p.32. to a great extant due to the spread of women education in Sambalpur. But the women education rapidly progressed in Sambalpur after Antaryami Behera is presently the Head Master of independence. Malti Gunderpur High School, District Sambalpur.

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