The Salt march, also known as the Salt Satyagraha, Dandi March, and the Dandi Satyagraha, was an act of nonviolent civil disobedience in colonial India, led by Mahatma Gandhi. The 24-day march lasted from 12 March 1930 to 5 April 1930 as a direct action campaign of tax resistance and nonviolent protest against the British salt monopoly. Another reason for this march was that the Civil Disobedience Movement needed a strong inauguration that would inspire more people to follow Gandhi's example. Gandhi started this march with 78 of his trusted volunteers. The march spanned 387 kilometres (240 mi), from Sabarmati Ashram to Dandi, which was called Navsari at that time. Growing numbers of Indians joined them along the way. When Gandhi broke the British Raj salt laws at 8:30 am on 6 April 1930, it sparked large-scale acts of civil disobedience against the salt laws by millions of Indians.
Alluri Sitarama Raju was an Indian revolutionary who waged an armed rebellion against the British colonial rule in India. Born in present-day Andhra Pradesh, he was involved in opposing the British in response to the 1882 Madras Forest Act that effectively restricted the free movement of adivasis in their forest habitats and prevented them from practicing their traditional form of agriculture called 'podu', which threatened their very way of life. Rise in discontent towards the British colonial rule in the backdrop of the non-cooperation movement (1920–1922) led to the Rampa rebellion (1922–1924) in which Alluri Sitarama Raju played the major role as its leader. Mustering combined forces of tribals and other sympathizers to the cause, he engaged in guerilla campaigns against the British forces across the border regions of present-day Andhra Pradesh and Odisha states in India. He was given the title "Manyam Veerudu" by the local people for his exploits.
Diane Judith Nash is an American civil rights activist, and a leader and strategist of the student wing of the Civil Rights Movement.
Usha Mehta was a Gandhian and freedom fighter of India. She is also remembered for organizing the Congress Radio, also called the Secret Congress Radio, an underground radio station, which functioned for few months during the Quit India Movement of 1942. In 1998, the Government of India conferred on her Padma Vibhushan, the second highest civilian award of the Republic of India.
Gaidinliu Pamei popularly known as Rani Gaidinliu was a Naga spiritual and political leader who led a revolt against British rule in India. At the age of 13, she joined the Heraka religious movement of her cousin Haipou Jadonang. The movement later turned into a political movement seeking to drive out the British from Manipur and the surrounding Naga areas. Within the Heraka faith, she came to be considered an incarnation of the Goddess Cherachamdinliu. Gaidinliu was arrested in 1932 at the age of 16, and was sentenced to life imprisonment by the British rulers. Jawaharlal Nehru met her at Shillong Jail in 1937, and promised to pursue her release. Nehru gave her the title of "Rani" ("Queen"), and she gained local popularity as Rani Gaidinliu.
Rani Abbakka Chowta was the first Tuluva Queen of Ullal who fought the Portuguese in the latter half of the 16th century. She belonged to the Chowta dynasty, an indigenous Tuluva dynasty who ruled over parts of coastal Karnataka, India. Their capital was Puttige. The port town of Ullal served as their subsidiary capital. The Portuguese made several attempts to capture Ullal as it was strategically placed. But Abbakka repulsed each of their attacks for over four decades. For her bravery, she came to be known as Abhaya Rani. She was also one of the earliest Indians to fight European colonialism and is sometimes regarded as the 'first woman freedom fighter of India'. In the state of Karnataka, she is celebrated along with Rani Kittur Chennamma, Keladi Chennamma, Rani Chennabhairadevi and Onake Obavva, as the foremost women warriors and patriots.
Bomkai sari or Bomkai Saree is a handloom saree from Odisha, India. It is an origin of Bomkai village from Ganjam district, however later it is mainly produced by the Bhulia community of Subarnapur district. Bomkai is one of the identified Geographical Indications of India. Bomkai Sarees are popular items displayed at various fashion shows.
Maghfoor Ahmad Ajazi was a political activist from Bihar, prominent in the Indian independence movement.
Kailash Chandra Meher is an Indian artist, inventor, and social activist. He is a painter of contemporary modern art paintings and traditional Tussar Pattachitra paintings of Odisha. He was a recipient of the Padma Shri by the Government of India in 2013.
Kuyili was an army commander of queen Velu Nachiyar who participated in campaigns against the East India Company in the 18th century. She is considered the first suicide bomber and "first woman martyr" in Indian history.
Chaturbhuj Meher is an Indian weaver, considered one of the master weavers of the Tie-dye handloom tradition of Odisha. Born on 13 October 1935 at Sonepur in Odisha, he had formal education only up to school level but learned the traditional weaving craft to join Weavers' Service Centre as a Weaver. Vayan Vihar, a handloom factory and Handloom Research and Training Center, a research institute in Sonepur have been founded by him and he is known to have trained over 10,000 craftsmen.
Yashodhara Dasappa (1905-1980) was an Indian independence activist, Gandhian, social reformer and a Minister in the state of Karnataka. She was politically aligned with the Indian National Congress and served as a Minister in the Karnataka state governments headed by S. R. Kanthi (1962) and S. Nijalingappa (1969).
Kiran Bala Bora was a freedom fighter and social activist from Assam, India. She is known for her participation in the civil disobedience movements of the 1930s and 1940s, which contributed to the independence of India.
Nizam Lohar was a dacoit who rebelled against the colonial government that led to bloodshed which sent shockwaves throughout Britain. In Punjab, he and others defied repressive laws of the government, looted government officers and rich people and fought against the oppression of the authorities. They saw themselves as nationalist freedom fighters struggling for the cause of freedom. However, the government labelled them as dacoits.
Mithuben Hormusji Petit was one of the pioneer Indian independence female activists who participated in Mahatma Gandhi's Dandi March.
Tara Rani Srivastava was an Indian freedom fighter, and part of Mahatma Gandhi's Quit India Movement. She and her husband, Phulendu Babu, lived in the Saran district of Bihar. In 1942, she and her husband were leading a march in Siwan towards the police station when he was shot by police. She nonetheless continued the march, returning later to find that he had died. She remained part of the struggle for freedom until the country's independence five years later.
Peer Ali Khan was an Indian revolutionary and rebel, who participated in the Indian independence movement. He was given capital punishment for participating in the freedom struggle of 1857.
Baishnab Charan Patnaik (1914-2013) was an Indian politician. He was elected to the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India.
Rani Shiromani was the queen of Karnagarh, during the Company rule in India. She was a valiant leader of peasants who rebelled against the British East India Company. she played a major role in the Chuar Rebellion in Midnapore. She created the first revolt against the British through the farmers in Midnapore. She was against the British East India Company and refused to pay taxes. Thus, she was called as the Rani Laxmi Bai of Midnapore.
