: goes the "Credit of nationalism and sovereignity of~ approach to what people of India in its true sense.. Tilak and Swadeshi : an established .ed Swarajya to References lent through the I. Samagra Tilak, Vol 3,Kesari Movement Ii and placed polit­ Publications, , 1976 . . forefront rather 2. Samagra Tilak Vol 8, Kesari )cial issues. He Publications, , 1976. Dr. Nalini AvinashWaghmare he interdependnce 3. Ranade M. G., 'Indian Potitia[ Assistant Professor Department of History varajya. One with­ Economy' in Bipan Chandra, Tilak Maharashtra Vidyapeeth, Pune Is is Ranades Economic Writings~ Mobile no~9975833748 llso comes out 1994. Email: [email protected] f entrepreneurship 4. Joshi, D. G, Speeches and w.- - . . sometimes pitiful of G. V. Joshi, Pune 1912. ----rtarousedii-sense of natiomil pride om the govern- "Swarajya is my birth right and I and also enabled businessmen to start shall have it" that was the voice, the manufacturing and supplying India spirit and the dictum of Lokamanya made goods and generated new busi­ Bal Gangadhar Tilak, maker of nesses, employment, made goods y be said that the Modern India. Swadeshi initially available at reasonable prices and fos­ a cogent and prag­ began as a primary economic counter­ tered the spirit of self-reliance. ndias economic part to the programme of economic Boycott and Swadeshi were in fact the organic con­ boycott. Swadeshi meant self-help, to two sides of the same coin, which adeshi and swara­ rely upon Indian made goods rather together were very effective. ·ought home the 1han British goods. The movement sm into the minds quickly became popular in Bengal Relevance of Swadeshi ling public. His and rapidly spread all over India The Lolananya introduced his idea of ,lic speeches were European clothing was burnt in mass Swadeshi exactly 100 years ago, yet hing out and popu­ bonfires and the people turned to this concept is as relevant today as it .Ideologies often local Indian goods of all types. was in 1905. The concept of or condemn them Swadeshi provided the philosophical tain rejected ide­ The Swadeshi movement advocated basis for the strategy of self-reliance lya's legacy is use of goods produced in India that was adopted soon after at all it is one of This appealed to the people as Independence. This strategy was e e . .1 " '~~~~ C'C"

implemented through the policy of independent democratic Republic. He The Swadeshi movement and Boycott self-help in the economic sphere, then import substitution. It was in a large was the Lokamanya, the Maharaj,thc of foreign goods shook the founda­ there most certainly could be self-help measure due to this policy that Indian savior, the God himself to his mass tions of British power in India. Tilak in all spheres oflife. The Dharma of industry, which was then in an 'infant' followers of his time. If he had not said at Akola, " The rulers are much action had taught self respect and self stage, could grow and diversify. As a been there then, to play his important afraid of Boycott. They feel that the reliance in all things. Swadeshi was a result, India is today almost self suffi­ role in modern Indian history, it boycott of foreign goods will develop tangible way in which to demonstrate cient in industrial products. would have been too difficult for into a boycott of British Rule alto­ the new spirit the Nationalists had Mahatma Gandhi to secure the frcc­ gether". He had complete faith in the been teaching the people. As Tilak As a result of Globalisation, there has dom for India so early. He was the red methods of the Swadeshi and the later explained, 'The object ..... is to been a large influx of foreign goods. 'Tilak' i.e., 'Kumkam' on the forehead Boycott. He wrote: " The mouth is bring about the spread of swadeshi The government is'unable to offer any of Mother-India. opened only by shutting the nose, .. Jt (i.e., country-made) things, visible protection to domestic industry, espe­ is clear now that mighty speeches and invisible, to bring about the gra.d­ cially small-scale industry that is most The Swadeshi Movement lead as nowhere; not words, but ual disappearance of visible foreign adversely affected. In this situation, it action, is wanted....determined things and to bring about the gradual becomes the duty of every Indian to From 1898 to 1908, Tilak was at thel action". disappearance offoreign ideas also.' voluntarily decide to use only those peak of his political c:areer as a Swadeshi initially began as a primary He added, ' Like the bodies, our goods that are produced in India by national leader. He (along with Lulll economic counterpart to the pro­ minds also should become swadeshi Indian companies. Lajpat Rai of Punjab and Bipan gramme of economic boycott. . ... Swadeshi thoughts should always Keywords: Swadeshi, Self-govern­ Chandra Pal of Bengal) constituted Swadeshi meant self-help, to rely reign in our hearts.' ment, Nationalism, British rule, the national leadership ,triad, whidl upon Indian made goods rather than The Swadeshi movement advocated Indian goods. was referred to as La!, Bal, Pal. (i,el, British goods. The movement quickly the use of goods produced in India Bal Gangadhar Tilak) popularized ~ became popular in Bengal and rapidly alone. This appealed to the people as Introduction four-fold programme of action for Ih' spread all over India. European cloth­ it aroused a sense of national pride "Freedom is my birth right and I shall annulment of the partition of BeIlM"I, ing was burnt in mass bonfires and and also enabled businessmen to start have it". That was the voice, the spirit namely, Swaraj (self-governmenl), the people turned to local Indian manufacturing and supplying India and the dictum of Lokamanya Bal Swadeshi ( resort to the use of lml hm goods of all types. made goods and generated new busi­ Gangadhar Tilak, maker of Modern goods), bahishkar (boycott of Swadeshi was the first great impetus nesses, employment, made goods India, though his enemies, like Chirol goods) and rashtriya shikshan ( to industrial development in India. available at reasonable prices and fos­ . and other described him as the father national education).Swarajya • lill' Local industry was given the stimulus tered the spirit of self-reliance. father of Indian unrest. He was the Tilak , had not only a political for its natural growth. But, like boy­ Boycott and Swadeshi were in fact real father of India's freedom move­ tation (i.e. Home Rule) but al~'l" cott, Swadeshi soon came to mean a two sides of the same coin, which ment and revolution. He was the moral and spiritual connotatioll ( r, great deal more than simple economic together were very effective. founder, in a real sense, of the modern self-control and inner freedom), self-sufficiency. If there could be The British had been systematically :'.:..,;~..., . ,...... - ~ ~-'" . -.y" ._}!!fJ.-t:';

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following a policy of selling their saw great benefits from co-operation dimensions of the Swadeshi move­ in this respect. The poor Kunbi vil­ own manufactured goods in India in and export of agriculture products liko ment, which indicates his awareness lagers require not many foreign arti­ order to create total dependency. This sugar and cotton. He was vey keenly of the economic roots of Indian cles, probably none at all. It is we, spelt the death of indigenous skills, aware of everything which affected nationalism. Tilak recognised that the middle classes, who are the con­ crafts and industry and created unem­ the life of fanners and Wrote articlc:~ with an alien government in political sumers of foreign goods; and since ployment in India forcing a migration on famille, money lenders ( control of the country, state protection this government isnot going to stop to the towns and cities. Prior to the Sahukars), canal. irrigation, sugar of economic' activities was not possi­ the drain by imP9sing a protective movement, Tatas had attempted to mills and rural economy. ble, but still people could work duty it becomes imperatively neces­ raise capital for their industries from Throughout his propagation of the towards the spirit of protection on sary to adopt a measure by which we the public without success; however ideas of Swadeshi, Boycott and their own initiative. In 1907, Tilak can do ourselves what the government once the movement gathered momen­ National education, Tilak was, in lillll, pleaded for a protective tariff of our is bound to do and what the govern­ tum and the people became enthused, spelling out a programme for din:clly own by the boycott of foreign goods. ment ought to have done long ago ..... their capital issues were oversub­ involving the masses in the freedllin He acknowledged that the British Swadeshism is a forced necessity in scribed. This same wave saw the cre­ struggle. government had given to the country India owing to the unnatural econom­ ation of several Swadeshi enterprises Economic Roots of the Swadc~hl peace and a certain degree of liberty, ic conditions in India.' To make like the Swade~hi Bank, the chain of Movement but it was essential to make further swadeshism succeed, he called for Bombay Swadeshi Cooperative Store, progress if the nation were 10 survive. 'self-help' and 'determination' from the Paisa Found glass factory and a spin­ The Swadeshi movement in lndiu The salvation of the c.o1.!ntry would be people. ning mill. a~ umed a spirirual and politic;ll attained not by waiting for the The Swadeshi movement became Lokamanya Tilak's vision of acter. It had become a movemenl bureaucracy to act and sending peti­ tremendously successful and curbed Swadeshi or self reliance was the the liberation of the spiritual tions to them but only by the concert­ the monopoly of the British manufac­ means to achieve a robust economic of the nation for the sake of ed efforts of the people themselves. tured goods by encouraging Indian development. He was the only leader He, therefore, exhorted the nation to industry. It awakened the self respect at that to see how significant the role work for the concrete realisation of of the people and showed that British of agriculture was and Indian econo­ the resolutions on Swadeshi, boycott domination could be broken by deter­ my depends on agriculture revenue. and national education, which had mined resistance and self­ He therefore made efforts to educate been passed at the Congress session belp.Swadeshi meant an actualizing of the fanners so that they would realize of 1906 at Calculta_ the national self-consciousness and the benefits of modern equipment, In his speech at this session, he the national will and the readiness to better seeds, fertilizers and new tech­ emphasised that the practice of sacrifice which would fix them in the nologies to get more income from Swadeshi did not require any sacrifice daily mind and daily life of the peo­ limited land and to use food process­ from the poor. He said, 'We the mid­ ple. ing technology to fight famine . He dle classes are the greatest offenders The First Swadeshi Sarmnelan: The e e

First All India Swa~eshi S~elan order to spread knowledge of the aims hitherto starving. Swadeshi shops People clearly came to realise how was held on the,2nd of January 1907 and objects of the Swadeshi move­ were opened everywhere. Swadeshi England had strangled Indian indus­ under the auspices of the Bombay ment, which was a movement of self­ exhibitions were held to popuJarise tries and they were determined, in the Swadesi Vastra Pracharini Sabha. The help.Swadeshi had been accepted all the work of the new industries. The absence of any protective tariff in the Hon.Nawab Sayed Mahomed Bahadur over the country. He hoped that all of Paisa Fund, originally started by a Mr. interest of Indian manufactures, to of Madras presided: • '. them would co-operate with each Kale, became under Tilak's guidance, boycott English goods. Mr. Tilak moved the following resolu­ other on the lines suggested in the the most popu'lar means of collecting Swadeshi was the first assertion of the tion: resolution. What was required was funds for starting suitable industries, spirit of independence. It could no I. That this Sammelan considers it work. If the resolution were followed Education and temperance received a longer be popularly argued that India desirable to appoint Provincial the movement was sure to succeed. great impetus. could realise its rights through trans­ Commitees where stich do not exist Findings The moral force the movement roused mitting resolutions to the government at present. was simply astonishing, Under the and requesting reforms. The (a) To preach the doctrine of The Swadeshi movement quickly out­ reactionary regime of Lord Curzoo, Nationalists had taught India to Swadeshism and promote the work of grew its economic and political nature disappointment and a sense of humili­ become self reliant, independent in all Swades,hi movement in every possible and became a movement for national ation hung like a pall over the coun­ things and thereby to earn all those direction; regeneration. The Nation called for try. The swadeshi-boycott movement privileges and rights of free men. The (b) To assist in starting Swadeshi swadeshism in dress, in diet, in habits, dispelled all these clouds, It created Swadeshi movement quickly became shops where such do not exist; to in life, in arts, in literature, in science, hope and enthusiasm in the minds of a movement of national regeneration, issue certificates of honesty to shops in religion and philosophy. Indians. The national self-res~ct was Swadeshi wa~ a practical application selling Swadeshi articles. Swadeshlsm thus became an all per­ fully awakened. People refused to of the love of one's country. It was an (c) To secure necessary information in vading spiritual movement directed take insults lying down, They refused economic, political and spiritual connection with the Uidtistrial and against the western civilisation which to allow the foreign bureaucrats to be weapon. commercial survey of the country, at the British government represented arbiters of their destiny. A hopelessly Beyond the attainment ofSwaraj , present the scope of work being and symbolised. disorganised nation began to organise which was always their goal, the restricted to textile .induStries and Tilak's immense popularity due to 25 itself. The land of disunity was slow­ Nationalists saw a higher vision of sugar. years of courageous, self-sacrificing ly closing up its ranks. Even the 'de­ free India. These were men of fore­ In doing so, he srud that they had work resulted in the whole-hearted pressed' classes joined, heart and soul, sight. They sought to visualise an come there not' to discuss the propri­ adoption of swadeshi throughout the the movement and a spirit of equality emerging India, self-respecting and ety or impropriety of Swadeshi, but country. There were swadeshi meet­ and unity was abroad. free, an India leading the world to an for doing practical work. They wanted , ings in every village and swadeshi This movement gave a deathblow to even higher destiny. This is why Tilak to , start, enthusiastic workers in dif­ shops in every town. all the free trade theories in which the repeatedly said, "Swaraj is the foun­ ferent provinces; to start Swadeshi The swadeshi spirit stimulated the generation represented by the majori­ dation and not the heights of our shops and to collect information, in establishment of several industries, ty of the then leaders was trained. future prosperity". • _.' " ,': :.:~~~~~ • --~ ),/j ~ : • .' ::-• .• ,

Research Methodology India became a member of the World own products. Philosophy of Bal Gangadhar Tilak, The study is a descriptive and analyti­ Trade Organisation and hence is Conclusion Oxford University Press, 1956. cal one. By and large historical bound by its rules that demand lower­ Tilak was the father of the Indian 6. Thonas Pantham and Kenneth L approach has been adopted in the ing of import duties, quotas and other Freedom struggle, the maker of the Deutsch (ed), Political Thought in description. All the writings and docu­ protective barriers. As a result, there Indian National Congress and one of Moden India, Sage publications, New ments of modem Indian history and has been a large influx of foreign the architects of modem India. He Delhi, 1986. its culture in Marathi and other lan­ goods. The government is unable to was a terror and nightmare to the 6. Tilak, Bal Gangadhar, His Writings guages constitute the primary sources. offer any protection to domestic British Government. At every trial, and Speeches, 3rd edition, Madras, Books, Research articles and critical industry, especially small-scale indus­ his influence spread wider and his Ganesh & Company, 1922. evaluations by experts and other try, that is most adversely affected. In personality loomed large on the politi­ 7. Varma, V P, 'Tilak's Spiritual scholar's opinioI'ls constitute the sec­ this situation, it becomes the duty of cal horizon of India. India will always Nationalism' in Inamdar. N R, (ed.) ondary sources. every Indian to voluntarily dccide to remains grateful to Tilak for the Political Thought and Leadership of Implications use only those goods that are pro­ deathless struggle he launched for the Lokmanya Tilak, Concept Publishing The Lokmanya introduced his idea of duced in India by Indian companies. deliverance of his countrymen from Company, New Delhi, 1983. Swadeshi exactly 100 years ago, yet This is exactly what Lokmanya Tilak political bondage and endless sacri­ 8.Yerinder Grover (ed) Bal Gangadhar this coiicept is as .relevant today as it had in mind. He was not against fices and sufferings he made to the Tilak( political Thinkers of Modem was in 1905. The concept of trade, but was protesting against cause of his motherland. India-4), Deep &Deep publications, Swadeshi provided the philosophical exploitative trade that was not only References . New Delhi, 1992. hasis for the strategy of self-reliance dr-aining away India's resources but I. Athalye, D V, Life ofLokmanya that was adopted soon after was :.It:~troying the talents entrepft::­ Tilak, Annasaheb Chlploonkar, Poona, Independence. This strategy was neurship and the livelihood of mil­ 1921. *** implemented through the policy of lions of Indians. 2. Deepak Tilak , Lokamanya Bal import substitution. It was in a large India is facing a similar situation Gangadhar Tilak Maker of Modem measure due to this policy that Indian today. Since the government is India, Lokmanya Tilak Smarak Trust, industry, which was then in an 'infant' unable to offer protection to Indian Pune,2007. stage, couId grow and diversify. As a industry, Tilak's concept of voluntary . 3. Samagra Lokmanya Tilak, Vol. 7, result, India is today almost self suffi- . acceptance of Swadeshism becomes Towards Independence, Kesari cient in industrial products. the only way to ensure the survival Prakashan, Pune, 1975. Secondly, India adopted the policy of and growth of our domestic industry 4. Shanta Sathe, Lokmanya Tilak his liberalisation and globalisation in in the face of stiff competition from social and political thoughts, Ajanta 1991 and hence Indian markets were cheap imported goods. It is up to the pUblications, Delhi, 1994. opened to foreign companies and to Indian people to not onJy support our 5. Shay, Theodore L, The Legacy of imports of foreign goods. In 1994, own industry but to take pride in our the Lokmanya - The Political