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Tribal Dispossessed of Their Land Changes in Forest Laws
The Company took over large tracts of land The Company also made changes in the forest
cultivated by the tribal. The landless tribal laws. It declared forest as state property.
became wage labourers and were forced to grow Restrictions were put on the collection of forest
cash crops. You have read in the previous chap- produce, on practicing shifting cultivation, on
ter about the rising trend towards the cultivation cutting trees, on hunting and so on. In some
of cash crops. These tribal were paid very low parts, tribal were not even allowed to stay in the
wages. The tribal resisted the loss of their land as forest. This tribal protested against these laws
they considered themselves the natural owners of since they considered the forest and all its pro-
the land they had been cultivating for centuries. duce as belonging to them.
High Revenue Demand Role of Traders and Moneylenders
The Company did not deprive all tribal groups of The tribal were largely self-sufficient. However,
their land. Some groups were allowed to retain for some things, they had to depend on outsid-
their land on the condition that they would pay ers. The traders charged very high prices for the
revenue to the British. However, the revenue goods they sold to the tribal. Also, the tribal often
fixed was often very high. The method of collec- had to take short-term loans from moneylenders,
tion was also strict. When the tribal were unable who charged a very high rate of interest from the
to pay, they were evicted from their land. The illiterate tribal. So, the tribal were often caught in
landless tribal were pushed into forced labour. the cycle of debt. They considered them as evil
Settled Agriculture influences and resisted their presence amongst
The Company wanted a regular source of them.
income. It found that pastoralists were difficult to TRIBAL REVOLTS
monitor as they neither had a permanent home Tribal communities revolted more often and far
nor a settled occupation. So, it forced many tribal more violently than any other community,
to become settled agriculturists and pay a fixed including peasants, in India. The insurgency of
revenue to the Company. The tribal protested as the Adivasis was a deliberate and desperate way
the land was either not productive enough or its to escape from the clutches of extortionate
fertility declined after continuous cultivation for a usurers, venal police, irresponsible officials and
few years. the like.
Kol Rebellion
The Kol Rebellion of 1831-32 and the Santhal
Rebellion of 1855 were major rebellions. The
Oraons under the leadership of Jatra Oraon also
rebelled. The most widespread and long-lasting
protest, however, was that of the Mundas.
Santhal Hul (1855)
The Santhal Hul (rebellion) occurred in the
regions of present-day Jharkhand, Odisha and
West Bengal against the British as well the
The tribals still follow a traditional
way of life. Zamindari system from 1855 until 1856 when
Social Science-8 40
