Utkala Dibasa Special - Orissa salutes it's Luck makers

Jaya Jagannath,                                  ( A Special article, on behalf of 73rd Utkala Dibasa, Our state Song Bande Utkala Janani )

When the country was in dark despair, Master Baji Rout, a 10 year old orphan country boy showed us the light of our liberty. He had that do or die attitude and he sparked our freedom-fire.

In the midnight of 10th October 1938 ,the Police Forces attacked the village Bhuban and arrested some freedom fighters without any reason and took them to the Bhuban Police Station. People woke up and Gheraoed Bhuban police Station when Prajamandal alarmed everyone by drumming the Conch. The british police fired at the crowd killing two innocent villagers instantly. The british police wanted to take the prisioners to Dhenkanal through Nilakantapur Ghat. At the end of the night on 11th October 1938 while it was heavily raining , british police reached at Nilakanthapur Ghat. Baji Rout a 10 years old orphan boy was in charge of a country Boat in the Nilakanthpur Ghat of Brahmani river. The Force ordered him to cross the river by his Boat which he denied fearlessly to help any britishers on his motherland. The british police force became revengeful and fired Baji Rout along with the fellow prisoners.

He had watched how mercilessly the King of Dhenkanal, Shankar Pratap Singhdeo was fleecing the poor villagers including his mother of their earnings by using armed forces. So, when Baishnav Charan Pattanayak of Dhenkanal town, later famous as Veer Baisnav, raised a banner of revolt against the King and founded Prajamandal, Baji joined it despite tender age. The supreme sacrifice of the ten-year-old boy Baji Raut had given the necessary momentum to the fight for freedom in India that ultimately wiped out Britishers from India.

Respected master Baji Rout, We salute you for the greatest courage you had shown to protect your motherland. Lord Jagannath bless you. You will always remain our heart being the honorary youngest freedom fighter and martyr of the world. A brief.

Birsa Munda :

An extremely potential guerrilla jungle warfare warrior, Birsa Munda commanded an armed revolt against Britishers inside the jungles of then Orissa Bihar borders. He realised that the Britishers have come to this land to torture the masses and carry wealth abroad.

He is reckoned as a freedom fighter who led the tribals essentially to prevent land grabbing by the non-tribals ending them up as bonded labors in their own land. He invoked the tribals to take pride of their ancestor's patriotism and to maintain their cultural ethos. The tribals were suppressed for long by the Dikus (nontribals) and the intermediaries like Thikadars and money lenders including Zamindars tried to exploit the tribals constantly. The tribals who were for centuries the owners of the land and engaged in cultivation could not stand the trials before the British Court and the primitive practice of verbal agreement on land ownership could not be recognised by law. Finally the tribals ended themselves up as bonded labors in their own land. He wanted the tribals to end the rule of the queen and re-establish their own kingdom.He instigated the masses by putting examples of their ancestors and their burning patriotism which now spread like wild fire. He was killed in british police custody at the age of 25.

Bira Surendra Sai :

Another warrior in Guerrilla warfare Bira Surendra Sai was trained in horse race, wrestling and battle tricks right from the childhood. He was a great warrior of independent thoughts. He was determined to save his state and birthplace from the British rule. At the age of 18 he revolted against the British. The British had to fight with him for 13 long years until they arrested him by false accusation as a killer. During Sipahi Bidroh in 1857, he broke through the Hajaribag jail and joined the force against the British. The British could not defeat Surendra Sai even after the suppression of the Sipahi Bidroh. He surrendered on 16th May 1862 as he could not get support from others to continue his revolt. He passed away on 28th February 1884 while he was in jail.

Orissa is proud for his immense courage and patriotism. His one and only son was also martyred by taking part in the revolt against the British along with his father.

Baimundi :

Back in the year 1001 This old man with a stick in hand was the first to come up alarming the people of Cuttack to request King Markata Kesari to Save Cuttack. Time was ticking and had he not alarmed, Cuttack the commercial city of Orissa would have been under Kathajodi river basin by then. Old man Baimundi went to the king with few coins in hand and requested him to construct a stone revetment to protect Cuttack from Kathajodi floods. Southern Cuttack was protected from the fury offloods of the Kathajodi by a stone revetment, a great engineering feat of the early eleventh century.

On the day of 73rd Utkala Dibasa, Orissa salutes this old man for saving it’s heart from corrosion.

Regards
Team Nilachakra