Public Administration: The Grassroot Concerns

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The world renowned nuclear scientist, Albert Einstein, once said about Mahatma Gandhi, "Gene- rations to come, it may well be, will scarce believe that such a one as this ever in flesh and blood walked upon this earth." It proved to be true in the case of Gandhi's Salt Satyagraha, which was heralded in 1930 in the midst of much excitement and scepticism. Never before, the British raj had experienced such a serious challenge to its authority in the name of nationalism which, besides provoking political upheaval, inviting popular participation, also gained world-wide sympathy.

Based on original sources, Dr. Naidu sets forth this movement from two standpoints: viz. covering India as the background and then covering Coastal Andhra with its districts of Ganjam, Vizagapatam, East Godavari, West Godavari, Krishna, Guntur, Nellore and Madras city as the main areas of agitation. While most of the world watched with awe and feared whether Gandhi could accomplish his Dandi march or end as a hoax, the people of Andhra like- wise watched whether their leaders could emulate the example of their national leader or fail as political pygmies. But to the bewilderment of many while he broke the salt laws and revealed his messianic zeal, the Andhra leaders too proved their potentialities no less than him and erased within one week the false notion that Andhras were indo- lent and lazy. Subsequently a number of incidents, some really nerve-racking, occurred in the encounters of Satya- grahis with the British police who charged lathis relentlessely or opened fire recklessly at places like Dharasana, Peshawar, Delhi, Chittagong in North India and at Madras, Eluru, Machilipatnam in the Coastal Andhra. But the masses never lost their courage; they took it as a holy war, a fight to the finish from which there could be no retreat. At last the Government yielded to the moral force or spiritual might of the movement and had to release all political prisoners.

After having interviewed some of the distinguished freedom fighters of those days who are still surviving, Dr. Naidu highlights a number of significant episodes that have not found place in archives over an area that had been neglected for long and has produced a scholarly, interesting and useful work not only for the benefit of academicians and research scholars but also for the general readers, particularly to those who believe in Gandhism as the panacea to most of the present day unrest prevailing in the country.

Dr. Ch. M. Naidu. (born 1939) is currently Reader in History. Andhra University, Waltair He is a brilliant teacher as well as a forceful writer. Having worked in M. R. College, Vizianagram, as a lecturer for a decade, he joined Andhra University as Reader where he continues to serve for over a decade. He is a member of professional bodies like Indian History Congress, Institute of Historical Studies. and South Indian History Congress. He is the author of a number of articles published in almost all leading historical Journals like Journal of Indian History, Review of Historical Studies, Itihas, Gandhi Marg etc. His forthcoming books are Nationalism in South India : its Economics and Social Background, History of Modern China. He is at present engaged on a UGC research project. Quit India Movement in the Coastal Andhra.

This research work was carried out under the scheme of financial assistance to the teachers working in universities and supported by the University Grants Commission. As such the author visited not only the important libraries and archives of Madras, Hyderabad, and New Delhi but came into contact with the freedom fighters of 1930s. Those eminent men in the fag end of their lives were not only kind enough to bestow attention over this work but were also helpful to the author in verifying the truth and untruth of the past events. So far no serious attempt has been made except in the case of a few well noted political sufferers to record their reminiscences. So their talks with the author not only throw new light but constitute an important primary source material in modern South Indian History. Further, South India's freedom movement particularly of the coast-line from Berhampur to Madras is a neglected field of research. Though, of late, some research work districtwise on this area has been going, on, yet no standard and authentic publications, except, a few autobiographical sketches by freedom fighters or by some freedom movement associations, have come out.

Again this Salt Satyagraha, which enabled many provincial freedom fighters like Konda Venkatappayya, T. Prakasam and B. Sambamurthy to boost their images to the national level, was overlooked by researchers as a specific topic of study, perhaps for the reason that it was too small a period, just three months of a hot summer. Yet it may be noted that this one summer season formed an important link in the freedom movement because it remedied many errors committed in the Non-Cooperation of 1920s and became a sound basis for the subsequent movement till Swaraj was achieved. So it can be said that this work would surely be a needful addition to the existing books on modern South Indian History.

It has given me immense pleasure to go through the dissertation of Dr. Ch. M. Naidu on Salt Satyagraha in Coastal Andhra. What impressed me most in his work are two : first, it is a study on Gandhianism which is now-a-days much needed; second, it is on Andhras whose contribution has not been sufficiently recognised so far. Hence a study on Gandhianism with reference to Andhra Pradesh, one of the progressive states in India, adds a new dimension to the avid readers on Modern Indian history and gives articulation to their conception of our country's history, tradition and culture. As such, Dr. Naidu should be congratulated for having under- taken this work and also the University Grants Commission for having provided financial assistance and the Indian Council of Historical Research for publishing it.

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