Orissa States Movement

The Orissa States Movement represents a crucial chapter in the history of the Praja Mandal (People’s Associations) resistance against the dual tyranny of autocratic rulers and British paramountcy. The movement in the Orissa Garhjat (princely states or tributary mahals) was distinct due to its extreme agrarian exploitation, tribal participation, and its pioneering role in the post-independence integration of princely states into the Indian Union.

Historical Genesis and Geopolitical Landscape

The Geopolitical Structure of Orissa Garhjats

The region of Orissa was structurally divided into two distinct administrative zones under British rule: Mughalbandi (British Orissa, comprising coastal districts like Cuttack, Puri, and Balasore) and the Garhjats. The Garhjats consisted of 26 tributary princely states, including Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar, Dhenkanal, Talcher, Nayagarh, Nilgiri, and Ranpur. These states were semi-independent enclaves governed by local chiefs under the oversight of the British Political Department through a Political Agent stationed at Sambalpur.

Mechanisms of Feudal and Agrarian Exploitation

The socio-economic conditions in the Orissa States were characterized by severe feudal extractions. Rulers enforced several arbitrary taxes and forced labor systems:

• Bethia (Beth-Begar): Compulsory unpaid labor extracted from subjects for constructing palaces, roads, and clearing forests.
• Magana: Arbitrary financial exactions levied on the peasantry during state festivals, royal weddings, or the birth of an heir.
• Rethi: A punitive tax on households, alongside high land revenue rates that far exceeded those in British Orissa.
• State Monopolies: Royal monopolies on daily essentials such as salt, kerosene, betel nuts, and forest produce, which heavily penalized tribal populations.
• Sunia Bheti: A mandatory annual monetary tribute paid to the ruler on the first day of the regnal year.

Evolution of the Movement and Institutional Framework

Early Resistance and the Role of Utkal Sammilani

Early resistance in the 19th and early 20th centuries remained localized, spontaneous, and unorganized, such as the Keonjhar Bhuyan Uprisings (1868 and 1891) led by Dharanidhar Naik. The institutionalization of the political struggle began with the formation of the Utkal Sammilani (Utkal Union Conference) in 1903 by Madhusudan Das, which initially focused on the linguistic unification of Odia-speaking tracts but gradually laid the groundwork for political consciousness.

Formation of the Orissa States People’s Conference (1931)

The watershed moment occurred on June 20, 1931, with the establishment of the Orissa States People’s Conference (Orissa Garhjat Praja Sammilani) at Cuttack, under the presidency of Bhubananda Das. The primary organizational drivers were Radhanath Rath, Balwantray Mehta, and Madhusudan Patnaik. The conference systematically documented the atrocities committed by the chiefs. By 1937, under the leadership of Sarangadhar Das (known as the “Garhjat Gandhi”), the movement established individual Praja Mandals across almost all 26 states.

Intense Phase of Agitation and British-State Crackdown (1937–1939)

Impact of the 1937 Congress Ministries

The formation of the Congress Ministry in British Orissa in 1937 under Biswanath Das provided a safe logistical haven for state dissidents. Leaders from British Orissa, such as Nabakrushna Choudhury, Malati Choudhury, and Harekrushna Mahtab, actively assisted in organizing Praja Mandal units. The Garhjat Inquiry Committee was appointed in 1938 with Harekrushna Mahtab as chairman to investigate conditions inside the princely states, publicizing the systemic violations of human rights.

The Dhenkanal Agitation and the Martyrdom of Baji Rout

Dhenkanal, ruled by Raja Shankar Pratap Singh Dev, became the epicenter of the most violent phase of the movement in 1938. The Praja Mandal launched mass non-cooperation campaigns against Bethia. The state forces and British troops launched a brutal crackdown. On October 11, 1938, a 12-year-old boatboy named Baji Rout was shot dead by British police at Nilkanthapur Ghat when he refused to ferry troops across the Brahmani River, becoming the youngest martyr of the Indian freedom struggle.

The Ranpur Outbreak and Assassination of Major Bazalgette

In January 1939, the agitation in the small state of Ranpur turned violent. A massive crowd of tribal and peasant protestors surrounded the palace demanding the release of arrested Praja Mandal leaders. Major R.L. Bazalgette, the British Political Agent, intervened and opened fire on the crowd, killing two protestors. The enraged mob retaliated and lynched Bazalgette. This incident led to severe British military reprisal, the banning of Praja Mandals across the region, and the execution of two leaders, Raghu Dibakar (Raghunath Mohanty and Dibakar Parida), in 1941.

Post-War Revival and the Path to Integration (1946–1948)

The Nilgiri Crisis (1947)

Following the announcement of the transfer of power, the ruler of Nilgiri attempted to suppress the Praja Mandal by instigating local tribal populations against non-tribal peasants to engineer a communal/caste split. Realizing that the breakdown of law and order could destabilize coastal Orissa, the provincial government of Orissa intervened directly.

The Integration Pivot and the Role of Harekrushna Mahtab

On November 14, 1947, the Orissa government, led by Chief Minister Harekrushna Mahtab, deployed provincial police to occupy Nilgiri state, disarm the ruler’s forces, and take over the administration. This was the first instance of a princely state being forcefully integrated into an Indian province, serving as the functional blueprint for Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s subsequent integration campaign across India.

The Cuttack Conference and Final Merger

In December 1947, Sardar Patel and V.P. Menon arrived in Cuttack. Following intense negotiations, 25 of the 26 Orissa states signed the Instrument of Accession and the Merger Agreements on December 14–15, 1947. These states formally merged into the province of Orissa on January 1, 1948. Mayurbhanj, the largest state, initially stayed out but integrated exactly one year later, on January 1, 1949.

Fact Sheet for UPSC Prelims

The administrative structure, leadership matrix, and crucial parameters of the Orissa States Movement are outlined below:

Historical Trivia and Analytic Insights

The Strategic Pivot of the Haripura Session (1938)

The Orissa States Movement gained its maximum momentum immediately after the Haripura Session of the Indian National Congress in 1938. Prior to this, the INC adhered to a strict policy of non-intervention in princely states. Haripura, under Subhas Chandra Bose, cleared the way for active moral and material support to the Praja Mandals, directly enabling leaders from British Orissa to cross borders and lead the agitation inside the Garhjats.

Intellectual Awakening via Underground Literature

Due to strict press censorship imposed by the ruling chiefs, information was disseminated through underground nationalist literature. The most famous was Krushak (The Farmer), a weekly newspaper edited by Nabakrushna Choudhury, and revolutionary poems like Baji Rout composed by the legendary Odia poet Sachi Routray, which galvanized public sentiment across British India and the princely states alike.

The Exception of Mayurbhanj

Unlike other Garhjat rulers, the Maharaja of Mayurbhanj, Pratap Chandra Bhanj Deo, was a highly progressive administrator who had introduced local self-government, a legislative assembly (Praja Sabha), and state-funded industrial education. Because Mayurbhanj possessed a functioning representative system and stable finances, it did not join the collective merger in December 1947, choosing a separate path until internal administrative difficulties forced its integration in 1949.