The Swadeshi (Bengali: স্বদেশী, Hindi: स्वदेशी) movement, part of the Indian independence movement, was an economic strategy aimed at removing the British Empire from power and improving economic conditions in India by following the principles of swadeshi (self-sufficiency), which had some success. Strategies of the Swadeshi movement involved boycotting British products and the revival of domestic-made products and production techniques.
The Swadeshi Movement began with the partition of Bengal by the Viceroy of India, Lord Curzon, 1905 and continued up to 1908. It was the most successful of the pre-Gandhian movements. Its chief architects were Aurobindo Ghosh, Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Bipin Chandra Pal and Lala Lajpat Rai. Swadeshi, as a strategy, was a key focus of Mahatma Gandhi, who described it as the soul of Swaraj (self rule). However, there is no corroborative evidence to support the idea that Swadeshi was successful at punishing the British.
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During 1900, Bengal had become the nerve centre for Indian Nationalism. In order to weaken it, Lord Curzon (1899–1905) then Viceroy of India, proposed partition of Bengal. The official reason was stated as Administrative Convinience due to size of Bengal. But Partition itself was based on religion and Political agenda. By this scheme, Bengal was to be divided into two region - Eastern Bengal and Assam with population of 31 million and Muslim majority, Where as other region had the Rest of Bengal with population of 54 million with a Bihari and Oriya majority. Thus to reduce the nationalist movement in Bengal and there by in the in entire Country. Bengal Partition was to take place on 16 October 1905.
H.H. Riseley, home secretary to Govt of India, stated on 6th december 1904: " Bengal united is a power; Bengal divided will pull in several different ways. That is what congress leaders feel; their apprehensions are perfectly correct and they form one of the great merits of the scheme...in this scheme...one of our main objects is to split up and there by weaken a solid body of opponents to our rule"
This way British tried to curb Bengalee influnece on nationalist movement and also introduced a new form of division - Religion based. There by creating challenge in front of Indian National Congress which was slowly becoming as main opponent to British Rule.
But The Indian Nationalist saw design behind partition and condemed it unanimously. Thus began anti partition and Swadeshi movement.
Phase Ι (1903–1905)
Proposal of partition became publicaly known in 1903, followed by immediate and sponteneous protest in all over Bengal. 500 Protest meetings were held in East Bengal alone. 50,000 copies of pamphlet, detailed critique of partition, was distributed. This phase is marked by moderate techniques of protest such as petitions, public meetings, press campaign etc. Objective was to turn public opinion in India as well as in England against partition. Prominant leaders were Surendranath Banerjea, Krishna kumar mitra, Prithwishchande ray etc
Some people and organisations such as Rajiv Dixit, Swami Ramdev and the Swadeshi Jagaran Manch, a wing of the Sangh Parivar, are spreading the concept of Swadeshi in modern India.
The word Swadeshi derives from Sanskrit and is a sandhi or conjunction of two Sanskrit words. Swa means "self" or "own" and desh means country, so Swadesh would be "own country", and Swadeshi, the adjectival form, would mean "of one's own country". The opposite of Swadeshi in Sanskrit is videshi or "not of one's country".
Another example of sandhi in Sanskrit is Swaraj. Swa is self (related to Latin reflexive root "su-") and raj is "rule" (related to English "rich", Latin "rex", and German "Reich").
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