Birsa Munda

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15th November will be 145th Birth anniversary of Birsa Munda

History of Birsa Munda

• He was born on 15th November 1875 at at Ulihatu in Bengal Presidency, Ranchi District, Bihar—now in Khunti district of Jharkhand
• He was an Indian tribal freedom fighter, religious leader, and folk hero
• He belonged to the Munda tribe in the Chota Nagpur Plateau area.
• He is remembered for his strong mark of protest against British rule in India
• Birsa Munda received his early education at Salga under the guidance of his teacher Jaipal Nag. 
• On the recommendation of Jaipal Nag, Birsa converted to Christianity in order to join the German Mission school. He, however, opted out of the school after a few years.
• Birsait sect:  Having gained awareness of the British colonial ruler and the efforts of the missionaries to convert tribals to Christianity, Birsa started the faith of ‘Birsait’. 
• Soon members of the Munda and Oraon community started joining the Birsait sect and it turned into a challenge to British conversion activities.
• Between 1886 to 1890, Birsa Munda spent a large amount of time in Chaibasa which was close to the centre of the Sardars agitation. 
• The activities of the Sardars had a strong impact on the mind of the young Birsa, who soon became a part of the anti-missionary and anti-government program. 
• By the time he left Chaibasa in 1890, Birsa was strongly entrenched in the movement against the British oppression of the tribal communities.
• The revolt mainly concentrated in the Munda belt of Khunti, Tamar, Sarwada and Bandgaon
• Birsa was arrested by the British Police on March 3, 1900 while he was sleeping with his tribal guerilla army at Jamkopai forest in Chakradharpur
• Birsa Munda’s slogan threatening the British Raj—Abua raj seter jana, maharani raj tundu jana (“Let the kingdom of the queen be ended and our kingdom be established”)—is remembered today in areas of Odisha, Bihar, West Bengal, and Madhya Pradesh
• He died in Ranchi jail on June 9, 1900 at a young age of 25.