A greater harm was caused by the `divide and rule’ policy of the British. The communal virus thus injected into the political body of the country had vitiated the relations between the Hindus and the Muslims to such an extent that it forced the Indians to agree for the division of India into two independent states. Though Andhras living in the coastal and Rayalaseema districts managed to keep away from this communal divide, those living in the State of Hyderabad had to undergo a lot of suffering in 1946-48 in the wake of a fanatic struggle carried on by Razakars to carve out the Nizam’s dominions as an independent Muslim-dominated State. However, the timely action by the Union Government of Free India saved the situation.
But, as mentioned earlier, some of the measures introduced by the alien rulers to safeguard their own interests proved very beneficial to Indians. The political and administrative unity brought in by the Britishers, helped the various, linguistic groups to come together and take pride in being the citizens of a great country with common cultural traditions. The rail-road, the telegraph, the telephone and the newspaper brought all those living in various corners of this vast country come together and to understand each other. This system of communication also helped the transit of goods from one place to the other and was of immense help during the times of famine.
The Britishers, wanted to keep India as a producer of raw materials and as such harnessed the rivers by constructing dams. The dam on the Godavari at Dowleswaram was constructed in 1852 and the one on the Krishna at Vijayawada in 1855. These naturally helped the farmers of the delta areas, though they could not solve the problem of poverty that tormented the people at large.
It must, however, be conceded that the foreigner’s rule had resulted in a renaissance that yielded fruitful results in social and cultural fields. The introduction of English as a medium of teaching in schools is the main factor that contributed to this transformation, though it was mainly intended to train Indians for ministerial jobs. This new system of education, unlike the old traditional one, threw open the gates of the schools to all Indians irrespective of caste or creed. A certificate from such a school served as a passport for a job in the service of the Government. The Christian missionaries from England and America also played a notable part in spreading the system.
The introduction of printing press in the State in or about 1810 helped in bringing knowledge to the door-steps of the ordinary readers. As a result, educational activity in Andhra as well as in the rest of India, was influenced by European literatures, modern sciences and democratic ideas that sprung from the knowledge. This knowledge brought out many revolutionary changes in the religious and cultural fields.
This contact with European thought enabled many Hindu leaders to reinterpret Hinduism to strengthen it to withstand the threat from the proselytisation carried on by the Christian missionaries. The reaction to it resulted in the founding of the Brahma Samaj and the Arya Samaj. At the same time, Europeans such as Anne Besant, captivated by the merits of the ancient Hindu and Buddhist thoughts, founded the Theosophical Society. All these gained some following in Andhra, especially among the educated classes.
Telugu literature also underwent a sea-change under the influence of the English writings. The credit for pioneering such a change goes to Kandukuri Veeresalingam Pantulu. He was also responsible for bringing in many social reforms, the main thrust of which was the upliftment of the women’s status.
All these revolutionary changes in social and cultural fields found their expression in the urge for freedom among people.
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