The Nirvik Bureau, Bhubaneswar, 2nd October 2023
Upendranath Panda was born on 3rd March 1903 in Adhalpanka village, near Agarpara in Bhadrak district. While he was pursuing his Intermediate Arts in Ravenshaw College, he was inspired by Harekrushna Mahtab and joined the freedom struggle in 1918 when he was only fifteen years old. In 1921, when Harekrushna Mahatab chose Balasore district as his field of activities for the spread of non-cooperation movement, inter-alia, he also decided to launch an Odia newspaper in Balasore which would carry the message of non-cooperation. In pursuance of this objective, he started “Prajatantra” in Balasore in 1923 which was edited by Upendranath Panda. Besides looking after the newspaper, Upendranath also assisted Mahatab in many other ways to make the non-cooperation movement a success in Balasore. Initially, Prajatantra was a weekly newspaper. But gradually it became so popular and widely circulated that it was made a daily in 1930. When the Salt Satyagraha was started in 1930, the satyagraha in Inchudi near Balasore was only the second most important event in India after Dandi in terms of participation, fervour, and intensity of response. This has been clearly stated in government and media reports. Behind this success lies the contribution of “Prajatantra”, which carried the news of salt manufacturing in detail much to the liking of the people. As a result, popular response to join the salt manufacturing in Inchudi grew up. Observing the readers’ response to the newspaper, it was made a daily and it got sold like hot cakes during the Salt Satyagraha. Not only the Salt Satyagraha, but also the peasant movement in Kanika received wide coverage in “Prajatantra”, which made the issue draw national attention. So, the major credit for the success of “Prajatantra” was naturally given to Upendranath. Whatever was earned from the sale of “Prajatantra”, it met the expenses of seven or eight activists lodged in Congress Ashram in Balasore who were associated with the newspaper. Besides, looking after “Prajatantra”, he also assisted Mahatab and Gopabandhu Das in distribution of relief to the people who were devastated by flood and other natural calamities in Balasore district. In 1925-26, a national school was set up in Guamal in Bhadrak where apart from mass education, teaching and training on constructive programmes such as khadi works, arousing awareness against untouchability, and women’s education, etc., were imparted. Upendranath Panda was supervising these programmes of the school. He also set up a cooperative society in Guamal for providing easy agricultural loans to the agriculturists of that area. This society took up a leading role not only in making easy loans available to the agriculturists at nominal interest rates, but also in the expansion of the message of independence among them.
Because of its anti-government propaganda, “Prajatantra” came under heavy scrutiny of the government for which the government ordered its closure and arrested all the activists including Upendranath who were associated with it. After being convicted, he was sent to Hazaribagh jail where his health deteriorated. He was, therefore, released after ten months. Because of poor health he could not stay far away from his village. That’s why he made Bhadrak his place of duty where he got himself involved with the problems of the people. He was elected to the District Board of Balasore from Bhadrak and introduced some welfare programmes in the field of primary education, health, and communication. After the closure of Guamal national school he opened “charkha” and weaving centres in many villages around Bhadrak, which acted as nucleus of the freedom struggle.
During the Quit India movement in 1942, he became very active in spreading the anti- government message in villages. Unfortunately, he lost his wife during this time and one of his daughters became blind due to lack of proper medical treatment. He, therefore, came back to his own village Adhalpanka where he remained engaged in supervising developmental works. He established a minor school and High school there in 1944 for which he also received liberal assistance of land from Krupasindhu Panda. Besides, he also set up a post office, made good roads, and arranged irrigation and electrification of villages. He was also a prolific writer and dramatist who composed many poems and dramas but many of them have not been published. He has been felicitated by the government for his contribution to the freedom struggle. He died on 17 August 1985.
(We acknowledge that the Platform for Citizen Engagement India, Government of India, holds the Copyright of the original article. This article has been slightly modified from the original.)
