Peasant Movements & Trade Union Movements

Peasant Movements

Nature and Causes of Peasant Movements

• Definition: Peasant movements were organised or spontaneous collective actions by cultivators, tenants and agricultural labourers to resist exploitation, defend customary rights and seek relief from oppressive landlords, moneylenders and colonial revenue policies.
• Underlying causes: high land revenue and rent demands; insecure or precarious tenancy; indebtedness to moneylenders; oppressive practices by zamindars, planters and their agents; commercialisation of agriculture; crop failures and famines; and colonial legal and administrative structures that favoured landlords and moneylenders.
• Typical forms of protest: no-rent campaigns, refusal to cultivate specific crops, seizure and burning of debt documents, organised boycotts, satyagraha, armed uprisings in extreme cases, and legal-political agitation seeking legislative redress.

Indigo Agitation of Bengal (1859-60)

• Context: European indigo planters demanded cultivation of indigo on tenant holdings under oppressive terms, offering unremunerative prices and using coercion to secure crops.
• Key developments: peasants refused to cultivate indigo and in some areas resisted with arms; leaders such as Bishnu Charan Biswas and Digambar Biswas played prominent roles in local resistance.
• Influence of literature and public opinion: Dina Bandhu Mitra drew public attention to abuses in his play Nil Darpan (1860), prompting wide intelligentsia support for the peasants.
• Official response: the colonial government appointed the Indigo Commission (1860) whose findings led to the removal of several abuses in indigo cultivation and improved the position of tenants in some areas.

Pabna Movement of East Bengal (1872-76)

• Causes: frequent ejection of tenants, harassment by zamindars and their agents, illegal seizure of property and arbitrary enhancement of rent.
• Organisation and tactics: peasants organised no-rent unions and in places used armed attacks against zamindari officials; Pabna district became the movement's focal point.
• Government action: movement was suppressed after armed intervention but an enquiry committee examined peasant grievances.
• Legislative outcome: the Bengal Tenancy Act (1885) conferred permanency of tenure on some classes of tenants and recognised certain customary rights.

Deccan Riots (1875)

• Causes: heavy land revenue demands under colonial rule and consequent indebtedness enabled exploitation by moneylenders in the Poona and Ahmednagar districts of the Bombay Presidency.
• Actions by peasants: social boycott of moneylenders escalated into forcible seizure and public burning of debt bonds, decrees and related documents.
• Suppression and redress: police failed to control the riots and the army intervened; a commission was appointed and the Deccan Agriculturists' Relief Act (1879) prohibited imprisonment of cultivators for debt in the Maharashtra Deccan, providing important relief.

Peasant Unrest in Punjab (c. 1890-1900)

• Grievance: alarm at growing alienation of peasant lands to moneylenders and outsiders.
• Incidents: assaults and, in some instances, murders of moneylenders by aggrieved peasants.
• Legislative response: the Punjab Land Alienation Act (1902) sought to restrict transfer of agricultural land from agriculturists to non-agriculturists and prohibited long mortgages (over 20 years) that threatened peasant landholding.

Champaran Satyagraha (1917)

• Background: in Champaran (Bihar) European planters imposed the tinkathia system under which tenant cultivators were forced to grow indigo on a portion of their land at very low prices; planters also charged other illegal levies such as sharabheshi or tawan.
• Leadership and enquiry: Mahatma Gandhi arrived with associates including Rajendra Prasad, J.B. Kripalani, A.N. Sinha, Mazhar-ul-Haq and Mahadev Desai to conduct an inquiry and mobilise peasant resistance.
• Outcome: government initially tried to suppress the agitation but then appointed an enquiry committee including Gandhi; the committee's recommendations led to abolition of the tinkathia obligation and other relief measures.

Khaira Satyagraha (1918)

• Cause: crop failures due to drought in the Khaira area of Gujarat and refusal of government to grant revenue exemptions.
• Action: peasants launched a no-revenue campaign under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel.
• Result: the government suspended revenue collection for a time and concessions were obtained.

Moplah Rebellion (Malabar) (1921)

• Context: in Malabar (North Kerala) Muslim Moplah tenants faced exploitation by Hindu landlords (jenmis) and colonial authorities; growing communal tension and agrarian grievances added to the unrest.
• Trigger and course: a police raid on the Tirurangadi mosque in August 1921 triggered widespread attacks on police stations, public offices and landlords' houses; for a period British control lapsed over parts of Ernad and Walluvanad taluks.
• Leadership and local rule: local leaders such as Kunhammad Haji, Kalathingal Mammad, Ali Musaliar and Sithi Koya Thangal organised resistance and proclaimed short-lived local authorities or "republics".
• Suppression and casualties: the rebellion was brutally suppressed by the British; large numbers were killed and imprisoned - official figures record many hundreds killed and thousands detained, and incidents such as the Podanur wagon tragedy (suffocation deaths) occurred.
• Character: the movement had anti-British and anti-zamindar elements and, to some extent, communal overtones because most local landlords were Hindus.

Bardoli Satyagraha (1928)

• Cause: a 22% enhancement of land revenue assessment by the Bombay government in Bardoli taluka (1927).
• Leadership: organised as a no-revenue campaign under Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, peasants refused to pay the enhanced revenue.
• Government response and outcome: large-scale attachment of property and cattle failed to break the movement; an enquiry committee reduced the assessment in line with its recommendations and many attachments were reversed.

Emergence of Class-conscious Peasant Organisations

• Early organisations: N. G. Ranga organised Ryots Associations and Agricultural Labour Unions in Guntur (July-December 1923), spreading into Krishna and West Godavari districts (1924-26).
• Kisan sabhas and provincial bodies: Kisan Sabhas emerged in Bengal, Bihar, United Provinces and Punjab (1926-27); Andhra Provincial Ryots Associations were founded by N. G. Ranga and B. V. Ratnam (1928).
• Regional federation: the South Indian Federation of Peasants and Agricultural Labour was founded in 1935 with N. G. Ranga as General Secretary and E. M. S. Namboodiripad as Joint Secretary.
• All-India organisation: the first All-India Kisan Congress was held at Lucknow and the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) was formed in 1936; Swami Sahajanand presided over its first session. From 1936 All-India Kisan Day came to be observed on 1 September annually.

Trade Union Movements

Definition, Objectives and Causes

• Definition: trade unions are organisations of workers established to protect and advance economic and industrial interests of their members through collective bargaining, strikes, negotiations and political action.
• Objectives: better wages, reasonable working hours, improved working conditions, social security, compensation for injury, and legal recognition for collective bargaining.
• Causes of trade union growth: industrialisation, harsh factory conditions, long working hours, low wages, absence of legal protections and the spread of labour consciousness influenced by conservative, reformist and socialist/communist ideas.

Early Factory Commissions and Legislation

• First Factory Commission and Factories Act: in response to factory-related evils, the first Factory Commission was appointed in Bombay (1875) and the Factories Act was first enacted in 1881 to regulate certain aspects of factory work.
• Second Factory Commission and the 1891 Act: another commission was appointed in 1884; R. S. Lokhande organised a workers' conference in Bombay and presented a memorandum demanding weekly rest, short recesses, compensation for disablement, timely wage payment and limitation of working hours. The Factories Act of 1891 incorporated limited reforms (a weekly holiday, restrictions for women and children) but left adult male hours largely unregulated.

Modern Trade Union Organisations: Stages of Growth

Second Stage (1918-24)

• Early unions: the Madras Labour Union (1918) is regarded as the first modern trade union in India; its president was B. P. Wadia, an activist associated with the Home Rule movement.
• Formation of AITUC: the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) was founded in Bombay (1920) with leaders such as N. M. Joshi; by then about 64 trade unions with roughly 1,40,000 members were affiliated.
• Nature of demands: increases in wages, bonuses, rice allowances, reduction in working hours and additional holidays were common strike demands.
• Limitations: trade union growth was limited in well-established heavy industries (mining, jute, textiles) but stronger among clerical and white-collar employees.

Third Stage (1924-34)

• Communist influence: communist ideas began to penetrate trade unions from the early 1920s, changing strike patterns and strategies.
• Ideological conflict: rivalry between moderates and radicals intensified, with moderates seeking to keep unions apolitical and radicals aligning with international communist positions.
• Organisational splits: ideological rifts led to the moderate faction leaving AITUC in 1929 to form the Indian Trade Union Federation (ITUF); subsequent splits produced formations such as the "Red TUC".
• Legal recognition: the Trade Unions Act (1926) provided for voluntary registration of unions and conferred certain rights and privileges on registered unions in return for specified obligations.
• Unity attempts: attempts by leaders like N. M. Joshi and R. R. Bakhale sought to restore unity, leading to the foundation of the National Trade Union Federation (NTUF) in 1933.

Fourth Stage (1935-39)

• Revival and growth: union activities revived and strikes increased during this period.
• Political and institutional support: the Government of India Act (1935) created provincial ministries which often favoured industrial peace by setting minimum standards rather than suppressing labour organisations.
• Labour representation: the 1935 Act provided for election of labour representatives through trade union constituencies.
• Employers' attitude: International Labour Organisation (ILO) suggestions encouraged more conciliatory employer behaviour.
• Unity movements: mergers occurred - ITUF merged with NTUF; the Red TUC rejoined AITUC; and NTUF affiliated with AITUC in 1938, consolidating organisational strength.

Fifth Stage (1939-45) - War Years

• Industrial expansion: World War II brought protection to Indian industry, disruption of imports and a rise in industrial production; profits grew rapidly but wages lagged, generating grievances.
• Decline in strikes: strikes were fewer because many communist leaders supported the war effort, leadership in some unions was weak, employers were less hostile, and the government used wartime powers to deter industrial action.
• Legal and administrative controls: the government, under Defence of India rules, could prevent strikes and refer disputes for adjudication; the National Service (Ordinance) (1940) and the Essential Services Maintenance Ordinance (1941) restricted dismissals and protected essential services.
• Tripartite machinery: permanent tripartite bodies involving government, employers and labour leaders were formed to manage industrial relations.

Sixth Stage (1945-47) - Post-War and Transition

• Renewed activism: after the war the cost of living and inflation produced renewed labour unrest; political parties sought influence in the labour movement.
• Legal changes: the Trade Unions Act was amended in 1947 to provide for compulsory recognition of trade unions by employers who met statutory requirements.
• Women and membership: there was a notable increase in women's participation in trade unions, strengthening their social and industrial position.
• Organisational fragmentation and need for federations: many small local unions lacked bargaining power, prompting the formation of inter-state and regional federations to improve collective bargaining and implementation of awards.
• Industrial disputes legislation: rising strikes motivated the government to convene an Industries Truce Conference (December 1947) and the principles of compulsory conciliation and arbitration were accepted, leading to stronger conciliation machinery and the later Industrial Disputes framework.

Major Laws, Ordinances and Institutional Measures

• Factories Acts (1881, 1891) - early statutory regulation of factory labour, with progressive extensions and limitations on child and women labour.
• Trade Unions Act (1926) - provided for voluntary registration and legal status for unions.
• Defence and essential services measures (1940-41) - National Service Ordinance and Essential Services Maintenance Ordinance regulated labour during wartime.
• Industrial Disputes machinery (post-1947) - compulsory conciliation and arbitration mechanisms were formalised to manage industrial unrest.

Miscellaneous Information and Contemporary Notes

• Notable personalities and remarks: Rabindranath Tagore commented on Raja Rammohan Roy's modernising vision, praising his recognition of the interdependence of individuals and nations in the modern age.
• Surendranath Banerjee regarded the Derozians as pioneers of modern civilisation in Bengal, acknowledging their contributions despite their shortcomings.
• Rahnumai Mazdayasnan: a Parsi organisation established in 1851 under the patronage of Dadabhai Naoroji that worked for religious and social reform within the Parsi community.
• Ahmadiyya movement: Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian (Punjab) founded the Ahmadiyya movement; his views on social reform were conservative on some issues such as purdah, divorce and polygamy.
• Servants of India Society: founded in 1905 by Gopal Krishna Gokhale (Gokhale withdrew from close association with Tilak and set up this society in 1905 rather than 1885) to train national workers dedicated to public service and national uplift. (Note: the input referred to 1885 - the widely recorded founding year is 1905.)
• Social Service League: founded by N. M. Joshi in 1909 to survey social conditions and mobilise reform work.
• Slavery and infanticide: the British colonial administration and social reformers worked against practices such as infanticide; broader imperial measures, such as abolitionist legislation in the nineteenth century, curtailed slavery and slave trade in British territories.
• Child marriage legislation: Rai Sahib Harbilas Sarda introduced a bill in 1928 which became law as the Sarda Act (1929), raising the minimum marriageable age (prohibiting marriage of girls below 14 and boys below 18 under the Act).

Concluding Remarks

• Peasant movements in colonial India combined local agrarian grievances with broader political mobilisation and frequently produced legislative reforms (for example, the Bengal Tenancy Act 1885, Deccan Agriculturists' Relief Act 1879 and Punjab Land Alienation Act 1902).
• Trade unionism evolved from early factory reform campaigns into structured organisations with legal recognition (Trade Unions Act, 1926) and national federations such as AITUC; ideological divisions and external events (economic depression, World War II, independence movement) shaped its course.
• For a clear understanding, students should link specific movements to their agrarian or industrial contexts, identify key leaders and dates, and note how administrative inquiries and legislation responded to pressures from below.