Baganiyas, servitude and survival: A case study of the Northern Bank of the Brahmaputra

Abstract

The British during their rule over Assam had introduced many modern industries. The tea industry was the precursor of all these industries in Assam and it had affected the economic and demographic structure of Assam in its entirety, right from its inception to the present day. During the colonial times an entire shift in the socio-cultural and demographic change was witnessed owing to the large influx of the labourers required for the tea plantation as it is a highly labour-intensive industry. These labourers were largely recruited from the central India and were called by different names such as: Coolies, Baganiyas, Chalans and many more. The present paper is an analysis of how these migrants were treated, what were their socio-economic conditions? Their stance in the society? Their struggles for survival and the rights that they were denied.