Context:
President of India honoured the memory of Alluri Sitarama Raju, during ceremony commemorating his 125th birth anniversary.
About Alluri Sitarama Raju:
- An Indian revolutionary who led an armed campaign against British colonial rule in India.
- Born in a small village near the Coastal city of Visakhapatnam Andhra Pradesh
- He was an exceptionally effective guerrilla warrior.
- Nicknamed “Manyam Veerudu” (Hero of the Jungle) by local villagers.
Prime Minister unveiled a bronze statue of Alluri Sitharama Raju in Andhra Pradesh, marking his 125th birth anniversary.
Contributions in Freedom Struggle
- Sitarama Raju, under the influence of Gandhi’s Non-cooperation movement, inspired the tribals to seek justice in the local panchayat courts and boycott the colonial courts.
- He made Adivasi areas in the Eastern Ghats and started to work for the Adivasis, who were living in abject poverty and being fleeced by police, forest and revenue officials, in ‘Manyam’ (forest area).
- He was against the 1882 Madras Forest Act, which effectively restricted the free movement of Adivasis in their forest habitats and prevented them from practicing a traditional form of agriculture known as ‘podu’.
- In 1922, he launched the Rampa Rebellion against the British.
Rampa Rebellion was a tribal uprising in the Godavari Agency of Madras Presidency which was triggered by the implementation of ‘The Madras Forest Act, 1882’.
- Alluri Sitarama Raju, along with 500 tribals, attacked the police stations of Chintapalli, Krishnadevipeta, and Rajavommangi and looted police carbine rifles and ammunition.
- In 1924, Raju was taken into police custody, tied to a tree, and shot by a public execution, effectively ending the armed rebellion.
Source: The Hindu