Daily Prelims Notes 2 October 2022
- October 2, 2022
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN
Daily Prelims Notes
2 October 2022
Table Of Contents
- Putin slams West and US for ‘double standards’; cites plundering of India & Africa
- UNEP calls Nord Stream methane leak ‘biggest-ever’; plume over Europe fading-
- Professors of practice
- Over 6000 trees illegally cut in Corbett Reserve
- Medicinal fungi may be suitable for identifying novel drugs
- Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind
- How can India reduce its impact on global warming-
- New varieties of Basmati by ICAR
- Hydrogen Valley Platform
- Industry Research & Development Fellowship Programme (IRDFP)
- Saga of Freedom: Known & Lesser-known Struggle
- Poshan Utsav
- Contribution of Mahatma Gandhi in freedom movement
1. Putin slams West and US for ‘double standards’; cites plundering of India & Africa
Subject: History
Context–
- Russian President Vladimir Putin has reminded the world of the West’s colonial policy, plundering of India and Africa, slave trade, and the use of nuclear and chemical weapons by the US, as he slammed them for their “utter deceit” and “double standards” on insisting on a rules-based global order.
- It is worth reminding the West that it began its colonial policy back in the Middle Ages, followed by the worldwide slave trade, the genocide of Indian tribes in America,the plunder of India and Africa…This is contrary to human nature, truth, freedom and justice.
How Britishers looted India?
Drain of Wealth (Economic Imperialism) theory–
- The “Drain of Wealth” theory was first highlighted by “Dadabhai Naoroji” in his book “The Poverty and Un-British Rule in India” in 1867.
- Further Other India economic critique of British rule analysed and developed it, including R.P. Dutt, G. Subramaniam Aiyar and M.G. Ranade.
- The constant flow of national wealth from India to England for which India did not get an adequate economic, commercial or material return has been described by Indian national leaders and economists as ‘drain’ of wealth from India.
- The colonial government was utilising Indian resources– revenues, agriculture, and industry not for developing India but for its utilization in England.
- After the East India Company extended its territorial aggression in India and began to administer territories and acquired control over the surplus revenues of India, the company had a recurring surplus which accrued from-
- Profits from oppressive land revenue policy,
- Profits from its trade resulting from monopolistic control over Indian markets,
- The company’s servants earned large incomes through their participation in inland trade.
- British Free Merchants made fortune through their private trade.
- Exactions made by company officials.
- During the year 1757-1766 individual Englishmen received from the princes and other persons in Bengal no less than 50 millions of current rupees in the form of illegal presents and prerequisite.
- The practice continued even after the prohibition imposed by the court of Directors in 1766.
- Among the persons against whom charges covering the post 1766 period have been made on this ground are Warren Hastings and his supporter in the Council, Barwell.
- Private fortunes obtained by the company’s servants and other Europeans in India were remitted to Europe through various means-
- One of these was sending diamond to Europe
- The other was to issue bill of exchange on the East India Company or any of the other European companies.
- This entire ‘surplus’ used by Company as an ‘investment’ i.e. for making purchases of exportable items in India and elsewhere.
- Against the exports of goods made out of this ‘investment’,India did not get anything in return.
- This is how there began the ‘Drain of Wealth’ which is nothing but a unilateral transfer of fund.
- Dadabhai Naoroji and other economic nationalists gave several factors that caused external drain. These are:
- “Home Charges” or paying for the secretary of state and his establishment at the India Office in London, as well as pay, pension and training costs for the civilian and military personnel– or “the ment who rules India”.
- Before the Revolt of 1857 the Home charges varied from 10% to 13% of the average revenue of India, but after the revolt it shot up to 24% in the period of 1897-1901.
- During 1921-22, the Home Charges sharply increased to 40% of the total revenue of the Central Government.
- Annuities on account of railway and irrigation works;
- Guaranteed interest on foreign investments in railways, irrigation, road transport and various other infrastructural facilities,
- Indian office expenses including pensions to retired officials who had worked in India or England, pensions to army and navals etc.
- Remittances to England by Europeans to their families.
- Remittances for purchase of British Goods for consumption of British employees in India.
- Interest on Foreign debt incurred by the East India Company.
- Civil and Military expenditures.
- Council Bills
- “Home Charges” or paying for the secretary of state and his establishment at the India Office in London, as well as pay, pension and training costs for the civilian and military personnel– or “the ment who rules India”.
- Council Bills–
- The actual transfer of money took place through the sale of “Council Bills”, which were sold in London in sterling to purchasers of India goods who received Indian rupees in exchange. This causes the “Drain of Wealth”.
- Sir John Strachey explained the ‘Council Bills’ in 1888 ‘The Secretary of State draws bills on the government treasury in India, and it is through these bills, which are paid in India out of the public revenues, that the merchants obtains the money that he requires in India and the Secretary of State the money that he requires in England.’
2. UNEP calls Nord Stream methane leak ‘biggest-ever’; plume over Europe fading-
Subject :Environment
Context:
- The methane released due to ruptures in the underwater Nord Stream natural gas pipeline from Russia to Germany on September 26, 2022, is the single-biggest such release of greenhouse gas, according to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
- However, the methane plume over Europe is fading quickly.
- Three confirmed and one potential gas leak have been detected in the Nord Stream pipeline.
- The plume is spreading, the greenhouse gas has been detected in Finland, Sweden, Norway and the United Kingdom.
- The leaks were detected in both Nordstream 1 and Nordstream 2 pipelines. The former was shut down indefinitely after the leak. Germany suspended the latter following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
- The leak rate from one of the rupture points was estimated to be 22,920 kilograms per hour. This is the 285,763 kg of coal burning every hour.
- On September 26, the radius of the methane plume was 700 metres. It has now reduced to roughly 290 metres.
Nord Stream Gas pipeline–
- Nord Stream consists of two pipelines, which have two lines each-
- Nord Stream 1 was completed in 2011 and runs from Vyborg in Leningrad (Russia) to Lubmin near Greifswald, Germany.
- Nord Stream 2 which runs from Ust-Luga in Leningrad to Lubmin was completed in September 2021 and has the capacity to handle 55 billion cubic meters of gas per year once it becomes operational.
- The twin pipelines together can transport a combined total of 110 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas a year to Europe for at least 50 years.
- The Nord Stream crosses the Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) of several countries including Russia, Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Germany, and the territorial waters of Russia, Denmark, and Germany.
- In Germany, the pipeline connects to the OPAL (Baltic Sea Pipeline) and NEL (North European Pipeline) which further connects to the European grid.
Methane as a GHG–
- Methane is responsible for more than a quarter of the current global warming.
- The greenhouse gas is 80 times more harmful than carbon dioxide during the 20 years after it is released into the atmosphere.
- Earlier this year, UNEP showed that oil and gas fields worldwide, from the United States to Turkmenistan, have been causing massive methane leaks.
- It added that the releases, most of which can be traced to equipment failures, can last for weeks.
Other Sources of Methane emission–
a. Biological Sources: wetlands, landfills that are not well vented, and submerged paddy fields.
b. Agriculture:
- Livestock emissions – from manure and gastroenteric releases – account for roughly 32% of human-caused methane emissions. Cows also belch out methane.
- Paddy rice cultivation – accounts for another 8% of human-linked emissions.
c. Emissions from Fuel and Industries
d. Recent Emissions from Permian Basin – A new study in the journal Environmental Science & Technology has estimated over 9% of gas production in the Permian Basin in Texas and New Mexico, US. is being leaked as emissions, in contrast to the 1.4% predicted by the US Environmental Protection Agency.
Subject : Education / Governance
Context: UGC clears ‘professors of practice’ in all colleges, universities.
Concept :
- The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 had recommended integrating vocational education with general education and strengthening industry-academia collaboration in higher education institutions (HEIs).
- Towards this, the UGC has taken a new initiative called “Professor of Practice”.
- The UGC has not earmarked funds for the scheme and says that such experts can be paid through funding from industries or through the institution’s own funds.
“Professors of Practice” initiative of UGC:
- To develop courses and curriculum to meet the industry and societal needs and enable the HEIs to work with industry experts.
- To bring in distinguished experts from various fields such as engineering, science, technology, entrepreneurship, management, commerce, media, literature, etc., into the academic institutions.
Eligibility:
- Distinguished experts who have made remarkable contributions in their professions from various fields.
- However, this role is not open to those from the teaching profession, serving or retired.
- Those who have proven expertise in their specific profession or role with at least 15 years of service/experience, preferably at a senior level.
- A formal academic qualification is not considered essential for this position if they have exemplary professional practice.
- These experts will also be exempted from the requirement of publications and other eligibility criteria stipulated for the recruitment of faculty members at the Professor level.
- However, they should possess the skills to carry out the duties and responsibilities
Significance:
- The engagement of such experts will not affect the number of sanctioned posts and the recruitment of regular faculty members.
- In turn, the industry and society will benefit from trained graduates equipped with the relevant skills.
About UGC
- The University Grants Commission (UGC) of India is a statutory body set up in 1956, and is charged with coordination, determination and maintenance of standards of higher education.
4. Over 6000 trees illegally cut in Corbett Reserve
Subject : Environment
Context : The much-awaited tiger safari project of the Uttarakhand government is under scanner after a Forest Survey of India (FSI) report stated that over 6,000 trees were illegally cut in the Corbett Tiger Reserve (CTR) against the permission for 163 for the Pakhru Tiger Safari.
Concept :
Forest Survey of India:
- FSI is a national organization responsible for the assessment and monitoring of the forest resources of India regularly.
- It functions under the Ministry of Environment and Forests and climate change.
- It is headquartered in Dehradun, Uttarakhand.
- It was founded in 1981.
- FSI is one of the major national survey organizations in India.
- Indian state of forest report (ISFR) is an assessment of India’s forest and tree cover, published every two years by the Forest Survey of India under the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change.
- The first survey was published in 1987, and ISFR 2021 is the 17th.
- The organization’s precursor was the ‘Pre-investment Survey of Forest Resources’ (PISFR), a project started in 1965 with aid from UNDP and FAO.
Jim Corbett National Park
- Jim Corbett National Park is the oldest national park in India and was established in 1936 as Hailey National Park to protect the endangered Bengal tiger.
- It is located in Nainital district and Pauri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand and was named after hunter and naturalist Jim Corbett.
- The Park was the first to come under the Project Tiger initiative.
- The Park encompasses the Patli Dun valley formed by the Ramganga river.
- Ramganga, Sonanadi, Mandal, Palain and Kosi are the major rivers flowing through the Corbett National Park.
- The national park is a protected area covered by the World Wide Fund (WWF) for Nature under their Terai Arc Landscape Program.
5. Medicinal fungi may be suitable for identifying novel drugs
Subject : Science & Technology
Context : An analytical study of medicinal fungi carried out by researchers from the Institute of Mathematical Sciences, Chennai (IMSc), shows that some chemicals they secrete may find use as novel drugs.
Concept :
- The team used a database, MeFSAT (Medicinal Fungi Secondary Metabolites and Therapeutics), which compiles information on 184 medicinal fungi, including mushrooms.
- Around 1800 secondary metabolites were analyzed by the researchers.
- Researchers from IMSc, found that the secondary metabolites were structurally distant from existing drugs.
- As for the complete chemical structure, the secondary metabolites were quite dissimilar to the approved drugs.
- They also have the molecular properties which are important for drug likeness, similar to approved drugs.
About Medicinal Fungi
- Medicinal fungi are fungi that contain metabolites or can be induced to produce metabolites through biotechnology to develop prescription drugs.
- Secondary metabolites are chemical compounds that fungi produce when they are stressed. They enhance the fungus’ ability to survive.
- For example, Cordycepin, a secondary metabolite produced by Cordyceps species of fungus, is known to have anti – tumor properties.
- Medicinal fungi belongs to two taxonomic divisions namely, basidiomycota and ascomycota.
- Mushrooms belong to the basidiomycota division. An example is Agaricus bisporus, the button mushroom, which can be consumed.
- Compounds successfully developed into drugs or under research include antibiotics, anti-cancer drugs, cholesterol and ergosterol synthesis inhibitors, psychotropic drugs, immunosuppressants and fungicides.
Subject : History
Context : The country’s oldest Muslim organisation has maintained studied silence over the arrests of PFI members.
Concept :
- Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind or Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind is one of the leading organizations of Islamic scholars belonging to the Deobandi school of thought in India.
- It was founded in November 1919 by a group of Muslim scholars including Abdul Bari Firangi Mahali, Kifayatullah Dehlawi, Muhammad Ibrahim Mir Sialkoti and Sanaullah Amritsari.
- The Jamiat was an active participant in the Khilafat Movement in collaboration with the Indian National Congress.
- It also opposed the partition of India, taking the position of composite nationalism: that Muslims and non-Muslims form one nation.
Deoband Movement in India
- The Deoband Movement was organised by the orthodox section among the Muslim ulema as a revivalist movement.
- The Deoband Movement was begun at the Darul Uloom (or Islamic academic centre), Deoband, in Saharanpur district (United Provinces) in 1866 by Mohammad Qasim Nanotavi and Rashid Ahmed Gangohi .
- In contrast to the Aligarh Movement, which aimed at the welfare of Muslims through Western education and support of the British government, the aim of the Deoband Movement was moral and religious regeneration of the Muslim community.
- On the political front, the Deoband school welcomed the formation of the Indian National Congress and in 1888 issued a fatwa (religious decree) against Syed Ahmed Khan’s organisations, the United Patriotic Association and the Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental Association.
- Some critics attribute Deoband’s support to the nationalists more to its determined opposition to Syed Ahmed Khan than to any positive political philosophy.
- Mahmud-ul-Hasan, the new Deoband leader, gave a political and intellectual content to the religious ideas of the school.
- He worked out a synthesis of Islamic principles and nationalist aspirations.
- The Jamiat-ul-Ulema gave a concrete shape to Hasan’s ideas of protection of the religious and political rights of the Muslims in the overall context of Indian unity and national objectives.
- Shibli Numani, a supporter of the Deoband school, favoured the inclusion of English language and European sciences in the system of education.
- He founded the Nadwatal Ulama and Darul Uloom in Lucknow in 1894-96.
- He believed in the idealism of the Congress and cooperation between the Muslims and the Hindus of India to create a state in which both could live amicably.
7. How can India reduce its impact on global warming-
Subject: Environment
Context:
- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has pointed out that since the industrial revolution, which started around 1800,human activities have released large amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) due to fuel burning and other ‘greenhouse gases’ such as methane, nitrous oxide, and compounds of sulphur, phosphorous, ozone into the atmosphere, changing the earth’s climate.
Alarming increase-
- Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels have increased by over 40%, from 280 ppm in the 18th century to 414 ppm in 2020, and greenhouse gases (GHG) level by over these 200 years.
- The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) site points out that we have a rural population that constitutes 70% of the country, and their main occupation is agriculture. This gives us a total foodgrain production of 275 million tonne.
- India is the second largest producer of rice, wheat, sugarcane, cotton and groundnuts.
- It, thus, becomes important that India reduce its carbon footprint, more in its farming sector.
Efforts to reduce the agricultural GHG emissions–
- The use of solar panels in the agricultural fields, so that farmers can avoid diesel for groundwater pumps.
- Climatefriendly Agriculture offers new income sources and is more sustainable.
- India’s carbon emissions could drop by 4562 million tonnes annually.
- The government and professional groups have helped rural farmers put in solar panels to save money and gain greater Income.
- India, with its many rivers, has a vast coastline which is rich in fishes. And fishes have high nutritional value and help in reducing carbon footprint.
India’s agricultural output–
- Indian farmers grew about 121.5 million tonnes of rice and 109 million tonnes of wheat during the year 2020-2021.
- They also produce other foodgrains such as millets (bajra), cassava and more.
- They grow about 12 million tonnes of millets annually.
- Likewise, the amount of maize produced per year is about 28.6 million tonnes.
- It may also be added that millets have more proteins (7.3 m per 100 g), fat (1.7 g per 100 g) and fibre content (4.22g per 100g) than rice (protein content 2.7 g per 100 g; fat content 0.3 g per 100 g; and fibre content 0.4 g per 100 g).
- It is, thus, healthier for us to add more millets in our diet, besides rice and wheat.
- And wheat is superior to rice as it has more proteins (13.2 g per 100 g), fat (2.5 g per 100 g), and fibre (10.7 g per 100 g).
8. New varieties of Basmati by ICAR
Context: The Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) organised the ‘Kisan Sampark Yatra’ during September 27-29 in the rice growing region of Haryana and Punjab to obtain farmers’ feedback on the three newly released IARI Basmati varieties.
Concept:
- Basmati rice is an export commodity with annual forex earning of Rs. 25,053 crores during 2021-22.
- Pusa Basmati rice varieties namely, Pusa Basmati 1121, Pusa Basmati 1509 and Pusa Basmati 6 occupy more than 90% of the area under Basmati rice cultivation in GI area of Basmati rice in India and account for more than 90% of the Basmati rice exports from India.
Issues in basmati cultivation:
- Bacterial blight and blast are the most devastating diseases in Basmati rice which cause significant yield losses as well as affect the Basmati grain and cooking quality. Conventionally, these diseases are managed by use of chemicals like streptocyclin and tricyclazole.
- During recent years, European Union has reduced the MRL (residue limit) of tricyclazole (one of the most commonly used fungicide in managing neck blast disease) to 0.01ppm.
- Therefore, there was an urgent need to address this issue in order to maintain the leading position in the international trade of Basmati rice.
ICAR new variety as a solution:
- ICAR pioneered the research to incorporate resistance to the two diseases through incorporation of genes governing resistance to bacterial blight and blast diseases in the genetic background of the three major varieties.
- Pusa Basmati 1847, Pusa Basmati 1885, Pusa Basmati 1886 an improved Bacterial blight and blast resistant version of Pusa Basmati 1509 , Pusa Basmati 112, Pusa Basmati 6,with inbuilt resistance to bacterial blight and blast disease developed through molecular marker assisted breeding respectively.
- These variety possesses two genes each for bacterial blight resistance namely xa13 and Xa21 and blast resistance namely Pi54 and Pi2.
Concept:
- Hydrogen Valley Platform is a global initiative to optimize the hydrogen demand and supply by onsite generation and utilisation, to utilise the renewable resources effectively in water excess areas with geographical identity.
- Mission of the platform: Our mission is to create a global collaboration and go-to-platform for all information on large-scale hydrogen flagship projects (Hydrogen Valleys – H2Vs).
- The Hydrogen Valley Platform is a Global Information Sharing Platform, developed by the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking to support the Mission Innovation IC8 Member States.
- The H2 Valley’s objectives will be achieved through cohorts of clean hydrogen valleys to combine the complete hydrogen value chain (production, storage, and transportation) with the aim of reaching critical scale and unlocking learning curve effects.
- India has committed to facilitate the delivery of three clean hydrogen valleys in India by 2030.
10. Industry Research & Development Fellowship Programme (IRDFP)
Subject :Science and Technology
Concept:
- Industry Research & Development Fellowship Programme (IRDFP) is jointly initiated by the Department of Science & Technology (DST) and the India Energy Storage Alliance (IESA).
- This fellowship programme will enhance the skills of the Fellows and will be of mutual benefit to both the industry and academic partners.
- Researchers placed into industry will have the opportunity to gain a working knowledge of relevant business drivers and will gain from industry’s established contacts.
- The up-skilling and industry exposure provided to academic researchers will prepare them for a career in industry and maximise the impact of the training received by these researchers so far.
- For faculty researchers, it is expected that their Fellowship will help seed subsequent industry collaborations and shape the direction of their research going forward.
11. Saga of Freedom: Known & Lesser-known Struggle
Context: An exhibition organized by the National Archives of India has been extended till 30th October, 2022.
A number of revolutionary movements and struggles in various parts of the country including:
- Revolt of Jungle Mahal, or Chuar Uprising (1771- 1809)(West Bengal),Sambalpur Revolt, Odisha (1827-62),Great uprising (1857), Kuka Namdhari Movement, Punjab (1871), Assassination of Plague Commissioner, Pune (Chapekar Brothers 1897), Munda Revolt, Ranchi (1894),
- Anushilan Samiti (1902), Alipore Bomb Conspiracy Case (1908), Howrah Gang Case (1910), Delhi-Lahore Conspiracy Case (1912), Ghadar Party 1913, Champaran Satyagarah (1917), Non-Cooperation Movement (1920), Chauri Chaura (1922), Rampa Rebellion, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh (1922-24), The Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA) 1923, Kakori Conspiracy Case (1925), Navjavan Sabha (1926-31), Kirti Kisan Movement, 1927, Chittagong Armoury Raid (1930).
- Civil Disobedience Movement/ Dandi March (1930), Central Assembly Bomb Case (1929) & Lahore Conspiracy Case (1931), Hareka movement (Rani Gaidinliu 1930), The Indian Independence League (1920s to the 1940s), Quit India Movement, (1942) and Royal Indian Navy Revolt 1946 etc.
National Archives of India
- The National Archives of India is the custodian of the records of enduring value of the Government of India(Under Ministry of Culture).
- Established on 11 March, 1891 at Calcutta (Kolkata) as the Imperial Record Department, it is the biggest archival repository in South Asia.
- It has a vast corpus of records viz., public records, private papers, oriental records, cartographic records and microfilms, which constitute an invaluable source of information for scholars-administrators and users of archives.
- The holdings in the National Archives are in a regular series starting from the year 1748 and has 40kms of shelf space.
- The Director General of Archives, heading the Department has been given the mandate for the implementation of the Public Records Act, 1993 and the rules made there under, the Public Records Rules, 1997 for the management, administration and preservation of public records.
Subject :Government Schemes
Concept:
- The “Poshan Utsav” is in the nature of a celebratory fair with the central message of good nutrition particularly for young children and women so as to sensitize them on age-appropriate good health practices to address the challenges of malnutrition in the country.
- “Poshan Utsav’ has been organized by the Ministry of Women and Child Development from 30th September to 2nd October 2022 at Kartavyapath in New Delhi to celebrate the culmination of the 5th Rashtriya Poshan Maah 2022.
- To attract children and visitors, the Utsav includes cultural performances, Poshan Parades, Health Check-up camps, healthy food stalls, and Games with a message of nutrition.
13. Contribution of Mahatma Gandhi in freedom movement
Subject :History
Context:
Gandhi Jayanti is celebrated all over the country on October 2.
Concept:
- Mahatma Gandhi was born on 2 October, 1869 at Porbandar, Gujarat.
- Mahatma Gandhi was a renowned freedom activist who had played an important role in India’s struggle for Independence against the British rule of India.
- His ideology of truth and non-violence influenced many and was also adopted by Martin Luther and Nelson Mandela for their struggle movement.
Early Life:
- At the age of 19, Mohandas left home to study law in London at the Inner Temple, one of the city’s four law colleges. Upon returning to India in mid-1891, he set up a law practice in Bombay, but met with little success. He soon accepted a position with an Indian firm that sent him to its office in South Africa. Along with his wife, Kasturbai, and their children, Gandhi remained in South Africa for nearly 20 years.
- Books that inspired Mahatma Gandhi :Unto this Last by John Ruskin and The Kingdom of God is within you’ by Leo Tolstoy.
- English artist John Ruskin’s book Unto This Last inspired Gandhi and he set up Phoenix Farm near Durban. Here, Gandhi would train his cadres on non-violent Satyagraha or peaceful restraint. Phoenix Farm is considered as the birthplace of Satyagraha. However, it was at the Tolstoy Farm, Gandhi’s second camp in South Africa, where Satyagraha was molded into a weapon of protest.
Associations by Gandhiji in South Africa:
- Natal Indian Congress
- Passive Resistance Association
Journals by Gandhiji in South Africa:
- Indian Opinion
Gandhiji in India:
- In 1915, after returning from South Africa, where he had perfected the art of non-violent resistance or satyagraha, Mahatma Gandhi spent the next few years in fully understanding Indian conditions and travelled widely across the length and breadth of this vast nation.
- Gandhi also met the Congress leadership and took everyone’s suggestions on board, before taking tentative steps towards launching himself into the Indian Independence struggle.
- While the Indian freedom movement can be thought of as one single struggle that lasted decades, in reality there were phases of great activity and relatively lull periods as well. And much of this calendar of protests and tactical retreat was decided by Gandhi himself, who apart from being the greatest advocate of peace and violence in modern times, was also a brilliant organiser of mass movements. He understood the people’s pulse like few others.
- Here the movements he launched and led, which eventually and cumulatively shook the very foundations of the British Raj:
- Champaran Movement: The Champaran Movement is regarded as the first modern civil disobedience movement in India. It took place in the then Champaran district of northern Bihar. The Indian labourers and farm-workers here tilled the land but all the profits went to the European landowners. The labourers protested but it was Gandhi’s involvement in their struggle that culminated in the Champaran Agrarian Act, 1918, which helped farmers secure greater rights over their own land. The success of Champaran made many more Indians aware of Gandhi and his principles, and the Congress party found its greatest mass leader.
- Ahmedabad Mill Worker Satyagraha:In March 1918, under the leadership of Gandhi, there was a strike in the cotton mills. In this strike Gandhi used the weapon of Hunger strike.
- Kheda Satyagraha: In Kheda, Gujarat, despite crop failures, the farmers’ desperate pleas for tax remission fell on deaf ears. Gandhi’s message to them was to withhold revenue and fight peacefully but bravely against such vindictiveness and tyranny. Another rising star of the freedom movement, SardarVallabhbhai Patel, also played a key role in this struggle of 1918. The local government eventually came out with a solution that was acceptable to both parties. The Champaran and Kheda campaigns were limited to specific areas, but they gave Gandhi the confidence to launch his major pan-Indian movements in future.
- Rowlatt Act Satyagraha: During World War I (1914–18), the British government of India enacted a series of repressive emergency powers that were intended to combat subversive activities. The Anarchical and Revolutionary Crimes Act of 1919 popularly known as Rowlatt Act (Black Act) which was passed on 10thMarch, 1919, authorised the government to imprison or confine, without a trial, any person associated with seditious activities which led to nationwide unrest. Gandhiji called for a one-day general strike (Rowlatt Satyagraha) throughout the country.
- Non-Cooperation Movement: The Non-Cooperation movement (1920-22) was the first mass movement launched by Gandhi, seeking self-government or swaraj for all Indians. It followed from Gandhi’s deeply held ideals of satyagraha and civil disobedience, and he called upon Indians to boycott all institutions linked to the British including courts and colleges, give up titles and refuse to pay taxes. Audacious in scope, the Non-Cooperation movement may not have been a 100 per cent success, but it made millions of Indians understand the true meaning of a modern, organised political movement and its power.
- Dandi March: An unqualified masterstroke, the Dandi March brought Mahatma Gandhi’s political genius and sense of timing to the fore. He started the historic march from Sabarmati Ashram to the coastal village of Dandi in March 1930. While the basic reason was to protest against the unacceptably high salt tax levied by the British, it turned into something much bigger as thousands of people joined Gandhi on his 24-day march. The Dandi March became the talking point across the country and the whole nation was inspired. From that moment onwards, non-violent resistance against the British became the natural course of action for a vast section of Indians for the remaining years of the Raj.
- Quit India Movement: By the beginning of the 1940s, the British knew that their days in India were numbered, but they used the excuse of World War 2 to delay any talk of India’s independence. In August 1942, the All-India Congress Committee passed the famous ‘Quit India’ resolution in Bombay, under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, who also gave the slogan of ‘Do or Die’. The entire leadership of the Congress was arrested, but that didn’t stop thousands of protests against British rule in every corner of the country. There was no middle path now: the British had to quit India.
Journals of Gandhiji
- Mahatma Gandhi was offered editorship of Young India and Navjivan
- In February 1933 Gandhiji started Harijan, Harijanbandhu, Harijansevak in English, Gujarati and Hindi,
Organisations by Mahatma Gandhi
- Harijan Sevak Sangh
- All India spinners association
- Ahmedabad Textile Labour Association
- All India Village Industries’ Association