75th death anniversary of Matangini Hazra to be observed today

Thousands of women will blow conch shells and hoist national flags atop their homes to remember the 75th death anniversary of Matangini Hazra.

There will be rallies and her statue at Banipukur where she was gunned down by the British police on September 29, 1942 would be garlanded. Every year, the day is observed but this year it is being held in a bigger scale as it is the Platinum jubilee of her sacrifice. 

The day will be observed as “Atma balidan divas, state Transport minister Suvendu Adhikari said. A committee has been set whose chairman is the chairman of Tamluk Municipality which is organising Thursday’s programme.

Responding to Mahatma Gandhi’s nation-wide call known as the Quit India Movement, Hazra along with some local women joined it. They organised a rally and shouted anti-British slogans while proceeding towards the court when the British police stopped them. Hazra, an elderly woman was the leader of the gang. 

She was holding a flag in one hand and was blowing a conch shell. The British police opened fire, killing her on the spot and leaving several other injured. Seeing her lying on the street, bleeding profusely, they snatched away the flag and refused to give her water. The incident gave rise to violent agitations countrywide and all the newspapers criticised the barbaric attitude of the police.

Undivided Midnapore district had produced the highest number of revolutionaries. Hemchandra Kanungo, a disciple of Aurobindo Ghosh was given training in arms in a bunker which was situated close to Midnapore College now in West Midnapore. Khudiram Bose also hailed from the district.

If one takes a tour at the Cellular Jail in Andaman, one can find that the highest number of detainees who were given life imprisonment were from the district.

The famous Hamilton School in Tamluk was a seat of nationalism and many of its students joined the freedom movement and sacrificed their lives.