Latest news with #PaikaRebellion
Indian Express
14 hours ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
Paika Rebellion & why its 'omission' in NCERT books has triggered political slugfest in Odisha
Former Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday (July 22) expressed concern over the 'omission' of the Paika Rebellion from the latest Class VIII history textbook of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), calling it a 'huge dishonour' to the brave Paikas. Who were the Paikas? Why did they rebel against the British? And how is the alleged omission of the rebellion from history textbooks a politically sensitive issue in Odisha? Throughout the 19th century, rural India was alive with discontent that periodically manifested itself in the form of armed resistance against old inequities and new hardships alike. The latter was primarily the result of military expansion of the British East India Company, which disrupted existing social relations in peasant and tribal communities. The Paika Rebellion, also known as the Paika Bidroha, was one such uprising. The Paikas (pronounced 'paiko', literally 'foot soldiers') were a class of military retainers who had been recruited from various social groups by the Gajapati rulers of Odisha since the 16th century. They would render martial services to the king in return for hereditary rent-free land (nish-kar jagirs) which they would cultivate during peacetime. In 1803, Colonel Harcourt marched virtually unchallenged from Madras to Puri, and faced only feeble Maratha opposition onward to Cuttack. Harcourt had made an agreement with Mukunda Deva II, for free passage through Khurda in return for compensation of Rs 1 lakh and four parganas — Lembai, Rahanga, Surai and Chabiskud — which had been under Maratha control since 1760. When the Company did not fulfil these conditions, Jayee Rajguru, the custodian of the king marched to Cuttack with around 2,000 armed Paikas in order to pressurise the British. Although Harcourt paid a sum of Rs 40,000, he refused to give Khurda the four parganas. Rajguru subsequently conspired to overthrow the British, but was caught before the revolt could materialise. The Company subsequently took away the king's lands, dethroned him, razed the fort at Barunei, and arrested Rajguru, who was convicted for waging war against the British government and executed on December 6, 1806. The king was banished to Puri. The end of native rule in Odisha marked the beginning of the decline of the Paikas' power and prestige. Apart from losing political patronage, the Paikas, who previously enjoyed rent-free land, suffered due to new land revenue settlements introduced by the Company which drove Odia proprietors to ruin. Many were forced to transfer land to Bengali absentee landlords, often for a pittance. The British also changed the currency system, demanding revenue payments in rupees, which increased pressure on dispossessed, marginal tribals. These sections had to cope with greater demands from landlords, who now had to pay taxes in silver. The British control over salt — which had pre-1803-4 origins, but was extended to coastal Odisha in 1814 — also led to rising hardship for the people in the hills. There is evidence of raids on boats of salt agents near Puri during this period. Their hereditary rent-free land being taken away, along with a host of other economic difficulties, eventually led to a full-scale revolt against British rule. The rebellion In March 1817, some 400 Kondhs equipped with traditional arms marched from Ghumusar towards Khurda. They were joined by an army of Paikas led by Bakshi Jagabandhu Bidyadhar Mahapatra Bhramarabar Ray, the former commander-in-chief of the king of Khurda and the erstwhile holder of the lucrative Rodanga estate. The rebels attacked the police station of Banpur, burnt government quarters, killed policemen, looted the government treasury, and proceeded towards Khurda. The Paikas fought bloody battles at several places over the next few months, and killed several British officials. The Company army gradually crushed the revolt. Bakshi Jagabandhu escaped to the jungles, and remained on the run till 1825, when he finally surrendered to the British under negotiated terms. Invoking Paikas today The Paikas and their rebellion have long been used to invoke Odia sub-nationalism. The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) government in Odisha in 2017, the 200th anniversary of the rebellion, demanded that the Centre declare the Paika Bidroha as the 'first war of independence', given it was launched four decades before the Mutiny of 1857. While this demand was not accepted, then Union Culture Minister G Kishan Reddy, in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha in 2021, said that rebellion would be included in Class VIII history textbooks, framing it as 'one of the beginnings of popular uprisings against the British in India'. In fact, the BJP too has the Paika Rebellion to strengthen its position in coastal Odisha. In 2017, Prime Minister Narendra Modi felicitated more than 200 descendants of Paika warriors in Bhubaneswar. In 2019, then President Ram Nath Kovind laid the foundation stone of the Paika Memorial at Barunei foothills. After BJP came to power in Odisha last year, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi announced that the Paika Academy and Paika Memorial would be established expeditiously at Barunei near Khurda. Amid the latest controversy, BJP ministers in Odisha have accused Patnaik of misleading people by making false claims. The NCERT has already clarified that 'regional resistances' like the Paika Rebellion will be handled in the second volume of the textbook, expected to be released in September-October.
India Today
18 hours ago
- Politics
- India Today
Naveen Patnaik slams NCERT for omitting Paika Rebellion from textbook
Former Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has voiced his disappointment over the exclusion of the 1817 Paika Rebellion from the latest Class 8 history textbook released by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT). Describing the uprising as a "watershed moment in Odisha's history," Patnaik said leaving it out is an injustice to the legacy of the Paikas, who led an armed revolt against British rule nearly 40 years before the 1857 uprising, widely recognised as India's First War of to X (formerly Twitter), Patnaik said, 'I had urged the central government several times to acknowledge the Paika Rebellion as the first war of Independence. Its absence in NCERT's new textbook is deeply disrespectful to the valour of the Paikas, especially over two centuries after their sacrifice.'Deeply concerned to know that the National Council of Educational Research and Training (@ncert) has dropped #Odisha's Paika Rebellion or Paika Bidroha from its text books. The Paika rebellion was a watershed moment in Odisha's history as our brave Paikas fought with— Naveen Patnaik (@Naveen_Odisha) July 22, 2025He further appealed to current Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Majhi and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to take appropriate steps to recognise the importance of the Paika Bidroha and do justice to the people of Odisha. In response to the criticism, NCERT issued a clarification, explaining that the textbook in question, Exploring Society: India and Beyond, is the first part of a two-volume series for Class 8 Social Science. The second volume, which will cover significant regional resistance movements such as Odisha's Paika Rebellion and Punjab's Kuka Movement, is in its final stages and is expected to be published by September or October a press release dated July 16, 2025, NCERT stated that the new textbooks have been developed in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCF-SE) 2023. The updated content is intended to provide students with an interdisciplinary and student-friendly understanding of India's historical, economic, political, and geographical evolution from the 13th century to the mid-19th emphasised that the new textbooks are designed to reduce content overload and promote critical thinking. They also noted that all the information in the book is sourced from credible primary and secondary academic material. A special box titled History's Darker Period has been included on page 20 to offer deeper historical context and help learners reflect more critically on the events covered.- EndsMust Watch
Hans India
a day ago
- Politics
- Hans India
Naveen unhappy over dropping Paika rebellion from textbook
Bhubaneswar: Former Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday expressed anguish, stating that the 'omission' of Paika rebellion from NCERT textbook was a 'huge dishonour' to the State's heroes. Patnaik, the chief of the Opposition BJD, said the Paika rebellion was a watershed moment in Odisha's history as they fought with extraordinary courage against the oppressive British way back in 1817. 'Deeply concerned to know that the National Council of Educational Research and Training (@ncert) has dropped #Odisha's Paika Rebellion or Paika Bidroha from its textbooks,' he said in a post on X. 'I had urged the Govt of India many times to declare it as first war of Independence,' he added. Patnaik, the Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, said Paikas came together to fight against the tyranny of foreign, colonial rule with unparalleled bravery. 'The omission of the epic rebellion from NCERT textbooks, which took place 40 years before the sepoy mutiny, is a huge dishonour to our brave Paikas, 200 years after the rebellion- which became torchbearer for people's movement against British rule,' he said. Patnaik urged Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to ensure that 'justice is done to Paika Bidroha and Odisha'. The NCERT, in a statement, noted that 'the said textbook happens to be the 1st volume of this textbook'. 'The second volume is in final stages of development and is expected to be released in Sept-Oct 2025. Topics relating to the regional resistance movements/armed uprisings such as the Paika rebellion/Khurda uprising of Odisha, the Kuka movement/rebellion of the Sikhs in Punjab etc, will be handled in this volume,' it said. Paika, an Odia word, was derived from 'Padatika', meaning foot soldiers. They were members of local militias, which comprised people from different communities, who fought for the erstwhile kings.
NDTV
2 days ago
- Politics
- NDTV
Naveen Patnaik Flags Omission of Odisha's Paika Rebellion From NCERT History Textbook
Former Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday expressed concern over the exclusion of the 1817 Paika Rebellion from the latest Class 8 history textbook released by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT). Calling it a "watershed moment in Odisha's history," Patnaik said the move undermines the sacrifices of the Paikas, who revolted against British rule nearly four decades before the 1857 Sepoy Mutiny. "I had urged the Government of India several times to declare it as the first war of Independence. The omission of the epic rebellion from NCERT textbooks is a huge dishonour to our brave Paikas, 200 years after the rebellion," Patnaik said in a post on X (formerly Twitter). He urged Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Majhi and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to ensure justice is done to the Paika Bidroha and to the people of Odisha. However, NCERT issued a clarification on Monday night, stating that the recently released Exploring Society: India and Beyond is the first in a two-volume Social Science textbook series for Class 8. The council confirmed that regional resistance movements, including the Paika Rebellion of Odisha and the Kuka Movement of Punjab, will be included in the second volume, which is currently in its final stages and expected to be released between September and October 2025. In a detailed press note dated July 16, 2025, NCERT said the new textbook has been developed in accordance with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCF-SE) 2023. It aims to offer students an integrated, multidisciplinary understanding of India's geography, economic life, governance, and history-covering the period from the 13th century to the mid-19th century. NCERT stated that the book was designed to avoid overloading students with information and instead focuses on fostering critical thinking. "All facts presented are based on well-known primary and secondary academic sources. A note titled 'History's Darker Period' has also been included on page 20 to help learners view the content in the right context," the council said.
Deccan Herald
2 days ago
- Politics
- Deccan Herald
'Huge dishonour': Patnaik expresses anguish over 'omission' of Paika rebellion from NCERT book
Deeply concerned to know that the National Council of Educational Research and Training (@ncert) has dropped #Odisha 's Paika Rebellion or Paika Bidroha from its text books. The Paika rebellion was a watershed moment in Odisha's history as our brave Paikas fought with…
