Veer Narayan Singh of the Binjhwar Tribe
Context:
The Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh Memorial & Tribal Freedom Fighters Museum was recently inaugurated in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, as part of the Janjatiya Gaurav Varsh celebrations.
About Veer Narayan Singh
Veer Narayan Singh was the zamindar of Sonakhan in the Raipur district of Chhattisgarh.
He was born in 1796
His ancestors were originally from the Gond tribe but later affiliated with the Binjhwar tribe
He is revered as the First Freedom Fighter of Chhattisgarh and the first martyr from the state in the 1857 rebellion
Role in the Freedom Struggle:
When a severe famine struck the region in 1856, Veer Narayan Singh first pleaded with a trader to share his plentiful grain stocks with the starving people.
When the trader refused, he broke open the locks of the grain stores and distributed the food to the people
The British arrested him for this act and imprisoned him in Raipur Jail.
He later escaped from prison with the help of soldiers and guards
After escaping, he formed an army of about 500 soldiers.
On November 29, 1856, his troops defeated the British forces
The British returned with a larger force and captured him.
He was brutally executed at a crossroads on December 10, 1857 and became the first martyr from Chhattisgarh in the War of Independence.
About Binjhwar tribe:
The Binjhia (also known as Binjhoa,Binjhawar) is an ethnic group found in Odisha and Jharkhand.
Not a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group but classified as a Scheduled Tribe by the Indian government.
Binjhia is derived from the word Vindhyas meaning Vindhya Hills as it is believed that their original home was Kolanagari in the Vindhya valley.
From Vindhya hills they moved east-wards to Chhotnagpur, Keonjhar, Sundargarh and Barasombar, where locals were called them as Binjhia.