SCERT Class 10 Social History Unit 3 Anti-British Rising and Peasant Revolts in Assam

SCERT Class 10 Social History Unit 3 Anti-British Rising and Peasant Revolts in Assam The answer to each chapter is provided in the list so that you can easily browse throughout different chapter Assam Board SCERT Class 10 Social History Unit 3 Anti-British Rising and Peasant Revolts in Assam and select needs one.

SCERT Class 10 Social History Unit 3 Anti-British Rising and Peasant Revolts in Assam

Also, you can read the SCERT book online in these sections Solutions by Expert Teachers as per SCERT (CBSE) Book guidelines. These solutions are part of SCERT All Subject Solutions. Here we have given SEBA SCERT Class 10 Social History Unit 3 Anti-British Rising and Peasant Revolts in Assam Solutions for All Subject, You can practice these here…

Anti-British Rising and Peasant Revolts in Assam

PART-I: HISTORY

VERY SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS

Q1. After the establishment of the British rule in Assam how did the system of revenue collection change ?

Ans : After the establishment of the British rule in Assam in 1826, the revenue system changed from kind to cash. The British began to collect all taxes in cash.

Q2. In which year did Moffat Mills come to Assam ? 

Ans : 1853.

Q3. Who were the Keyas ? 

Ans : Keyas were the immigrant Marwari Mahajans in Assam who earned a living by lending money on interest to the Assamese populace. 

Q4. Who led the revolt of 1857 in Assam ? 

Ans : Maniram Dewan.

Q5. In the revolt of 1857 the rebels of Assam wanted to re-establish which Ahom prince on the throne ? 

Ans : The Ahom prince, Kandarpeswar Singha.

Q6. Who was the Bengali Muktiyar who helped Maniram Dewan ? 

Ans : Madhu Malik.

Q7. Who was hanged along with Maniram Dewan ? 

Ans : Piyoli Barua. 

Q8. Who tired the case of Maniram Dewan ?

Ans : Captain Holroyd.

Q9. Mention two causes of the failure of the Revolt of 1857 in Assam. 

Ans : Two important causes for the failure of the Revolt of 1857 in Assam were : 

(i) The number of rebels was very few, and that too only in Jorhat and Sibsagar. Dewan could not garner any support from Nowgaon, Kamrup and Gauhati.

(ii) The chief organiser of the revolt, Maniram Dewan, was far away from the center of revolt. He was in Calcutta and tried to control the revolt through letters which proved impractical. He should have worked from Gauhati. 

Q10. In which years were the Stamp tax and Income tax implemented ? 

Ans : Stamp tax was implemented in 1858 while Income tax was implemented in 1860.

Q11. Write two causes of the pitiable condition of the peasants of Assam during the British rule.

Ans : Two main causes for pitiable condition of the peasants of Assam during the British rule were : 

(i) Heavy taxation by the government during British rule.

(ii) Natural calamities like flood, drought and epidemics. 

Q12. Who was Lieutenant Singer ?

Ans : Lieutenant Singer was the Assistant Commissioner of Nowgaon during the time of Phulaguri revolt in 1861. He died when the peasants hit him  with sticks while he was talking to the agitators. 

Q13. When did the Phulaguri Dhawa take place ? 

Ans : 1861.

Q14. When did the peasant’s revolt of Rangia take place ?

Ans : 1893.

Q15. Where is Lachima located ?

Ans : Lachima is located in the Bajali region of North Kamrup district of Assam. 

Q16. When did the peasant revolt of Lachima take place ?

Ans : 1894.

Q17. When did the peasant revolt of Patharughat take place ? 

Ans : 1894.

Q18. Who led the Jaintia revolt of 1861 ?

Ans : Ukiang Nonbah.

Q19. Who led the revolt of the ethnic tribes of North Cachar in 1881 ?

Ans : Sambudhan Kachari.

Q20. Who punished Tikendrajit with the death sentence ?

Ans : The British. 

Q21. In which year was J.W. Quinton murdered ?

Ans : 1891.

LONG ANSWERS TYPE QUESTIONS :

Q1. Discuss in brief the causes of the revolt of 1857-58.

Ans : The rebellion of 1857 in Assam was an offshoot of India’s First War of Independence which commenced in Meerut on 10th May 1857 with the mutiny of the Indian soldiers. The basic reason for the outbreak of the rebellion in Assam was the dissatisfaction of the people with the British administration, for which the following factors were responsible : 

(i) Defective land revenue system : The first major factor that prepared the ground for the outbreak of the rebellion of 1857 in Assam was the introduction of the new revenue system by which land revenue and other taxes began to be collected in cash. It broke the backbone of the Assamese peasantry. The British focused on collecting tax due and not on enhancement of agriculture by way of better embankment and irrigation system. The common folk were  also fleeced by the Mahajans or money lenders from whom they had to borrow money to pay revenue. 

(ii) Spread of epidemics: Upper Assam suffered greatly from epidemics like cholera and measles which led to several villages being wiped out in the years 1839, 1847 and 1852. No help from the British and non-exemption of tax aliented the common people. 

(iii) Exemption of tea gardens from land revenue: The additional tax burden had to be borne  by the peasants. 

(iv) Deterioration of cottage industries: The British administration policy of importing foreign cloth affected the Paat and Muga silk cottage industries of Assam, causing the people associated with them to face great hardships.

(v) Lack of employment: The upper class society of Assam were lacking in modern education and hence could not find employment in the East India Company administration. Moreover, they lost their position to educated Bengali babus who were imported by the British from Bengal.

(vi) Abolition of slavery : The abolition of slavery in Assam in 1843 was not accepted favorably by the aristocratic class as they now had to do all the manual labour themselves. This loss of prestige also created ill feeling. The freed slaves were employed in the tea gardens, but no measures were adopted for their benefit. Hence, they too remained dissatisfied. 

(vii) Re-assessment of Lakhiraj lands : The Brahmins, priests and religious pontiffs resented the British administration’s taking away of the excess Lakhiraj lands that they had been occupying since ages, and also fixing of tax on their revenue-free lands.

(viii) Various prior rebellions : Soon after the occupation of Assam by the British, there occurred several rebellions with a view to bring back the Ahom monarchical rule in the state. This included the rebellions of 1828, 1829 and 1830. The revolt of 1857 is considered to be a continuation of these rebellions. 

Q2. Discuss the role of Maniram Dewan in the revolt of 1857-58 in Assam. 

Ans : The rebellion of 1857-58 in Assam was mainly led by Maniram Dewan. He was the planner, adviser and the organiser of this rebellion. 

In the early part of Maniram Dewan’s career he was employed in the service of the British in Assam, but because of the British policies he lost his power and position and position and had to live the life of an ordinary citizen. Hoping that restoration of the Ahom monarchy would bring back his lost position, he submitted an application in this regard to Moffat Mills, Chief Justice of Calcutta High court, in 1853, but received no sympathy and was instead declared a conspirator. In early 1857 he went to Calcutta to convince the British authority to hand over Assam to the Ahom prince, Kandarpeswar Singha, but did not even get an opportunity to meet the Lieutenant Governor of Bengal. In Calcutta he came to know about the Sepoy mutiny that had broken out in Meerut. He saw this as an opportunity to rise against the British in Assam and achieve his goal of re-establishing Ahom rule in the state.

In Calcutta, Maniram Dewan met Madhu Malik, a Bengali Muktiyar with whom he hatched a conspiracy to oust the British form Assam. They recieved the support of Assamese elitists like Bahadur Gaonburha, Phormud Ali, Dutiram Barua, Mayaram Nazir, Mahbir Muktiyar, etc. It was decided that Kandarpeswar Singha would lead the revolt, while Maniram Dewan would arrange for the arms and weapons. Maniram Dewan wrote letters from Calcutta to the prince and orher trusted members of the Ahom nobility, asking them to get ready for a rebellion and to contact the Indian soldiers at Dibrugarh and Golaghat. It was decided that the rebellion would take place during the Durga puja festival in October 1857. According to the plan, Kandarpeswar Singha would be set up as the King of Assam and Maniram Dewan would  become Prime Minister. 

However, the British got whiff about the rebellion before the leaders could do anything, as they intercepted Maniram Dewan’s letters wherein the conspiracy against the British government was clearly outlined. Immediately they swung  into action and arrested almost all the leaders associated with the rebellion. Maniram Dewan was arrested from Calcutta and brought to Assam to face the trial for his role in organising the rebellion. He was found guilty of treason and was hanged to death at Jorhat on 26 February 1858 along with Piyoli Barua.

Q3. Discuss the reasons why the revolt of 1857-58 failed in Assam. 

Ans: The revolt of 1857-58 in Assam was master-minded by Maniram Dewan and he was assited by a few Ahom nobles. It did not succeed in its aim of establishing Ahom rule once again in the Brahamaputra Valley due to the following factors: 

(i) Rebels were too few : Maniram Dewan had supporters only from Jorhat and Sibsagar. He could not garner support from Nowgaon, Kamrup and Gauhati.

(ii) Delay in executing the plan: Even after all preparations were done, the rebels dayed in executing the revolt. Resultantly the British had plenty of time to organise counter-measures and suppress the rebellion. 

(iii) Lack of leadership : The main organiser of the rebellion Maniram Dewan, tried to mastermind the revolt from far-off Calcutta through letters, which was impractical. He should have returned to Assam at the earliest opportunity and organised the rebellion leading from the front. Maniram himself was a good administrator but not a good revolt leader.

(iv) Lack of popular support: The members of the new Assamese middle class were not sympathetic to the rebellion. They were more inclined to the Bengali lifestyle than to life under the Ahom monarchy. Maniram Dewan and his associates also made  no attemt to involve all sections of society in the revolt. 

(v) Lack of secrecy: The letters of Maniram Dewan written from Calcutta to his associates in Assam were intercepted by the British and hence the cover from the entire conspiracy was  blown. As a result the revolt was suppresed even before it started.

(vi) No access to arms : Maniram Dewan was himself supposed to bring weapons and ammunition with him to Assam. Until then however, the rebels had  no access to them. The revolt was discovered and suppressed even before Dewan could bring in the arms.

(vii) Lack of support from soldiers : The Indian rebellion of 1857 had its backbone in the sepoys who rose together in revolt against the British.  However, in Assam it was chiefly the work of a few disgruntled nobles who could not get the support of the local army units.

Q4. Discuss the importance of the revolt of 1857 in Assam. 

Ans: The revolt of 1857 in Assam stands as a landmark event in the history of Assam. Although the revolt failed in its purpose of expelling the British from Assam, yet the rebellion had far-reaching consequences for the state as well as for its people. Its importance lies in the following aspects. 

(i) Assam became a part of the national movement: Assam’s participation in the revolt of 1857 is considered to be the first event where the people of Assam joined rest of India to expel the British from the country, and became part of the national movement for freedom.

(ii) Set an example: After the revolt of 1857 many peasant’s revolts ocurred in different parts of the state from 1860 to 1894. The patriotic deaths of Maniram Dewan and Piyoli Barua inspired the people, and many historians consider the peasants ‘ revolts to be reactions of the failed Rebellion of 1857.

(iii) Hindu-Muslim unity: The chief organisers of the revolt consisted of eminent men from both Hindu and Muslim communities. This unity greatly boosted the spirit of nationalism as well as brought communal harmony in the state. 

(iv) Great inspiration: The failed rebellion  encouraged hundreds of freedom lovers of the state to take active participation in the national movement for independence led by Mahatma Gandhi. These men were greatly inspired by the activities and sacrifice of patriotic men like Maniram Dewan, Piyoli Barua, Bahadur Gaonburha, Sheikh Formud Ali, etc. who played commendable roles in the revolt of 1857.

Q5. Write a note on the Phulaguri Dhawa.

Ans: Phulaguri Dhawa of 1861 is considered to be the first of the first of the series of peasants ‘ revolts that engulfed Assam for several years. The condition of the peasants had deteriorated from bad to worse with the introduction of the new revenue system introduced by the British. The causative factor of the Phulaguri revolt was the government order banning the cultivation of poppy and imposing tax on tamul pan. The Tiwa community which lived in Phulaguri village in Nowgaon district and survived on the commercial poppy cultivation, was severely affected.

In order to register their bitterness against the government order, the people of the area organised people’s assemblies or Raij Mels where such problems were discussed and awareness towards them spread. One such Raij Mel was held on 17th September 1861 at Phulaguri in Nowgaon district to oppose banning of poppy cultivation, where over 1500 people gathered. They submitted a petition to the Deputy Commissioner Herbert Sconce, requesting removal of ban on poppy cultivation and of tax on tamul pan. When he misbehaved with them, another Raij Mel of peasants armed with sticks gathered on 15th October 1861 at Phulaguri. This gathering grew to 4000 on the 18th Octobar. When Lieutenant G.B. Singar, Assistant Commissioner refused to  be sympathetic towards the requests of the people and ordered his guards to snatch away the sticks, a tussle ensued in which Singer was attacked with sticks and he died on the spot. His body was thrown into the River Kolong by the agitators. This incident was the Phulaguri Dhawa. The guilty were awarded death sentence, and other accused sent to Koliapani.

The Phulaguri Dhawa is important in that it had true mass character having seen voluntary participation by various ethnic communities, the middle class, the educated elite, businessmen and even some Maujadars. It also displayed the common man’s attempt to free himself from British imperialism. Most importantly it set an exmple and was an inspiration for peasants from other parts of Assam to rise against British oppression and deprivation. 

Q6. Discuss the peasant revolt of North Kamrup in 1894.

Ans : Peasant Revolts continued to be organised against the repressive policies of the British who despite the Phulaguri revolt. increased the land revenue by 100% in 1892 and arranged for its strict collection. This created public outcry and people started to meet in Raij Mels to register their strong protest. The Raij Mels in Barama in Bajali region and the biggest one at Panagaon Sapori were participated in by peasants of Lachima, Choukhuti, Panagaon, Sarthebari, Patachakuchi, Rangia, Nalbari, Dharmapur, Bajali, etc. of North Kamrup. On 21st January 1894, the Moujadar and  his Mondol who went to collect tax , were badly beaten, as a result of which the Moujadar died.The Circle Officer of Barpeta, Madhab Chandra Bordoloi, arrested 75 people and took them to his rest camp at Lachima. However, threatened by 3000 peasants, he had to release them.The very next day, the Deputy Commissioner McCabe arrested 59 rebels and jailed them. He refused to bow down before crowd pressure. All the arrested were awarded various types of punishment. The main leaders of the revolt were Pushparam Kalita, Debi Dutta Sarma, Jayanti Bez, Nirbhasa Kalita and Monglu Kalita. This peasant revolt of Lachima, is the main revolt of North Kamrup of 1894.

Q7. Give an account of the peasant revolt of Patharughat in 1894.

Ans : The British had to face numerous peasant uprisings during the period from 1861to 1894 as a result of their repressive economic policies. Many parts of Kamrup, Darrang and Nowgaon districts rose up in rebellion but most were severely suppressed by the British. 

The peasantry of Patharughat in the Darrang district also rose in rebellion on January 28, 1894. A lot of preparation and planing had taken place before the outbreak of the rebellion.The peasantry of Kalaigaon, Mangaldoi, Sipajhar and Patharughat Tehsils of Mangaldoi sub-division first organised Raij Mels in their own areas, and then intended to gather at Patharughat from 26-28th January. The British got a whiff of this and on 27th January, the Deputy Commissioner, the Police Superintendent with police and military forces came to Patharughat. They confiscated the property of those peasants who refused to pay the revenue. They angry mob of 200 peasants surrounded Superintendent Berington, who escaped to take refuge at the rest camp. A crowd of 2000 peasants armed with sticks then marched to the rest camp. The Deputy Commissioner ordered use of force to disperse the crowd, which retaliated with a volley of throwing stones and pebbles. Unable to control the crowd, the Deputy Commissioner asked Berington to order firing upon the crowd. As a result of the firing almost 140 peasants died while over 150 were wounded, though according to official estimates, 15 peasants died and 37 were wounded. The government also arrested 37 peasants and tired them for their involvement in the rebellion; 6 were punished and the other released. This was the last of the series of rebellions in Assam that were organised against the exploitative British economic policies. 

Q8. Write a note on the Jaintia revolt against the British in 1860.

Ans : One of the first hill tribes of Assam to fight against the British was the Jaintias. The Jaintias were freedom-loving tribal people who found it difficult to accept the occupation of their land by the British in 1835. The high handedness of the British like continuously finding fault with their own appointed dolois, banning of community fishing and collection of firewood so that they could earn revenue themselves, interference in religious and traditional customs, etc. sowed the seeds for a revolt. The discontentment deepened with the imposition of a new house tax and income tax on the people, a tribe that had never paid tax in cash. The people with the Sardars and Dolois began to make preparation for the rebellion. 

The rebellion of the Jaintias commenced with the removing of the Tehsildar of Jowai soon after the imposition of the house tax. This triggered off revolts in Jayantipur, Mulagul, Jaflong, Cherra areas. But the British government tired to suppress the rebellion with a strong hand. The people of Jaintia hills rose under Ukiang Nongbah and on 17th January 1862, they suddenly attacked the British camp at Jowai. They also blocked the arterial roads, and killed members of the Police forces who had been torturing them. In the midst of the rebellion, the British government appointed Brigadier-General G.D. Showers with military and civil authority over the entire Jaintia hills, and B.W.D. Morton as the Deputy Commissioner of Khasi-Jaintia hills. Due to severe suppression initiated by the government,  the rebellion started to decline. The government also declared that they would grant general amnesty to all voluntarily surrendering rebels and offered a reward of rupees 1000 for anyone who would hand over Ukiang Nongbah alive. Ultimately Ukiang Nongbah fell into the hands of the British and was publicly hanged to death at Jowai. With the hanging of Ukiang Nonbah, the other rebels were disheartened and surrendered to the British in 1863 and thus the rebellion came to an end. 

Q9. Write about the anti-British revolt of 1891 in Manipur under the leadership of Tikendrajit. 

Ans : For a long time Manipur was recognised as a native kingdom under British protection. In 1890s when a royel feud broke out for the throne, the British Chief Commissioner of Assam interfered  without reason. Taking advantage of British presence, the crown prince Kulachandra dethroned King Surachandra, and occupied the throne on 21st September 1890.The British turned a deaf ear to King Surachandra’s appeal for help, and used their position to put pressure on the new king to dismiss his commander-in-chief (Senapati) Tikendrajit, who was secretly planning a revolt against the British. However, Kulachandra found it difficult to remove his popular commander-in-chief. Under these circumstances when the Chief Commissioner of Assam, J.W. Quinton and four other officers came to Manipur to capture Tikendrajit, the rebel Manipuris killed all of them. The British then sent a strong force and captured Tikendrajit. He was then hanged for his anti-British activities. A minor, named Churachandra was made the king of Manipur in September 1891. The political agent of the British government was given all responsibilities of the administration of Manipur. Manipur was forced to pay rupees 2.50 lakhs to the British as compensation suffered by the British during the revolt. Besides, the kingdom also had to pay an annual fee of 50,000 rupees to the British. Thus the British established their domination over Manipur.

See Next Page No Below…