Journey from Tribal to Modern Orissa
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Orissa Review Journey from Tribal to Modern Odisha Dr. Dina Krishna Joshi Dr. Mihir Prasad Mishra Sasmita Mund In ancient times most of the geographical units The Munda and Savara tribes have been have been named after the stock of tribes that identified with the Greek Monedes and Sharis by inhabited the land or the ruler that ruled the state. many scholars. This identification seems plausible According to the Bhagavata Purana1 the six because this region of Odisha is even now rulers named as Anga, Vanga, Kalinga, Pundra, inhabited by the Mundas and the Savaras. Sumha and Odra ruled different provinces in the eastern India. The modern territory of Odisha Evidence from writings of traveller Hiuen portion was ruled by the ruler Odra which was Tsang:- named as ‘Odra’ or ‘Udra’ after their ruler. The Hiuen Tsang3 who visited Odra country inhabitants of the land were dominated by full of in 636 A.D. has given a graphical account of Odra. the tribes and were also called as Odras as per Cunningham has located the country of Odradesa 2 their territory name. Medhatithi the commentator during the period of 700-1100 A.D. which was of Manu has described that Odras were a tribe more or less bounded by the river Mahanadi in who flourished in various parts of contemporary the north, Tosali (Dakhina Tosali) in the east, Odisha. Some authors opined that these tribes Kosala (Dakhina Kosala) in the west and were agriculturists. According to them this race extended to the south west in irregular lines as far represents the original tribe of Odisha after whom as the modern Paralakhemundi region. the province has been named. The Greeks called the province as Oretes that means Odia. Participation of general public for separate state:- Evidence from Natural History:- Odia's quest for a separate province The ‘Natural History’ of Pliny mentions started from the last phase of the 19th century. that Oretes as a race inhabited a country where This period witnessed a remarkable awakening mount Meleus is located. The Greek word Oretes among the Odias who constructed and articulated is rendered in Sanskrit as Odras. The mount their identity by a plurality of ways. The print Meleus has been identified with Malayagiri near media became very active during this phase as a Pallahada, now situated in the district of Angul. marker of Odia resurgence. The social, cultural Further, mount Meleus is associated with people and economic spheres in Odisha during this phase called Monedes and Sharis in the Natural History. got an extra-ordinary projection. Several forces 34 April - 2011 Orissa Review and factors made determined efforts for the For about a century, from 1803 to 1903, amalgamation of the Odia-speaking areas lying many illustrious and labourious sons of Odisha scattered under four different provinces - Bengal, have made untiring efforts for the rise of Odia Bihar, Central Province and Madras, which led nation. To make Odisha a separate province and to the formation of the province of Odisha. This to give status to Odia language they had fought amalgamation was a prolonged process and it incessantly. Among those illustrious sons the passed through many crucial phases. Many forefront leaders were Utkala Gouraba fighters sacrificed their lives for constructing Madhusudan Das, Utkalmani Gopabandhu Das, separate state. Vyasakabi Fakir Mohan Senapati, Swavabakabi Gangadhar Meher, Kabibar Radhanath Roy, Poetic encouragement:- Shashi Bhusan Rath, Biswanath Kar, Gopala Chandra Praharaj, Krushna Chandra Gajapati A saint poet of Odisha Bhaktakabi Dev of Parala, Ramachandra Bhanja Deo, Pandit Madhusudan Rao has said - Mother, Motherland Godabarish Mishra and Godabarish and Mother tongue are superior to heaven and Mohapatra. bestow four results like Dharma, Artha, Kama (Desire) and Mokshya (salvation). Serve them Vyasakabi Fakir Mohan Senapati with utter devotion uninterruptedly and acquire (1840- 1918) exhausted his pen by writing four those four heavenly things. This encourages novels in Odia language like Chhamana conscious inhabitants and even general public of Athaguntha, Mamun, Prayaschita, Lachhman and those times for a separate motherland having Odia was a famous Oriya writer. Karmaveera Gouri as their mother tongue. Shankar Roy was editing Utkala Dipika from Cuttack and Shashibhusan Rath was editing Asha Resistance of freedom fighters:- daily from Berhampur which had impact on Odia readers remaining separated. Utkalmani Pandit Odisha which was considered in the past Gopabandhu Das was editing daily Samaja from as a super martial nation, its independent sun was Satyabadi. He had extensively toured, set when in 1568 AD Afghans conquered Odisha. Chakradharpur, Chainbasa and Ranchi to unite Again Mughals and Marahattas ruled Odisha Odias remaining in Bihar province. He demanded successively. In the year 1803 the Britishers were to open more Odia Schools and introducing Odia able to occupy Odisha. Although stiff resistance language in the curriculum. He opened night was shown by contemporary freedom fighter like schools in Chakradharpur and Chainbasa to teach Jai Rajguru in between 1803, but later on he Odia language to the dwellers of these areas who was captured and hanged in 1805. Later on Paika were deprived of education in Odia language. hero Buxi Jagabandhu Vidyadhara entered in a Historical events:- fierce battle in 1817. After that Veer Surendra Sai of Sambalpur region waged a valiant war It is evident from the foregoing discussion against Britishers. He continued his struggle till that by 15th century A.D. the word Uddisa or 1883 but at last captured and sent to Asurgarh Udisa has already evolved. For this, Sarala Das Jail of Central Province where he was died in made Odrasrastra synonymous with Udisa or great agony. Odisa. His Odrarastra Odisa found mention as April - 2011 35 Orissa Review Odisarajya in the royal proclamations of Gajapati the first province, to be formed on linguistic basis. king Kapilendradeva (1435-1467 A.D.). In the He was a proud Oriya with a self-confident Jagannath Temple Inscription of Kapilendradeva personality. It is his strong personality and dated 1443 A.D. we find conspicuous mention character which foiled the British design to of Odisarajya. The Tarikh-i-Akbari of hoodwink Odias by giving the narrow idea of a Nizammuddin exclusively mentions Odisha as a sub-province. His dream and sustained efforts to geographical entity. From this time onwards the bring under Odisha, Odia speaking tracts like geographical term Odisa stood for the entire Odia Midnapore and Singhbhoom remained unfulfilled speaking tract. Through ages the word has been due to a multiplicity of factors and constraints used by various authors in ethnic, linguistic and beyond his control. But he tried well and did his geographical paradigms. Phonetic evolution of the best. Madhu Babu chose him as his heir in Odisha. term from Greek Oretes i.e. Odra, through But he was not there in life to see the formation of Odravisaya-Oddavisaya-Odivisa and Udisa, the a separate province on 1st April 1936 nor was term Odisha seems to have been finally Gopabandhu there having been dead since long. culminated. Similarly through phonetic Pandit Nilakantha honoured the other prominent metamorphosis Odra became Odriya and finally maker of Odisha Sri Krushna Chandra Gajapati, Odia with the present anglicised form, Odia. the Maharaja of Parala by installing him as Chief Minister of Odisha and Pandit Godabarish as Role of Utkala Sammilani:- Education Minister in 1943. Along with those great To sum up Pandit Nilakantha Das was and patriotic leaders, Pandit Nilakantha Das will greatly inspired by Utkal Gaurav Madhusudan be ever remembered and respected by the Odia Das and the goal and objectives of the Utkal people as one of the makers of Odisha. Sammilani. He showed an exemplary sense of Contemporary Political Events:- dedication to the cause of amalgamation of Odia speaking tracts lying scattered under different In the year 1930, Bihar-Odisha provinces and worked uninterruptedly for the Government nominated Parala Maharaja Krushna formation of Odisha as a separate province. He Chandra Gajapati Dev to represent on behalf of demanded for the first time a separate province Odias in the first Round Table Conference. for Odisha on the floor of the Central Assembly Maharaja Krushna Chandra Gajapati firmly on February 8, 1927. In a way, this move of Pandit presented the justified and genuine demands of Nilakantha facilitated the formation of a separate Odias and uttered thought-provoking statements. Oriya province. Under its impact, the struggle for As a result, the proposal to make Odisha a a separate province for Odisha assumed greater separate and special province was approved in intensity and vigour. He was uncompromising in the Second Round Table Conference in 1931. his opposition to make economic viability a In order to determine the boundaries of Odisha condition precedent for formation of Odisha as a the Government had constituted O'Donnel separate province and crossed words with Motilal Committee. The Committee opined about the Nehru. He tried to move the Congress in favour annexation of the areas of Cuttack, Sambalpur, of his demand at the Calcutta session of Indian Angul, Khariar, Ganjam and Visakhapatanam and National Congress in 1928. He succeeded and favoured for formation of Odisha province. But later the Congress agreed that Odisha would be from the white paper publication, it was seen that 36 April - 2011 Orissa Review the Zamindaris of Jeypore and Paralakhemundi into being in 1st April 1936. As stated by Dibakar were excluded from the proposed, separate and Pattnaik, her dismembered condition was held special province. But, by the incessant and primarily responsible not only for the loss of her sincere efforts of Krushna Chandra Gajapati Dev, identity as a distinctly separate race among the the Home Minister of Britain Samuel Hore realised races of the country, but also for the loss of her the justification of Odia movement, constituted ancient glory in trade, commerce, industries, art Joint Parliamentary Committee to reconsider the and sculpture, so magnificently recorded in the proposed formation of Odisha province.