As the 21st century dawns, Uttarakhand, like so many other parts of the Himalayas, faces ecological catastrophe and cultural extinction. However, there is another story to Uttarakhand that parallels her sorrows. A region that has disproportionally given its sons in large numbers to the defense of the country, has for over a century been noted for its active social movements. The Chipko movement was spearheaded by Himalayan women, as were the prohibition and reforestation causes. The hill people have consistent proven their dedication to non-violent activism and courage under fire. The adversity faced by Uttarakhandis every day has perhaps contributed to this willingness to struggle and the people continue to stand and fight for their rights. There are the stories of just a few. There are so many more.. - R.R.

More heroes' tales can be found in The Emancipated Women-Folk of Uttarakhand, a joint presentation of the Himalayan Action Research Centre and Society for Participatory Research in Asia, edited by Chhaya Kunwar. To obtain a copy, please write to:

Himalayan Action Research Centre (HARC)
744 Indira Nagar, Phase II, P.O. New Forest
Dehra Dun 248 006

INDERMANI BADONI

Indermani Badoni, the grand old man of the Uttarakhand movement, passed away in 1999, almost exactly five years after his fast unto death in 1994 catapulted the Uttarakhand agitation to a new phase.

Fifteen years earlier, Badoni, along with several other activists with long careers in government service, established the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal, then the principal political vehicle for statehood. He campaigned tireless during the ups and downs of the movement, seeing some of his colleagues elected to the state assembly. Eventually, the fateful events of 1994 would see the kettle of Uttarakhand politics boil over. Badoni played an instrumental part and paid the price by being brutalized by the police who attacked the peaceful fasters and dragged them to the hospital.

In the following years, as the Uttarakhand movement lost steam and many activists lost their way, Badoni's reputation remained intact. Venerated as the Gandhi of the movement, his long running battle with kidney disease would however severely limit his activities and eventually claim his life. On his death bed, he uttered one last word, "Uttarakhand". Time will tell whether his dying wish comes true.

BACHNI DEVI

In 1977, Bachni Devi, ironically herself the wife of a contractor, led village women to save Adwani forest. By directly disobeying her husband's wishes, Bachni Devi struck a blow for the liberation of hill women through active participation in matters affecting their own lives. The hardship endured by Uttarakhandi women, made worse by social disintegration and ecological degradation in the hills, galvanized women like Bachni Devi to organize and fight the system that was ravaging their land and their families.

In her own words as recorded by the PANOS Institute Oral Testimony Programme:

"My husband was a forest contractor. He cut a huge amount of timber... forest after forest. .... He was the major contractor and I was his enemy in this struggle.... The whole village backed me.... He never said anything to the [other] agitators. But he was very angry with me.... We even stopped speaking to each other.... It was a matter of sadness."

Now a widow of 72, Bachni Devi's struggle continues:

"Now that the road has come.... the availability of grass and firewood has dwindled. Now people come from far distant places. They cut grass and firewood and put in on the buses and take it away.... there is a crisis for us."

TINCHARI MAI

Tinchari Mai started her life as Deepa Nautiyal in the village of Majyur in Thailsain. Her early years were marked by greater sorrow than even most hill women. Orphaned at an early age by both parents, an uncle raised her until she was married off at the age of 7 to an army man. Although a child bride, her married years were happy ones, as she grew up in the home of her new family. However, at 19, her husband fell in battle. Widowed at such a young age, she was ill-treated as widows often are in backward and superstitious villages. She eventually left to become a sannyasin, travelling to Lahore and then Haridwar, where she began speaking out against the corruption of monks and ascetics.

Icchagiri Mai as she came to be known, returned to the hills to work for their social and economic uplift. She even sat in dharna outside the Prime Minister's house, and succeeded in getting Nehru's ear and having water supplied to her adopted village near Kotdwar. She would also champion education and fight the evils of alcoholism, earning her the title Tinchari Mai in the process. Until she passed away in 1992, she campaigned tirelessly for the welfare of Uttarakhandis.

GAURA DEVI

In 1974, during the activist phase of the Chipko movement, the courage and vigilance of Uttarakhandi women saved many forests. As the state government and contractors distracted the menfolk, the women perceived the danger. Under the leadership of Gaura Devi, an illiterate, spirited fifty-year old woman, the women and children embraced the trees of Reni forest just as the axemen disembarked from their trucks. By warding off the hatchets with their own bodies, Gaura Devi led the village women to effect non-violent grassroots resistance to the unbridled exploitation of Uttarakhand's natural resources. A four-day standoff eventually ended in victory for the women villagers and the movement spread like wildfire across the Himalayas.

Sadly, Gaura Devi faded into obscurity, forgotten by the media more interested in following the personalities of the movement. She died in 1991 after long years spent in service to her community. In recent years however, her legacy has been recognized and celebrated widely, leading to renewed interest in this leader of the Chipko movement.

For a more detailed account, please visit this social movement archival document.

JASWANT SINGH RAWAT

In 1962, when the Chinese Army invaded India from N.E.F.A., a company of Garhwal Rifles was posted somewhere on the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border. They were ordered to vacate their post as soon as possible, but Jaswant Singh Rawat decided to stay back and for THREE DAYS, he kept the rampaging Chinese at bay almost single-handedly. He was helped by two local girls, Nuang and Sella. When the situation became hopeless and to avoid the humiliation at the hands of the enemy, he shot himself. When the Chinese came to know that the post was defended by a lone soldier, they were so enraged that they cut-off his head and took it away with them. Later, after the war subsided, a Chinese officer heard his story and impressed by his valour, returned his head to the Indian Government and also gave a brass bust in his honor. The brass bust is placed on the spot where he fought so valiantly and the place has been named JaswantGarh. The two girls who helped him were also given due credit and the pass was named after Sella and the highway named after Nuang. (courtesy Anurag Bist)

SRIDEV SUMAN

Sridev Suman was the best known of a group of freedom fighters to operate in Tehri State. Born in 1916, Suman was largely self-taught. He became a key organizer and agitator for civil rights in Tehri while serving as an editor and writer for several underground presses. He was instrumental in the formation of several organizations, from the Himalaya Seva Sangh, to the Himalayan States People's Federation and Garhdesh Seva Sangh.

In 1942 at the height of tax protests, Suman and many other activists were jailed. Late in 1943, he was tried for treason and jailed again. The ghastly conditions of Tehri's infamous prisons led him to lead a fast unto death in protest. After 84 days, he died a martyr's death, inspiring a generation of activists to take up the banner of liberation that eventually toppled the princely state.

CHANDER SINGH "GARHWALI" BHANDARI

As a non-commissioned officer of the Garhwal Rifles, Havildar (company commander) Chander Singh refused to fire on unarmed pro-independence demonstrators at Peshawar on April 23, 1930. He succeeded in persuading much of the rest of his battalion to stand down. As such, the Havildar and his fellow soldiers were exiled, disgraced, and Chander Singh himself interned for life by the military authorities. However, his noble and thoughtful stance, rather than the predictable excuse of "just following orders", proved to be a major psychological blow to the British Raj whose imperial power rested on the absolute obedience of its armed forces. The Peshawar "affair" came to represent a major turning point in the independence struggle.

When Chander Singh returned to Garhwal in 1946, he immediately joined the movement for independence and continued his service to her people. His disillusionment with the Congress led him to the Communist Party and its progressive platform, and he stood as an independent in several elections. Chander Singh died in 1979.

• Hear a song about Chander Singh Garhwali (RealAudio)

GOBBAR SINGH NEGI

As part of the Allied Spring Offensive of 1915, the Garhwal Rifles sacrificed their utmost to advance the front against the Germans. Rifleman Negi of the 2nd battalion answered the call at Neuve Chapelle. With no concern for his own safety, the short Himalayan warrior had the better of the tall and hefty Germans, leading his fellow hill men when their officer fell, and showing no regard for his own personal safety. He was later killed in the field of battle, but not before earning the highest honor of the British Empire, the Indian Army's third Victoria Cross.

DARWAN SINGH NEGI

As the second Indian soldier to receive the Victoria Cross, Naik (corporal) Negi distinguished himself in the blood and horror of Flanders during the Great War. In the wet autumn months of 1914, the British lines were crumbling. The desperate situation called for the mobilization of the Indian brigades from India. The Garhwal Rifles were hastily rushed to the front. Near the town of Festubert, the regiment was ordered to recover a part of the line. In this battle, Naik Negi was the first to proceed around each traverse, discharging the enemy with dash and daring. With blood streaming from his head and arms, he carried on the fight, despite fierce machine gun resistance that strafed the attacking Allied troops. King-Emperor George V himself honored Negi's heroism on the field of battle.

"PANDIT" NAIN SINGH RAWAT

Nain Singh was one the greatest explorers of the 19th century, travelling over 21,000 miles in his lifetime, across the inhospitable and often hostile terrain of Tibet and Central Asia. Hailing from Milam, present day Pithoragarh district, Nain Singh left home at a young age in 1851, venturing throughout Uttarakhand and Himachal, before accompanying Western explorers to Ladakh and Turkestan as a porter. He eventually returned home for a brief sojourn as a teacher before heading to Dehra Dun to learn surveying skills. In 1864 he was ordered to make maps of Tibet. His adventures took him to Kashmir and Nepal and his knowledge of Tibetan allowed him to pass as one. His accomplishments were extraordinary, and the scale of his discoveries were never truly repeated by his admiring successors.

RAJ MATA KARNAVATI

In 1640, the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan invaded Garhwal. Led by the courageous Queen Mother, Karnavati, the Garhwali defenders crushed the numerically superior forces from the plains. Rather than executing prisoners, she cut off the noses of all captured troops as a symbol of defiance. This act earned the Queen Mother the title "Nak-katti-Rani", the queen who cuts off noses. She later successfully saw her son, the much-loved King Prithvi Pat Shah, ascend to the throne.