Major attack at the Writers sent shock waves to the Raj

A blazing flame of devotion to the Motherland coursed through the veins of a young Bengali revolutionary. Undeterred by fear, he took aim at the emblem of British oppression, the esteemed judge Mr. Gerlick. In a resounding act of defiance, on that fateful day, July 27, 1931, at the premises of the Alipore Sessions Court in Kolkata, Kanailal Bhattacharya unleashed a relentless storm of justice. The echoes of his courage reverberated through history, for it was a solemn vengeance for the unjust hanging of fellow warrior Dinesh Gupta. In this courageous act, Bhattacharya too met his martyrdom, sealing his fate alongside the echoes of his resolute spirit. Found tucked within his pocket, a note bore witness to the firebrand’s unwavering commitment. Signed as Bimal Gupta, the defiant soul proclaimed, “Let this be the inferno that consumes the tarnished reward for the unlawful noose that crushed the life of Dinesh Gupta!”

During the 1928 Calcutta Congress Session, Kolkata became a center of intense anti-British political activities in Bengal, making it a hotbed of revolution. Influenced by leaders like Subhas Chandra Bose, the younger generation of Congress Party members advocated for Complete Independence or Poorna Swaraj, in contrast to Gandhi’s plea for dominion status. The city witnessed an unprecedented display of protest as 2000 volunteers, dressed in regular army uniforms, marched from the Congress Session venue to the heavily fortified Fort William, symbolizing their defiance against British rule. This event marked the birth of the Bengal Volunteers, an underground nationalist revolutionary organization with branches in Kolkata, Dhaka, Chattogram, and other cities across Bengal. Notably, this era was characterized by student rebellions, targeted assassinations of oppressive officers, and retaliation against the brutal treatment inflicted upon Indian political prisoners. One such act of rebellion was carried out by Benoy Basu, a medical student from Dhaka and a skilled tennis player. Benoy had already successfully breached security and assassinated the notorious IGP, Mr. Lowman, in broad daylight. His elusive nature frustrated the British police, including even the notorious British police chief, Sir Charles Tegart.

On the other hand, imagine a young man named Dinesh Gupta, who, despite his youth, possessed remarkable expertise as a firearms trainer. He dedicated himself to coaching the budding cadets of the Bengal Volunteers, imparting essential skills in handling firearms. Accompanied by Badal Gupta, Dinesh entered the picture. Among the trio, Benoy stood as the oldest, exceeding the age of 20, a ripe 21 years old. It is worth noting that none of these three brave revolutionaries were deprived in any manner; they hailed from privileged backgrounds. However, their profound love for the nation and unwavering desire for freedom led them to forgo a life of luxury. Assigned with the duty to eliminate Colonel N.S. Simpson, the Inspector General of Prisons and Calcutta Police, renowned for his oppressive treatment of political prisoners, the Bengal Volunteers named this mission “Operation Freedom.” On December 8, 1930, a mere two days after Dinesh’s 19th birthday, the trio discreetly infiltrated the Writers’ Building, discreetly attired in European clothing. With determined eyes, they looked for Colonel N.S. Simpson and upon sighting him, Benoy swiftly fulfilled his aim with a fatal gunshot. The trio then unleashed chaos throughout the premises, engaging in a fierce battle with the police, now remembered as the famous “Corridor Warfare.” Nevertheless, as their ammunition began to dwindle, the three freedom fighters found themselves trapped, encircled by relentless British police forces. Even in the face of the worst possible outcome, they refused to surrender. Staying true to their fervent convictions, they took the drastic step of embracing death, as planned.

In an act of ultimate sacrifice, Badal swiftly consumed potassium cyanide, succumbing to its deadly effects on the spot. Meanwhile, Dinesh and Benoy employed their own revolvers, turning the weapons upon themselves. Benoy, tragically, succumbed to his injuries on December 13, 1930. However, Dinesh managed to survive and was subsequently put on trial. The Alipore Sessions Court in Kolkata established a special tribunal to oversee his proceedings, ultimately condemning him to death. For three months, Dinesh stayed within the confines of Alipore Jail, composing letters from his prison cell that delved into the meaning of life and expounded upon his unwavering belief in the greatness of self-sacrifice for one’s motherland. These profound words served as a wellspring of inspiration for the patriotic youth of Bengal.

Finally, the fateful day arrived. With unwavering resolve, Dinesh, the revolutionary hero, welcomed death within the walls of Alipore Jail on July 7, 1931, a mere 19 years old. The entire Bengal mourned on that day, profoundly moved by this sacrifice. Indeed, this selfless act of heroism further fortified the determination of Indian revolutionaries who yearned for freedom.

‘Energy of an Englishman & heart of a Bengali Mother’

Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar is considered as one of the pillars of Bengal renaissance. In other words, he managed to continue the reforms movement that was started by Raja Rammohan Roy. Vidyasagar was a well-known writer, intellectual and above all a staunch follower of humanity. He brought a revolution in the education system of Bengal. In his book, “Barno-Porichoy” (Introduction to the letter), Vidyasagar refined the Bengali language and made it accessible to the common strata of the society. The title ‘Vidyasagar’ (ocean of knowledge) was given to him due to his vast knowledge in almost all the subjects. Poet Michael Madhusudan Dutta while writing about Ishwar Chandra said: “The genius and wisdom of an ancient sage, the energy of an Englishman and the heart of a Bengali mother”.

Yes, its 200 years, Ishwar Chandra Bandopadhyaya, was born on 26 September, 1820 in Birsingha village of Midnapore district, West Bengal. His father Thakurdas Bandyopadhyay and mother Bhagavati Devi were very religious persons. Their economic condition was not that stable and subsequently the childhood days of Vidyasagar were spent in abject poverty. After the completion of elementary education at the village school, his father took him to Calcutta (Kolkata). It is believed that Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar learned English numbers by following the mile-stones labels on his way to Calcutta at the age of eight years. Ishwar Chandra was a brilliant student. His quest for knowledge was so intense that he used to study on street light as it was not possible for him to afford a gas lamp at home. He cleared all the examinations with excellence and in quick succession. He was rewarded with a number of scholarships for his academic performance. To support himself and the family Ishwar Chandra also took a part-time job of teaching at Jorashanko. In the year 1839, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar successfully cleared his Law examination. In 1841, at the age of twenty one years, Ishwar Chandra joined the Fort William College as a head of the Sanskrit department. After five years, in 1846, Vidyasagar left Fort William College and join the Sanskrit College as ‘Assistant Secretary’. In the first year of service, Ishwar Chandra recommended a number of changes to the existing education system. This report resulted into a serious altercation between Ishwar Chandra and College Secretary Rasomoy Dutta. Following this, Vidyasagar resigned from Sanskrit College and rejoined Fort William College but as a head clerk. Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar would start crying in distress whenever he saw poor and weak people lying on the footpath and street. He used to spend a part of his scholarships and salary for the welfare of those poor people. He would also buy medicine for the sick.

Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar initiated the concept of widow remarriage and raised concern for the abolition of child-marriage and polygamy. He also opened the doors of the colleges and other educational institutions to lower caste students, which was earlier reserved only for the Brahmins. For his immense generosity and kind-heartedness, people started addressing him as “Dayar Sagar” (ocean of kindness). One day, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar and his few friends decided to collect donations to form Calcutta University. He traveled across Bengal and neighboring states asking people to donate for the foundation. While doing so, one day he reached outside the palace of an influential King. After hearing his plea the King, pulled one of his shoes and dropped into Vidyasagar’s bag as donation. Vidyasagar thanked Nawab and left. The very next day Vidyasagar organized an auction of the Nawab’s shoe and earned Rs. 1000. The Nawab after hearing that his shoe has fetched so much amount of money, he himself gave a similar amount of money as donation.

Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, the great scholar, academician and reformer passed away on 29 July, 1891 at the age of 70 years. After his death Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore said “One wonders how God, in the process of producing forty million Bengalis, produced a man!”

Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar

Macro Economics:: World’s most populous country & its vibrant middle class

As per the recent UN reports, India has surpassed China in terms of population and the two achievements almost came together, one becoming the most populous nation and the other being the fifth largest economy of the world. It is very interesting that we have left behind our past colonizers i.e U.K, which is on the sixth position based on the calculations by Bloomberg based on the IMF database. Uday Kotak, CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank, expressed in a tweet, “Proud moment for India to pip UK, our colonial ruler, as the 5th largest economy: India $3.5trn vs UK $3.2trn.But a reality check of population denominator: India: 1.4 bn vs UK.068 bn.Hence,per capita GDP we at $2,500 vs $47,000. We have miles to go…Let’s be at it!”

A huge section of the Indian society and their contributions to the economy has again become the nucleus of discussions, which is the middle class. Interestingly, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in an event in recent times that she identifies herself as ‘middle class’, to convey that she understands the pressures and problems they face. The FM also stated that the government does not tax income under Rs.5 lakh, with no extra taxes being imposed on the ‘middle class’. However, we must remember that there is no specific definition of who can be called ‘economically’ a middle class. There are several approaches to define it depending on the author, which can span across income brackets. People Research on India’s Consumer Economy (PRICE Research) states that ‘middle-class households earn from Rs.5 lakhs to Rs.30 lakhs a year’. On the other hand, National Council For Applied Economic Research (NCAER), a prominent independent non-profit research organisation from a 2010 survey says that the middle-class earns between Rs.2 lakhs to Rs.10 lakhs.

Now, it depends on how you define middle-class, by income or by consumption. It can be done both ways, by income in purchasing power parity (PPP), the Indian middle class has an urban bias, however, rural India is fast catching up. But when measured by consumption, across a range of goods and services, India’s middle-class is large and growing. According to National Family Health Survey or NFHS, 93.3 per cent of Indian households own mobile phones, 67.8 per cent own television sets, 49.7 per cent own two-wheelers and 7.5 per cent own four-wheelers.  Even the world’s largest maker of air-conditioners is the latest to bet big on the Indian market. In an interview with the Financial Times newspaper recently, the chief executive of Japan’s Daikin, Masanori Togawa, said that India “would turn into a market as giant as China in the future, as the middle class and the wealthy are growing tremendously.” India is also the world’s third largest auto market after China and the US with sales of cars and SUVs in calendar 2022 rising to 4.3 million units. In scooters and motorbikes, India and China were neck to neck in calendar 2022 with sales of 20 million units each.

There is no doubt that Indian economy has huge potentials having this large middle class segment as its backbone and being one of the fastest growing economies in the world. But despite all these factors it is noteworthy that we are below China, in terms of per capita income and average wealth per adult and there may be various reasons for that, inequalities in income level remains an important factor in that regard. Interestingly, there are reductions in the corporate tax rates for the corporates in India, however, the individual tax rates are always on the higher side and this shows the honesty of the individual, middle class tax payers and their contributions to the economy.

Author: Boddhisatya Tarafdar Banker, a history-enthusiast & an observer of Indian economy & aspects related to geopolitics

Design a site like this with WordPress.com
Get started