History: what was your India like in 1919?

Introduction: I believe that while we shouldn’t dwell on the past, we

also shouldn’t forget it. India has a very vast history and in order to
talk about the particular year 1919 in depth I must first provide some
background information. Britain established east India company in
India in the year 1500’s and increased and made its footings, and in
India and started ruling over in the year 1858. India was under British
rule for more than 100 years up-until the year 1947 when it gained
independence.

India’s map
Source: nzhistory

Major events in the year 1919: It was just after the end of first world
war and India was still recovering from the aftermath of Spanish flu.
Around that time Britishers passed The Rowlatt Act which gave them
the power to arrest people without any trial which made the public
agitated as their rights were being taken away and the brutality of
the British government was increasing day by day. On 13th April 1919
in Amritsar people had gathered in Jallianwala Bagh on the occasion
of Baishakhi (Sikh Newyear) as well as to peacefully protest against
the rowlatt act. General Dyer ordered his troops to open fire which
led to the to the death of 379 people and over 1200 injured. This
incident caused a huge shockwave in India, the general public didn’t
want to feel oppressed in their homeland anymore and the feeling of
resistance against the Britishers was ignited in the hearts of Indians.
This incident was the inception of freedom moment in India. The
britishers to further control the Indian public proceeded to put the
marshal’s law in place in the state of Punjab and Haryana (Currently
the northern part of India) which prohibited the gathering of more
than 2 people at a time. But this didn’t stop freedom fighters like
Gandhi ji who started satyagraha which means Holding firmly/
holding on to truth, a non- violent protest to gain freedom from
British rule. Lala Lajpat Rai another Indian freedom fighter said “India
is a part of the world and revolution is in the air all the world over.
The effort to kill it by repression and suppression is futile, unwise,
and stupid.” (Ghosh may 1 2019 Journal of Asian Studies (2019) 78 (2): 389–397.)

A picture depicting the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre

Source: Narinder Nanu—AFP/Getty Images
 1919 Satyagraha
Source

Revolutionary changes that took place in 1919: In December 1919

Government of India act 1919 was enacted which expanded the right
of Indians in the parliament and established a system of dyarchy
(Dual government) but according to my perspective it was just a
compensation for the Massacre that happened earlier in the year.
Women got right to vote and getting education which was seen as
elite and a sign of wealth status was becoming mainstream and
common for all. The Indian National Anthem written by Sir
Rabindranath Tagore got translated into English, also India’s first art
school Kala Bhavan was established in Shantiniketan, by
Rabindranath Tagore with the funds he received for winning the
noble peace prize for his Literary work “Gitanjali”.
 Kala bhavan in Shantiniketan
Source: Telegraph India

Sir Rabindranath Tagore & English Translation of Indian National Anthem

Source: Indiatoday & Britannica

Conclusion: India has grown a lot as a country from the year 1919,
and still has a lot of potential to grow. The Britishers used the divide
and rule method to rule over India for more than 100 years but the
moment every Indian decided to join their hands the britishers had
to backdown. Conflicts of opinion are very prevalent in India as there
is so much cultural diversity, but that’s what makes India beautiful.
Unity in its diversity. I hope not only India but countries all over the
world could live peacefully with each other and try to understand
each-others culture with open mind, so that the history doesn’t
repeat itself.

India after independence

Source: Geology.com