Rakta Tirtha ERAM

Rakta Tirtha ERAM, The Second Jallianawala Bagh of India. This famous place of sacrifice located at 16 km away from Basudebpur of Bhadrak district. One side of this land is bounded by the Bay of Bengal and the other three sides are surrounded by two rivers the Gameye and Kansabansa. Secured by these natural boundaries this place is used as a citadel by the freedom fighters. Due to these natural boundaries it is not so easy for the police and the administrative persons to enter in to this place. More over there is an open field bounded by three sides’ with one gate in its north east direction, which was used by the freedom fighters as a place of public meeting. Starting from 1920 prominent nationalist leaders of ODISHA like Utkalmani Gopabandhu Das and Utkal Kesari Dr. H.K. Mahatab perform public meetings at that place for several times to propagate the Gandhian ideals of freedom struggle.

The Unpleasant Incident

During the time of Quit India Movement this field of Eram was frequently used by the freedom fighters for public meeting and agitation against foreign rulers. On 28th September 1942 there was a huge gathering at that place. Afraid by this gathering a police force from Basudebpur police station, lead by DSP Kunjabihari Mohanty march towards Eram. As like Jaliyanawalawag here DSP Kunjabihari Mohanty acted as General Dayar and opened fire to the huge gathering at 6.30 pm, who were performing the agitation against the foreign rulers in a peaceful way. Since the field was bounded from three sides therefore no one able to get escape as of the field and within some minutes 28 persons get dead on the spot and 56 get injured, another person among the injured get dead later on. Among the dead include one woman named Pari Bewa, who is regarded as the only lady martyrs of ODISHA.

Here the situation is very much similar to that of Jaliyanawalawag and the numbers of martyrs were also just second to jaliyanawalawag. Therefore Eram which is popularly known as Rata Tirtha (The Pilgrim of Blood) after this unpleasant incident was truly designated as the Second Jaliyanawalawag of India.

Eram was perhaps the least expected of places to earn the credit of witnessing the largest killing in a single police action in the entire stage of Quit-India Revolution. And except for the Jalianawallabagh massacre, there was no other incident in the era of freedom struggle to show so many victims at one place in one operation.

The Martyrs:-

1) Pari Bewa , Eram, Basudebpur
2) Gopal Chandra Das , Padhnuan
3) Biswanath Das , Padhuan
4) Bijuli Das , Padhuan
5) Hrushikesh Behera , Padhuan
6) Madan Palai , Padhuan
7) Ballahaba Behera , Padhuan
8) Magha Mahalika , Padhuan
9) Bhua Majhi , Padhuan
10) Kali ajhi , Padhuan-Kumarpur
11) Radhu ahalika , Padhuan-Muladiha
12) Dhruba Charana Dey , Padhuan
13) Basudeb Sahu , Padhuan
14) Hari Behera , Padhuan
15) Dibakar Panigrahi , Guda-Kesagadia
16) Krushna Chandra Swain , Padhuan-Kumarpur
17) Bhaban Rout , Padhuan-Nandapura
18) Nidhi Mahalika , Padhuan
19) Brundaban Panda , Padhuan
20) Upa Mallika , Nuangan
21) Krupasindhu Behera , Sankharu
22) Rama Majhi , Padhuan-Kumarpur
23) Mani Behera , Padhuan
24) Kati Sahu , Iswarapur
25) Ratnakar Pani , Sudarsanpur
26) Mani Pradhana , Suan-Sudarsanpur
27) Pari Das , Suan
28) Sankar Mallika , Adhunan
29) Gobinda Rout , Artungan

Ref. Sangrama Bhumi Bhadrak ( a book in Odia)