How omission of Paika revolt in NCERT books has triggered political slugfest in Odisha

Paika Rebellion

Former Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik has voiced disappointment over the exclusion of the 1817 Paika rebellion from the latest Class 8 history textbook released by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).

In response to the criticism, NCERT issued a clarification, explaining that the textbook in question, Exploring Society: India and Beyond, is the first part of a two-volume series for Class 8 Social Science. The second volume, which will cover significant regional resistance movements such as Odisha's Paika Rebellion and Punjab's Kuka Movement, is in its final stages and is expected to be published by September or October 2025.

Recalling the Paika rebellion

Paika Rebellion of 1817 is an armed revolt against the British by the Paikas of Khurda in Odisha. The rebellion took form and shape under the leadership of Buxi Jagabandhu Bidyadhara. After successive defeats, the Paika leader, Bakshi Jagabandhu, surrendered to the British in 1825 and lived as a prisoner in Cuttack till his death in 1829.

Why Patnaik described the uprising as "watershed moment"

Describing the uprising as a "watershed moment in Odisha's history," Patnaik said leaving it out is an injustice to the legacy of the Paikas, who led an armed revolt against British rule nearly 40 years before the 1857 uprising, widely recognised as India’s First War of Independence. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Patnaik said, “I had urged the central government several times to acknowledge the Paika Rebellion as the first war of Independence. Its absence in NCERT's new textbook is deeply disrespectful to the valour of the Paikas, especially over two centuries after their sacrifice.”

He further appealed to current Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Majhi and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to take appropriate steps to recognise the importance of the Paika Bidroha and do justice to the people of Odisha.

The possible political backlash: ‘Odia pride forgotten’

Rabindra Nath Behera, president of the Samajwadi Party in Odisha, called the omission “an insult to the valour and courage of the Paikas and their sacrifice in the anti-colonial struggle.” Behera said, “When a young and dynamic son of Odisha, Dharmendra Pradhan, is heading the education ministry, such an act by the NCERT bears a deep scar on the pride of Odisha and the sacrifice of its worthy sons. Pradhan had forced the BJD government of Odisha to write a letter to the Centre to declare this rebellion as the first war of independence. Now the political ecosystem has forgotten about Odia pride.”

How BJP and BJD competed to gain credit

The BJP and BJD have previously competed to gain credit for elevating the historical status of the rebellion. In July 2017, the NDA government organised a high-profile event in New Delhi to mark 200 years of the uprising.Prime Minister Narendra Modi had then felicitated descendants of 16 Paika families in Bhubaneswar, and the Centre had sanctioned Rs 200 crore for the bicentennial celebration.

Later that year, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan had publicly thanked Patnaik for demanding national recognition of the rebellion. In December 2019, then President Ram Nath Kovind laid the foundation stone of a memorial at Barunai near Khurda, a key site associated with the rebellion.