Janjatiya Gaurav Divas

Subject – Governance

Context – Janjatiya Gaurav Divas on Nov. 15

Concept –

As a part of the year-long commemoration of 75 years of Independence, the Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved declaration of November 15 as “Janjatiya Gaurav Divas” to remember the contributions of tribal freedom fighters.
The date was chosen as it was the birth anniversary of Birsa Munda, a tribal freedom fighter revered as “bhagwan” by tribal communities.

Birsa Munda

He was an Indian tribal freedom fighter, religious leader, and folk hero who belonged to the Munda tribe, in the Chotanagpur Plateau area.
He spearheaded a tribal religious millenarian movement that arose in the Bengal Presidency (now Jharkhand) in the late 19th century, during the British Raj, thereby making him an important figure in the history of the Indian independence movement.
His portrait hangs in the Indian Parliament Museum; he is the only tribal leader to have been so honored.
Also known as Dharti Aaba (Father of Earth), Birsa Munda is known to have mobilised the tribal community against the British and had also forced the colonial officials to introduce laws protecting the land rights of the tribals.

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’.
Members of the Munda and Oraon community joined the Birsait sect and it turned into a challenge to British conversion activities.
Further, he urged the Mundas to give up drinking liquor, clean their village, and stop believing in witchcraft and sorcery.