Important Facts For Prelims
Jharkhand Foundation Day
- 16 Nov 2019
- 2 min read
On November 15, the State of Jharkhand celebrated its foundation day. The state was carved out of Bihar in 2000 after the Parliament passed the Bihar Reorganization Act, 2000.
- The day coincided with the birth anniversary of tribal leader Birsa Munda also known as Bhagwan Birsa.
Birsa Munda
- Born in 1875 in the Munda tribe. He is often referred to as ‘Dharti Abba’ or the Earth Father.
- He led the rebellion that came to be known as Ulgulan (revolt) or the Munda rebellion against the British government-imposed feudal state system.
- He awakened the masses and sowed the seeds of revolt in them against the landlord as well as the Britishers.
- He organized masses to stop paying debts/interest to moneylenders and taxes to the British. By this, he led a revolt to bring an end to Victorian rule and the establishment of Munda Rule in Jharkhand (erstwhile Bengal Presidency region).
- He formed two military units- one for military training and armed struggle, the other for propaganda. He combined religion with politics and traveled across villages giving discourses and building a politico-military organization.
- His struggle against the exploitation and discrimination against tribals led to the passing of the Chotanagpur Tenancy Act in 1908 which restricted the passing of land from the tribal people to non-tribals.
