Kanaklata Barua aka Birbala was a teenage Indian Independence activist, poet and eminent

cultural figure hailing from Assam. Barua led a procession during the Quit India Movement
in 1942 bearing the national flag where she was shot dead by the British, she bravely faced
bullets and attained martyrdom just at the age of 17 years while making a fierce and
determined contribution to the country’s independence. She nurtured a deep-rooted
resentment against foreign rule since her childhood and wanted to liberate the country.

During the Quit India Movement Barua joined a death squad comprising of youth, known as
Mrityu Vahini. The group decided to hoist the national flag at the local police station on 20
September 1942, following the arrest of all national leaders and raging protests in different
parts of the country. Despite the continuous threats of dire consequences by local police
station the squad carried out the procession undeterred and the procession was led by Barua
unarmed with a do or die slogan. The British started firing the unarmed procession and
Kanaklata was shot during the firing. As the police shot at young Kanaklata, she continued to
hold the flag and did not allow it to fall to the ground until another freedom fighter, Mukunda
Kakati took it from her. He too was shot at by the police and both of them laid down their
lives at the altar of the motherland. However, their sacrifice did not go in vain and another
freedom fighter, Rampati Rajkhowa ultimately succeeded in hoisting the national flag at the
Police Station.

To honor the national hero the Fast Patrol Vessel ICGS Kanak Lata Barua of the Indian Coast
Guard, was named after Barua and was commissioned in 1997 and decommission in 2017.
Recently, in 2020 A Fast Patrol Vessel (FPV) named ICGS Kanaklata Barua was
commissioned in the Indian Coast Guard in Kolkata. A life size statue of hers was unveiled at
Gauripur in 2011. Her impassioned speech before her death, remains a source of inspiration
for many. She laid down her life for the freedom of the country at the age of 17 years.

This could be included in the conclusion: The struggles and triumphant feats of the
heroes and veeranganas of India’s freedom struggle like Durgawati Devi, Birbala
Kanaklata, Khudi Ram Bose, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar must be included in our
history books. History written without reverential references to them will be
incomplete.