Colonial Assam
Part of a series on the |
History of Assam |
---|
Categories |
Colonial Assam (1826–1947) refers to the period in the
British annexation of Assam
The region that came to be known as
Bengal Presidency (1826–1873)
Assam was initially included as a part of the
Planter Raj
Under the Wasteland Rules of 1838, it became nearly impossible for natives to start plantations.[
Protests and Revolts
There were immediate protests and revolts against the British occupation. In 1828, two years after the Treaty of Yandabo,
Chief Commissioner's Province (1874–1905)
In February 1874 Assam proper,
In September of the same year,
The new administration effected a policy of migrations: tea laborers into tea estates and agriculturalists from East Bengal into Assam ignoring history and culture of peoples.[14]
The new Province included the five districts of Assam proper (
In 1889, oil was discovered at Digboi giving rise to an oil industry. In this period Nagaon witnessed starvation deaths, and there was a decrease in the indigenous population, which was more than adequately compensated by the immigrant labor. Colonialism was well entrenched, and the tea, oil and coal-mining industries were putting increasing pressure on the agricultural sector which was lagging behind.
The peasants, burdened under the opium monopoly and the
Eastern Bengal and Assam under Lt. Governor (1906–1912)
Bengal was
The
Beginning 1905 peasants from
Assam Legislative Council (1912–1920)
The administrative unit was reverted to a Chief Commissioner's Province (Assam plus Sylhet),[16] with a Legislative Council added and Assam Province was created. The council had 25 members, of which the Chief Commissioner and 13 nominated members[clarification needed] formed the bulk. The other 12 members were elected by local public bodies like municipalities, local boards, landholders, tea planters and Muslims.
As Assam became involved in the
Dyarchy (1921–1937)
Under the Government of India Act 1919 the Assam Legislative Council membership was increased to 53, of which 33 were elected by special constituencies. The powers of the council were increased too; but in effect, the official group, consisting of the Europeans, the nominated members etc. had the most influence. Syed Muhammed Saadulah served as Minister of Education and Agriculture from 1924 to 1929. He was later made a Member of the Executive Council of the Governor of Assam holding the portfolios for Law and Order and Public Works from 1929 to 1930 and for Finance and Law and Order from 1930 to 1934.
Assam Legislative Assembly (1937–1947)
Under the Government of India Act 1935, the council was expanded into an assembly of 108 members, with even more powers. The period saw the sudden rise of Gopinath Bordoloi and Muhammed Saadulah and their tussle for power and influence.
Notes
- ^ (Bannerje 1992, pp. 4–5)
- ^ (Bannerje 1992, pp. 5–6)
- ^ (Bannerje 1992, p. 7)
- ^ " During the 1840s and 1850s, alongside the Chinese and the Nagas, the Assam Company tried its best to recruit from amongst other local groups in Upper Assam." (Sharma 2009:1293) " Assamese elites played a key role in helping the tea industry identify Kacharis as potential labour." (Sharma 2009:1300)
- ^ "During the 1840s and 1850s, the East India Company arranged to sell Bengal opium in Assam through government agents. This met with little success due to the abundance of the local supply. At this juncture, a British judge's suggestion was, 'Opium they should have, but to get it they should be made to work for it.' In 1861, a ban on local opium cultivation was instituted in Assam. Opium sales were henceforth to be a state monopoly." (Sharma 2009:1297)
- ^ "In September 1861, nearly four thousand peasants in and around Phulaguri came down to the office of the district magistrate at Nowgong and waited upon a deputation to him with the object of presenting a memorandum to protest against government proposal to introduce License Act, Income Tax on betel nut etc." (Chattopadhyay 1991:817)
- ^ "(T)he Lieutenant on duty, along with a large contingent of police force, ordered the peasants to disperse. Peasants defied the order which resulted in an encounter causing the death of a few peasants and also of the European lieutenant." (Chattopadhyay 1991:817)
- ^ (Hossain 2013:260)
- ^ "The tea planters had long demanded the creation of an exclusive province to secure their own interests and the efficient use of state tools." (Hossain 2013:260)
- ^ "To make (the Province) financially viable, and to accede to demands from professional groups, (the colonial administration) decided in September 1874 to annex the Bengali-speaking and populous district of Sylhet."(Hossain 2013:260)
- ^ " A memorandum of protest against the transfer of Sylhet was submitted to the viceroy on 10 August 1874 by leaders of both the Hindu and Muslim communities." (Hossain 2013:261)
- ^ "It was also decided that education and justice would be administered from Calcutta University and the Calcutta High Court respectively." (Hossain 2013:262)
- ^ "They could also see that the benefits conferred by the tea industry on the province would also prove profitable for them. For example, those who were literate were able to obtain numerous clerical and medical appointments in tea estates, and the demand for rice to feed the tea labourers noticeably augmented its price in Sylhet and Assam enabling the Zaminders (mostly Hindu) to dispose of their produce at a better price than would have been possible had they been obliged to export it to Bengal." (Hossain 2013:262)
- ^ "The administration of this new province adopted two major policies: first, it would ensure the smooth recruitment of tea labourers from outside and, secondly, it would oversee a policy of sponsored migration of Bengali peasants from East Bengal districts to the countryside of Sylhet and Assam to facilitate the expansion of agriculture. This was done under the slogan 'Grow more food'. Evidently, colonial officialdom did not consider historical or cultural contiguity when it declared Assam to be a new administrative province." (Hossain 2013:262)
- ^ The Assam Legislative Assembly
- ^ (Imperial Gazetteer of India 1931, p. 32)
- ^ "After the formation of a few district Congress Committees, the Assam provincial Congress Committee was constituted in June, 1921. By then the Assam Association had fully assimilated itself with the Congress." (Saikia 1985:397)
References
- Bannerje, A C (1992). "Chapter 1: The New Regime, 1826-31". In Barpujari, H K (ed.). The Comprehensive History of Assam: Modern Period. Vol. IV. Guwahati: Publication Board, Assam. pp. 1–43.
- Baruah, S. L. (1993), Last Days of Ahom Monarchy, New Delhi
{{citation}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Gait, Edward A (1906), A History of Assam, Calcutta
{{citation}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Chattopadhyay, Ramkrishna (1991). "Colonisation of Assam and Phulaguri Peasant Uprising (1861): Summary". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 52: 817–818. JSTOR 44142714.
- Guha, Amalendu (1977), Planter-Raj to Swaraj, Delhi
{{citation}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Hossain, Ashfaque (2013). "The Making and Unmaking of Assam-Bengal Borders and the Sylhet Referendum". Modern Asian Studies. 47 (1): 250–287. S2CID 145546471.
- Saikia, Rajendranath (1985). "Assam Association as the Forerunner of Congress Movement". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 46: 393–399. JSTOR 44141379.
- Sharma, Jayeeta (2009). "'Lazy' Natives, Coolie Labour, and the Assam Tea Industry". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 43 (6): 1287–1324. JSTOR 40285014.
- Sharma, Jayeeta (2011), Empire's Garden: Assam and the Making of India, Durham and London: Duke University Press
- Assam with Bhutan (Map). Imperial Gazetteer of India. 1931. p. 32. Retrieved February 5, 2013.