Category Freedom Struggle of India

What was the non-violent movement led by Mahatma Gandhi?

This book tells the story of Arun Gandhi’s experiences growing up as the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, the renowned leader of the Indian independence movement and an advocate of non-violence.

In the book. Arun Gandhi shares his memories of living with his grandfather at the Sevagram ashram in India. He describes the profound lessons he learned from Gandhiji, including the principles of non-violence, love, and truth. The story also explores the challenges young Arun faced as he struggled to understand and embody these principles in his daily life.

Grandfather Gandhi offers young readers a glimpse into the life and teachings of Mahatma Gandhi through the eyes of his grandson.

My Gandhi Story by Nina Sabnani and Ankit Chadha with illustrations by Rajesh Chaitya Vangad

This picture book is a great choice for reading aloud to children. It’s a collaborative effort involving a Warli artist, a storyteller, and an animation film-maker. The book features beautiful traditional Warli paintings by the artist Rajesh Chaitya Vangad, illustrating Gandhiji’s life.

The story is presented through short snippets and questions from a childlike narrator, with Gandhiji providing the answers. For example, when asked if he worked hard in school, Gandhi replied that he was not lazy but found multiplication difficult and was shy.

Three voices tell this story: the narrator, the curious child, and Gandhiji himself. Together, they introduce children to the political leader making him relatable to young readers.

Great Lives: Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi by Aditi De and illustrated by Pooja Pottenkulam

This book has a unique style, combining descriptive text with a format similar to graphic novels or comics books, which easily captivates children. Every few pages, the story switches to a comic book format, complementing the text. The first chapter describes Gandhiji’s birth and family, while the comics depict scenes from his childhood, such as his vow to care for his parents inspired by a tale from the Ramayana. It also portrays his first encounter with the injustices of untouchability and the caste system when his mother prohibited him from sharing sweets and playing with his friend Uka, who belonged to an oppressed caste.

When asked why today’s children should read about the leader even more than 150 years after his birth, the author, Aditi De, explains, “Children today have few icons to look up to. barring sports or screen stars. Once high school students realise that young Mohandas had dilemmas and fears like theirs, they identify with him powerfully. During my workshops on this book, whether at Bangalore or Ambala, young readers have often chosen Gandhian tools to resolve our polarised world’s problems. That filled me with wonder.”

Mahatma Gandhi: The Father of the Nation by Subhadra Sen Gupta

Written by an accomplished author who has received the Sahitya Akademi Bal Sahitya Award, this biography of Mahatma Gandhi is an engaging book for readers of all ages. It invites readers to imagine what Gandhiji’s era was like evoking laughter, deep contemplation. and wonder SUBHADRA SE PTA

Throughout the book, Gandhiji’s principles on various topics, such as equality, secularism, humour, kindness, simplicity, non-violence, self-reliance, education, and empowerment, are presented in an engaging manner.

The author even delves into the Mahatma’s dietary habits, noting, “His meals were so plain that people avoided sitting next to him because he would offer them his plain boiled vegetables without salt, oil, or spices, along with bitter neem chutney, which he claimed aided digestion.” Despite his simple lifestyle, Gandhiji’s popularity was immense, as “people would travel for days and then patiently wait under the scorching sun for hours just for a chance to catch a glimpse of him.”

The Mahatma and the Monkeys edited by Anu Kumar

This book brings together the most Captivating moments that shaped Gandhiji’s life and highlights his most significant sayings. It explores his relentless pursuit of truth, equality, and freedom. drawing valuable lessons and powerful words from his remarkable journey. Gandhiji never gave excuses like, “What can I do, I’m only one person.” Instead, he asserted. “In a gentle way, you can shake the world.” He proved this to be true. That’s why, even years after his passing, his actions and words hold great significance in our world today.

At the end of each chapter, you will find a collection of thought-provoking quotes from Gandhiji, and there’s also a fun quiz for young readers towards the end of the book.

Picture Credit: Google

Some unheard stories of freedom fighters

As we celebrate 75 years of independence, here are some unheard stories of our freedom fighters.

Golden girl kanaklata  

The 16 years old kanaklata was determined to participate in the hoisting of the flag on Gohpur police station close to her house.

It was a period of turmoil in the country and talk of freedom was in the air. Like many other youngsters of her time, Kanaklata Barua felt a passionate desire to help free her motherland. She had lost her parents, one after the other by the time she was 14 and was brought up by her grandparents.

Call to hoist the tricolour on police stations

On September 18, 1942, a few weeks after the ‘Quit India’ resolution had been passed, a leader from Tejpur, Assam, gave instructions to hoist the tricolour on all police stations and government buildings in the district. The 16-year-old Kanaklata was determined to participate in the hoisting of the flag on Gohpur Police Station close to her house. The people had been asked to gather at a place some distance away from the police station on the morning of September 20. Kanaklata finished her household chores. Then she said to her younger sister, “Let us have breakfast together. God alone knows whether we shall meet again.” Kanaklata led one of the groups that advanced towards the police station shouting slogans like ‘Glory to Mother India’ and ‘Mahatma Gandhi ki Jai’.

The officer in charge of the police station warned them not to advance but Kanaklata pressed forward saying, “Don’t try to stop us! We shall leave only after putting the flag up!”

Felled by police bullets

The police opened fire. Some people from the group turned and fled, but Kanaklata continued to press fonward. The police fired again and Kanaklata was hit in the chest. Others around her were also felled by the bullets but now they were very close to the police station and one member of the group, Ram Pati Rajkhoa snatched the flag from the dying Kanaklata, climbed to the top of the police station and planted the flag there.

Her sister and her grandparents broke down when her comrades brought her body home. But Kanaklata would not have wanted it any other way. If she had had another life to give, she would have perhaps gladly given away that too for her beloved country.

Robin Hood of the Godavari

From the jungles of the Rampa region in the East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh emerged a young hero who galvanised the local Adivasi tribals to rise against the British Raj in the 1920s. His name was Alluri Sitarama Raju. The Madras Forest Act had severely affected the tribal way of life. It prevented the tribals from engaging in the traditional method of shifting cultivation and collecting forest produce. They ended up being exploited for cheap or free labour by the British.

Raju channelled the tribal discontent into an anti-British force. He realised that mere bows and arrows were not enough. So he conducted lightning strikes on police stations, raiding their arsenal of guns and ammunition. He would announce the date and time of attack and even enter the details of the loot in the station diary!

For two years from 1922-1924, Raju and his guerrilla fighters terrorised the British. A bounty of Rs 10,000 was placed on his head and special forces were drafted to combat his men. No amount of persuasion could sway the local people from being loyal to Raju. They called him ‘Manyam Veerudu (Hero of the Jungle). It was only after Raju was caught and shot dead on May 7, 1924 that the British heaved a sigh of relief.

Young braveheart

In 1938, Dhenkanal (in Odisha) was up in arms against the repressive measures of the local kings who were British loyalists. The British force was hot on the trail of Veer Baishnav Pattanayak, a revolutionary who was stirring up villagers against them. They arrived at the village of Bhuban on October 10, 1938 to nab him, but he escaped. A troop of British soldiers chased him, but they were stopped in their tracks by an ordinary boy of extraordinary courage. Baji Raut was a 13-year-old boatman of Nilakanthapur village who was standing guard at a ghat on River Brahmi. When the British platoon arrived and demanded to be ferried across, Baji Raut refused. A furious soldier attacked the boy with the butt of his rifle, fracturing his skull. The boy was fatally injured, yet he managed to raise an alarm, alerting the villagers. A soldier bayoneted him, while another shot him. Enraged villagers rushed to the riverbank. The platoon panicked and hastily retreated in Baji Raut’s boat while firing away at the mob, killing four more.

Baishnav Pattanayak took the bodies of Baji Raut and the four villagers to Cuttack to give them a hero’s farewell. In 1943, Sachidananda Routray, the father of modern Odia poetry, immortalised the boy’s sacrifice in his poem, Baji Raut.

Picture Credit : Google 

HOW DID BRITISH GET ICE IN INDIA?

When the British ruled India, they wanted ice to cope with the hot tropical heat of the country. They decided to import ice from America. The ice was sent by an enterprising American named Frederic Tudor. When Tudor first got the idea of sending ice to India people laughed at him. They told him the ice would melt on the long voyage. But Tudor was not the sort to give up easily. He obtained ice from the frozen lakes of Boston, loaded it on the ship Tuscany and sent it on to India. The ship left America on May 12, 1833 with 180 tonnes of ice and docked at Hoogly four months later, on September 10. To Tudors joy and his critics’ amazement 100 tonnes of ice remained intact.

The citizens of Calcutta were seized with great excitement when the ice reached the city. A half holiday was declared so that people could make arrangements to get the ice and go and invite friends and relatives to iced drinks in the evening. Thereafter ice arrived regularly in Calcutta, and Madras and Bombay and ice houses were built in these cities so that the commodity could be stored and made available throughout the year.

The ice sold for 2 annas a ser and it became British India’s greatest luxury until the advent of ice machines in the 1880s.

Picture Credit : Google