New Delhi/Bhubaneswar – The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has come under sharp criticism following its decision to remove the Paika Rebellion of 1817 from the newly updated Class VIII social science textbook.
This move has triggered a fresh wave of political and public outrage in Odisha, with critics calling it an affront to the state’s historical legacy and a blow to Odia Asmita (Odia pride).
The revised textbook, titled Exploring Society: India and Beyond, which was released just last week, no longer includes the Paika rebellion — a historic armed uprising by the Paikas of Khurda,
once considered by some historians and politicians as the first organized anti-British revolt in India. In its place, the book now features descriptions of four other early resistance movements against British colonial rule, namely:
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The Sannyasi-Fakir Rebellion (1770s), which followed the Bengal famine.
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The Kol Uprising (1831–32) in the Chota Nagpur plateau.
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The Santhal Rebellion (1855–56) in present-day Jharkhand, Bihar, and Bengal.
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The Indigo Revolt (1850–62) in northeastern Bengal.
A Rollback from Past Recognition
This omission marks a major shift from the NCERT’s earlier stance. In 2017, the council introduced a passage titled “The Khurda Uprising — A Case Study” in its Class VIII history book, Our Past–III.
The section highlighted the Paika rebellion of 1817 as a significant early act of resistance against British rule. It had gone so far as to argue that calling it merely a “Paika Rebellion” would be an understatement, due to its widespread support and impact on colonial governance in Odisha.
The move to exclude the uprising has reignited old political debates. In July 2017, both the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) had vied to champion the rebellion’s historical significance.
The NDA-led central government had even organized a high-profile event in Delhi to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the revolt.
At that event, then Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik strongly demanded that the rebellion be declared the “First War of Indian Independence,” predating the 1857 Sepoy Mutiny. Ironically, Dharmendra Pradhan, who was the petroleum minister at the time and is now the Union Minister for Education, had publicly backed this demand and thanked Patnaik for raising the issue.
Political Fallout and Regional Anger
The removal of the Paika rebellion from the textbook has now drawn strong criticism from across Odisha. Rabindra Nath Behera, Odisha President of the Samajwadi Party, called the exclusion “an insult” to the bravery, sacrifice, and patriotic spirit of the Paikas, who fought valiantly against British oppression in the early 19th century.
“When a young and dynamic son of Odisha, Dharmendra Pradhan, is heading the education ministry, such an act by NCERT bears a deep scar on the pride of Odisha and the sacrifice of its worthy sons,” Behera said.
“This same minister once compelled the BJD government to write to the Centre demanding recognition of the rebellion. Now the political ecosystem seems to have conveniently forgotten about Odia identity and history.”
The sense of betrayal is particularly acute given the central government’s earlier efforts to honor the legacy of the Paikas. In April 2017, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had personally felicitated descendants of 16 Paika families during an event at the Raj Bhavan in Bhubaneswar. Furthermore, the Centre had sanctioned a ₹200 crore grant for commemorative events across Odisha.
In December 2019, President Ram Nath Kovind had even laid the foundation stone for a dedicated Paika memorial at Barunai near Khurda, underscoring the rebellion’s perceived historical importance.
Academicians Question the Decision
Scholars have also expressed dismay at the NCERT’s editorial decision. A noted professor of history at Utkal University said there was no academic justification for dropping the Paika Rebellion while including other uprisings of similar scale and context.
“It was NCERT itself that added the content on the Paika uprising just eight years ago after careful historical review. Its removal now, without any apparent reason or scholarly debate, seems arbitrary and politically motivated,” the professor remarked.
“All early revolts should have been retained in the new edition, especially those like the Paika rebellion that had both mass participation and long-term impact.”