JAWAHARLAL DARDA stamp released on 02 12 2005
Denomination :500,p
Stamps Printed :0.6 Million
Date of Issue :22-11-2005
Theme: Personality
Jawaharlal Darda
Shri Jawaharlal Darda was a veteran freedom fighter and a committed journalist who laid the foundation of people-oriented journalism in Maharashtra.
Shri Jawaharlal Darda was born to Shri Amolchand and Smt. Kusumba in Babhulgaon village of Yawatmal district in Maharashtra on July 2, 1923. At the tender age of 17, he joined the freedom struggle. He also undertook a 400-mile long `padyatra’. He actively participated in the `Quit India’ Movement in 1942 and was imprisoned by the colonial rulers.
In 1947 Shri Jawaharlal Darda Launched `Nave Jag’, a weekly newspaper from Yawatmal to foster the spirit of nationalism. Later he launched `Lokmat’, a Marathi weekly in 1952 which was transformed into a daily in 1971. Now this newspaper is published from 13 cities of Maharashtra besides editions in English and Hindi.
Shri Jawaharlal Darda was elected as the President of the Yawatmal District Congress Committee from 1944 to 1956. A large area of land was donated in Yawatmal district during Vinoba Bhave’s Bhoodan Movement. He was elected to the Maharashtra Legislative Council between 1972 and 1995. He made a mark in the governance in Maharashtra by his admirable handling of the portfolios of energy, industry, irrigation, health, food and civil supplies,sports, youth affairs, textiles and environment as a minister.
Shri Jawaharlal Darda was actively involved in cooperative and agricultural movements in the state. He set up the Amolchand Darda Mahavidyalaya, which runs several colleges and other educational institutions in the Vidarbha region. He was also the Chairman of Maharastra State Housing Finance Corporation.
Shri Jawaharlal Darda, popularly known as ‘Babuji’, took effective steps for upliftment of the poor and the oppressed. To expedite the development in the energy sector, he launched the expansion of the Koradi Thermal Power station near Nagpur. A new industrial policy came into force due to his keen interest during his period. His efforts put Maharashtra on the forefront of Indian economy, earning him the title ‘Vikas Purush’.
He breathed his last on 25th November, 1997 at Mumbai. His ideals of constructive social service will inspire the generations to come.
The Department of Posts is proud to issue a commemorative postage stamp in honour of Shri Jawaharlal Darda.
STATE BANK OF INDIA stamp released on31 08 2005
Denomination :1500p
Stamps Printed :0.8 Million
Date of Issue :31-08-2005
Theme:Organisation
State Bank of India
The State Bank of India, the premier banking institution of the country, has an unparalleled history spanning two centuries. The Bank through its several incarnations has played a pioneering role in the development of Indian banking, commerce, finance and industry. As the standardbearer of Indian banking, the history of the State Bank of India encapsulates the economic history of India.
It all began with the Bank of Calcutta on the 2nd June 1806, which was later renamed as the Bank of Bengal in 1809, becoming the first of the Presidency Banks under the East India Company. The Presidency Banks of Bombay and Madras were established in 1840 and 1843 respectively. These three Presidency Banks heralded the onset of modern banking in India. They continued to issue currency notes till 1862, when this function was taken over by the Government. From 1866 they were given formal central bank status till the creation of the Reserve Bank of India in 1935. Under the Imperial Bank of India Act, the three Presidency Bank were amalgamated in 1921 to form the Imperial Bank of India, which was nationalized on the l st July 1955, resulting in the creation of the State Bank of India.
The State Bank of India began with a mandate for rapid expansion and within 5 years of its creation, it doubled its network with the opening of 416 new branches. Through 14 Local Head Offices and only 50 Zonal Offices, the system functions in a decentralized manner. Today with over 9000 branches, the State Bank of India has retained dominance over the Indian banking horizon.
In 1959 and 1960, the State Bank of India acquired eight banks, two of which were later merged into one. These seven Associate Banks today form an important part of the State Bank Group.
1980 onwards the State Bank of India has created subsidiary companies, which have undertaken Merchant Banking, Leasing, Mutual Funds, Home Finance, Gilts, Factoring, Life Insurance, Credit Cards, and Debit Cards etc. thus transforming itself into a financial service conglomerate. It also has over 50 Offices and several banking subsidiaries in foreign countries.
The Bank has particularly been serving through its rural and semi-urban network, promoting agriculture and small-scale industries.
The Bank has been actively participating in the employment generation and poverty alleviation schemes sponsored by the Government such as Swarnjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojna, Prime Minister’s Rozgar Yojna, Swarnjayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojna, scheme for liberation and rehabilitation of scavengers etc.
The Bank has been the convener of State Level Bankers’ Committee in eleven states and two union territories and is the lead bank in 190 districts, mostly in hilly and backward areas.
The Bank is also focusing on core infrastructure sectors like power, telecom, petroleum, oil, gas, paperboards, hotels etc. The Bank is planning increased penetration in auto components, rice mills, brassware, agro pump sets, etc. In retail, the Bank is greatly focussed on contract farming. Customized products have been introduced for tourism.
State Bank of India is the only Indian bank, to be among the top ten banks in the world. The State Bank of India and its predecessors have always effectively combined their roles as important instruments of public policy with their commercial status, competing successfully in the market and earning consistent profit throughout their existence. State Bank of India can truly represent the Indian economy in the global markets. Its activities not only touch everyone in India, but also lend strength to Indian economy on a global platform.
The Department of Posts is happy to issue a ‘commemorative postage stamp on the bicentennial year of the State Bank of India.
INDIAN : BREEDS OF DOGS stamp released on 09 01 2005
Denomination :500,500,500,1500p
Stamps Printed :0.3 Million each
Date of Issue :09-01-2005
Theme: Animals
India has one of the oldest canine cultures. As early as the end of Mesolithic period the dog was domesticated and ever since the dog has been like a hunting companion rather than a show piece. Oriented to speed and action, indian dogs are all outdoor dogs.
The Indian sub continent is the largest conglomeration of various breeds of dogs in the world. Through a long process of evolution, each geographical region in India has produced a distinctive breed, adapted to the local environment. While Himachal Pradesh and Uttaranchal have BHOT[AS, Kumaon Hills have SHIKARIs RAMPUR HOUNDs abound the Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana etc. and MUDHOL Hounds are found in Koyana-Gulbarga of Karnataka and Maharastra. The RAJAPALAYAMs come from Tamil Nadu and TRIPURIs are found in the Lushai Hills of Assam.
Due to their usefulness and association with human habitat, dogs remain man’s best friends. Known for their sturdiness and loyalty, there is a need for creation of awareness about the variety of the canine population in India. The set of stamps depicts four Indian canine breeds viz., the Himalayan Sheep Dog, the Rampur Hound, the Mudhol Hound and the Rajapalayam.
HIMALAYAN SHEEP DOG
Found in Ladakh and adjoining Nepal, they are strong and powerful dogs. Gentle and sensitive with humans, they are alert and have sharp reflexes. Courageous and ferocious, are excellent guard dogs for cattle. They are generally black or brown with patches of white on ears, legs and body. They have a thick course over coat and a thick smooth fur for under coat.
They have short legs and a long back. They have pointed muzzle and luminous dark rimmed eyes. Tail is plumed and up turned. Compact and muscular they can sustain the Indian heat.
RAMPUR HOUND
The most well known Indian breed, the Rampur Hounds are elegant dogs, featured in Mughul miniatures. These dogs come from Rampur of erstwhile Rohilkhand of Uttar Pradesh. These are medium sized, muscular, powerful built for great speed and endurance. They have long wide head, flat between ears, and powerful jaws with scissor bite. They have slightly oval, brown to dark amber eyes. They have long and tapering tail, and the body has short and firm coat.
Mostly brindle or mouse grey in colours, with its long legs and short coat, it has a streamlined back of a grey hound, with a long skull. It was used for hunting, and Janhangir’s kennel is said to have had 4000 of them.
Every year in a mela in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, the best hound exhibited is given the title Rustum-e-Rampur.
MUDHOL HONUD
Primarily a desert variety of gaze hounds is generally found scattered all over Maharashtra and has been mostly kept by tribals. The Raja of Mudhol, a princely state, now part of Karnataka, trained these dogs for hunting. The Raja of Kolhapur also patronized this breed. Quiet, aloof, placid and reserve, it hunts with extreme concentration equally well on dry and marshy lands.
It has characteristically long and lean head, with well chiseled jaws and nose slightly protruding beyond the teeth. It has bony and narrow body with long tail that tapes to the end. It has very light and effortlessly easy movement with strong driving action with matching reach. Mudhol is found in all colours except albino.
RAJAPALAYAM
The Rajapalayam, built on the lines of the Great Dane, is an all white dog, though at times mottled white is also noticed. The eyes are brown, and the pink nose is distinctive. With its button ears and whip tail, it has loose hanging upper lips and is deep chested. Never a fast runner but is tireless and steady over long distances. Traditionally used as sheep dog and for hunting, it has also figured in battles. It is said that in the 18th Century Pudukottai regiment of Rajapalayam dogs was effectively used for fighting the enemies. Although a brave hound used more for hunting hare and other small game, it is gentle and is every one’s friend.
Department of Posts is happy to issue a set of four stamps on Breeds of Dogs.
300 YEARS OF 15 PUNJAB (PATIALA) stamp released on 13 04 2005
Denomination :500p
Stamps Printed :0.8 Million
Date of Issue :13-04-2005
Theme: Armed Forces
300 Years of 15 Punjab (Patiala)
One of the oldest and the most decorated battalions of the Indian Army, 15 Punjab (Patiala) was raised on 13th April, 1705, by Baba Alla Singh, founder of the Patiala State. By virtue of its bravery and valour, the battalion has earned acclaim and glory. Serving in different geographical locations, bracing hostile climate in difficult terrain, the battalion displayed gallantry in different parts of the globe as well as in the country. During World War I, it took part in operation in Middle East (Suez, Gallipoli and Palestine). In 1932 it was redesignated as 1 st Patiala Rajindra Sikh Infantry.
During the Second world War, the battalion fought in Waziristan and then went to Burma where it fought the enemy advancing towards India. It sailed to Port Dickson for action in Malaya and Batavia (now Java). In 1948 the battalion fought in Chhamb, Nowshera and Jhanghar. The finnest moment was at ‘Zojila’ pass where, ill-equipped and unacclimatized. PATIALAS achieved resounding success, earning eight Mahavir Chakras (MVCs), eighteen Vir Chakras (VrCs) and seventy two awards, including the Battle Honour “Zojila”. In 1951 the unit was integrated into the Indian Army and was redesignated as 15 PUNJAB (PATIALA).
During 1971 war the battalion fought heroically at Hussainiwala. In 1988 the battalion evicted the intruders from Dalunang Sector and was awarded one Yudh Seva Medal, one Mentioned-in-despatched and eight Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Commendation cards. The battalion showed exemplary performance during the Counter Insurgency Operations in Baramulla Sector during 1992 to 1995, earning fifty awards including one Kirti Chakra and two Shaurya Chakra. For its excellent performance at Sunderbani (J&K) during ‘OP VIJAY’ in 1999, the Battalion was Awarded one Vishisht Seva Medal along with other awards.
India Post is proud in issuing a commemorative postage stamp on the tercentenary of 15 PUNJAB (PATILA), and joins the nation to pay homage to its gallantry and trail blazing history.
KRISHAN KANT stamp released on 23-02-2005
Denomination :500p
Stamps Printed :0.6 Million
Date of Issue :23-02-2005
Theme:Personality
A true Gandhian and an eminent parliamentarian, Shri Krishan Kant was born on February 28, 1927 in the northern State of Punj ab in a family of freedom fighters. His father, Lala Achint Ram was a member of the Constituent Assembly and a Member ofParliament. He was also a prominent Congress leader and a pillar of the Bhoodan Movement in Punjab. His mother Smt. Satya Vati, now hundred years of age, is among the oldest living freedom fighters.
Shri Krishan Kant was educated at DA. V College, Lahore and Benaras Hindu University where he obtained his Master’s degree in Technology. He began his career as a scientist with the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research. He was a strong votary ofintegrating science with spirituality.
Inspired by his parents, he joined the freedom struggle at the tender age of 15, when he was jailed by the British for his active participation in the Quit India Movement. After independence Shri Krishan Kant was first elected to the Rajya Sabha in 1966 and remained a Member of the Rajya Sabha for 11 years, and subsequently, a Member of the Lok Sabha till 1980.
A versatile personality and a fine orator, he was known popularly as one of the’Young Turks’.
Shri Krishan Kant’s distinctive contribution lay in his consistent endeavour to evolve a consensus within the country on various divisive issues. He also organized ‘Sanjh Samagams’ in Punjab, focussing on the state’s rich commonality of culture.
On 7′ February, 1990 Shri Krishan Kant was appointed the Governor of Andhra Pradesh, where he espoused the cause of the Dalits, Women’s empowerment and prohibition. He initiated bold sociospiritual experiments by founding Satya Mandirs where people could assemble and solve their problems in the overarching edifice of Truth and Love.
Shri Krishan Kant held the office of the VicePresident of India and Ex-officio Chairman of the Ra jya Sabha from 2V August, 1997 until his demise on 271 July, 2002. As the Chairman, his unique style of defusing tense moments in the house with his witty remarks and his complete sense of fairness and impartibility became legendary.
Shri Krishan Kant was very sensitive towards social, political and cultural issues. He was the Founding General Secretary ofthe People’s Union for Civil Liberties and Democratic Rights. He was also the President of the Servants of the People Society, established by Lala Lajpat Rai.
A connoisseur of Urdu Poetry, Shri Krishan Kant was a prolific writer who contributed profusely to prominent dailies and periodicals on issues relating to national and international politics, culture, science, defence and foreign policy.
The Department of Posts is proud to issue a commemorative postage stamp on Shri Krishan Kant who epitomized Gandhian ideals of service and sacrifice.
PADAMPAT SINGHANIA stamp released on 03 02 2005
Denomination :500p
Stamps Printed :0.6 Million
Date of Issue :03-02-2005
Theme:Personality
An industrialist with a nationalistic fervour who believed that road to true freedom goes through industrial liberation, Padampat Singhania, Head of J.K. Organization, was one of India’s pioneering entrepreneurs, and a philanthropist as well.Born on 3rd February 1905, to Kamalapat Singhania and Ram Pyari, Padampat Singhania played a significant role in India’s constitutional history as a member of the Constituent Assembly and as a signatory to the Constitution.
Padampat Singhania did not receive formal educational qualifications at any school. He learnt the lessons of life outside educational institutions.
Even at a tender age, Padampat Singhania showed tremendous maturity and business acumen. He was barely 16, when he began to shoulder major responsibilities in the newly established J.K. Cotton Spinning and Weaving Mills in the true spirit of the Swadeshi Movement. He managed the business remarkably well after his father’s death. Padampat Singhania possessed great nationalist convictions. In 1942 at the peak of the Quit India Movement, he was approached by such eminent freedom fighters as Mahamana Madan Mohan Malviya and Shri Balkrishna Sharma for funds. He was also a party to the execution of a secret undercover operation.
Although conferred with Knighthood by the British in the year 1943, he continued his support to the Swadeshi Movement and the freedom struggle through generous financial assistance. Padampat Singhania significantly influenced the Indian industrial scenario in the post independence era through his industrial empire. Today, there are over 70 units in India and abroad with activities ranging from conventional products to cotton textiles, jute textiles, woolen textiles, rayon, nylon, iron & steel, cement, shipping, air transportation etc.
In 1969, he was conferred “D.Litt” (Honoris Causa) by the University of Kanpur.
His simplicity and devotion to the service of humanity won him laurels. His entire career was dedicated to the service of his countrymen. Padampat Singhania took active part in promotion and upliftment of various public bodies and founded Merchants’ Chamber of Uttar Pradesh, Kanpur.
He was also a member of the Legislative Assembly and the Constituent Assembly.
He was a believer in social and religious reforms and a staunch follower of the tenets enshrined in the Gita. He built many educational, medical and religious institutions for the good of the people, but he left for the heavenly abode on 18th November 1979.
The Department of Posts honours the spirit of nationalism and entrepreneurship with the issue of a commemorative postage stamp on Padampat Singhania.
BANDUNG CONFERENCE 1955 stamp released on 18 04 2005
Denomination :1500p
Stamps Printed :0.8 Million
Date of Issue :18-04-2005
Theme: Events National and International
Bandung Conference 1955
Bandung Conference, the first meeting of the newly independent states of Africa and Asia was a clarion call for the independence of the subjugated people. Marking the germination of the ideas of South-South Cooperation, this Conference was a collective effort by the AfroAsian nations to assert their presence on the world stage.
The Conference was a path-breaking meeting, convened upon the invitation of the Prime Ministers of Burna (now Myanmar), Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), India, Indonesia and Pakistan, and was attended by 24 other countries of Africa and Asia. Held in Bandung, Central Java, Indonesia in April 18-24, 1955, this Conference brought together some of the towering personalites of that time who envisaged a global order based on equality among nations, territorial integrity, sovereignty and development for all. The leaders were concerned not only with the great issues of the day - freedom, economic and political, fundamental human rights etc. but were gifted with a vision for the combined future of entire community. Emerging from the yoke of colonialism and the ravages of the Second World War into a world divided between conflicting ideologies, the leaders gathered at Bandung steadfastedly refused to join any pre existing and dominant alignments.
The neo independent countries participating in this meeting firmly believed that another world order was not only conceivable but also possible. Envisaging an independent frame of moral power as a counterweight to the bipolar world, the leaders wished to work together to see the new world order emerge.
Bandung initiated the process of the nations of the South coming together, to renew their ancient links - economic, cultural, political and social - that had been severed under colonialism, and to cooperate through exchange of experts & know-how, through establishment of national and regional technical institutions, promotion of joint-ventures, collective actions to safe-guard the interests etc. The Conference was the harbinger of many economic ideas such as diversification of export baskets, value addition to exports, intra-regional economic and commercial links and exchange of commerical information.
The Department of Posts is happy to issue a commemorative postage stamp on Bandung Conference, 1955.
ABDUL QUIYUM ANSARI stamp released on 01 07 2005
Denomination :500p
Stamps Printed :0.6 Million
Date of Issue :01-07-2005
Theme:Personality
Abdul Qaiyum Ansari
Abdul Qaiyum Ansari was a distinguished patriot, an eminent leader and administrator, and a social reformer with a firm commitment to national integration, secularism and communal harmony.
Born at Dehri-on-Sone in Bihar on 1st July, 1905, he was the second son of M. Abdul Hag and Safia Begum. After studying at Sasaram and Dehri-on-Sone High Schools, he went on to attend Aligarh Muslim University, Calcutta University, and Allahabad University, though his education was interrupted from time to time due to his active involvement in the struggle for India’s freedom. He got caught up in the movement at a very young age when he, along with others, left the government run school at Dehri-on-Sone, to establish a national school for the students who had boycotted government schools in response to the call of the Indian National Congress. Arrested and imprisoned at the young age of 16 for taking part in the anti-British Non-Cooperation and Khilafat Movements, he remained closely associated with the Indian National Congress throughout his years as a youth leader and took part in the students’ agitation against the allwhite Simon Commission during its visit to Calcutta in 1928.
Abdul Qaiyum Ansari opposed the communal policies of the Muslim League and its demand for the creation of Pakistan by dividing India, as also its claim to represent the Muslims of India. He, therefore, started the Momin Movement in 1937-38, to counteract the policies of the Muslim League, and for the social, political, and also economic emancipation and upliftment of the backward Momin community which made up at least half of India’s Muslim population. Under his leadership the All India Momin Conference supported the Congress under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi which he perceived to be fighting for freedom for a united India, and for the establishment and development of social equality, secularism and democracy. He also worked for the economic welfare of weavers and other artisan communities, and for the development of the handloom sector in the textile industry of the country.
In the general elections of 1946 held on the basis of separate electorates, his party won six seats in the Bihar Provincial Assembly against the Muslim League. He became the first Momin to become a Minister of Bihar. Later on, in consultation with his party, he signed the Congress pledge and dissolved the Momin Conference as a political body, and made it a social and economic organization. He was a Minister in the Bihar Cabinet for about seventeen years and held various important portfolios and discharged his responsibilities most ably, building up a reputation for selfless service and integrity.
He was the first Indian nationalist Muslim Leader who condemned the Pakistani aggression on Kashmir during October, 1947, and strenuously worked to rouse the Muslim masses to meet such aggressions as true citizens of India. He also founded the Indian Muslim Youth Kashmir Front in 1957 for liberation of Pakistani occupied areas of Kashmir. Subsequently, he also exhorted the Indian Muslims to support the Government of India in the anti-Indian uprising of the Razakars in Hyderabad during September, 1948.
A champion of the poor and downtrodden, Abdul Qaiyum Ansari worked for the spread of education and literacy and the first All India Backward Classes Commission was appointed by the Government of India in 1953 largely at his initiative.
Widely read and traveled, with a formidable understanding of national and international affairs Abdul Qaiyum Ansari was associated with numerous public and government bodies in his lifetime. He was also an accomplished journalist, writer and poet, and editor of Urdu weekly “Al-Islah” (The Reform) and an Urdu monthly “Musawat” (Equality) in the preindependence days.
A man of the people, Abdul Qaiyum Ansari died in their service on 18th January, 1973, at village Amiawar of Bihar, while inspecting damages caused to the village due to the collapse of the Dehri-Arrah canal and organizing relief to its homeless people.
The Department of Posts is privileged to issue a commemorative postage stamp in honour of Abdul Qaiyum Ansari..
CHILDREN’S DAY stamp released on 14 11 2005
Denomination :500,p
Stamps Printed :0.8 Million
Date of Issue :14-11-2005
Theme:Post: Children Day
Children’ s Day
Through the wondrous eyes of a child, the world is a place of beauty. The daily progression of day and night, the humming conundrum of sound and light are stimuli enough for the child’s fancy to take a flight on the tiny wings of innocence. And burdened as we are with our diurnal vicissitudes, festivals for us may only add up to worries and anxieties, but it is the purity of a child’s enthusiasm which touches the soul of a festival. The elusive happiness, which all of us chase through the myriad maze of life, lands straight into the child’s tiny palms, in the form of a simple toy, a little flower, or, even just a fistful of sand!
This purity of joy was splashed through all the entries received by the Department of Posts in this year’s All India Stamp Design Competition for children, wherein the theme was `festivals’ or `celebrations’. Looking into these paintings one was reassured that the future lies in the hands of a very positive generation, that sees hope in the beauty and colours spread in our daily lives.
The Department of Posts, to honour this spirit of boundless joy seen through the child’s delightful eyes, marks the children’s day i.e. 14th November, with the issue of a postage stamp, which is designed by a child. This year’s stamp is based on a painting in water colour done by Kumari Pallavi Majumder of Bidya Bharati Girls’ High School, New Alipore, Kolkata, the first Prize winner. The First Day Cover is based on painting of Kum. Sughosh S. Neergundh of S. Cadambi Vidya Kendra, Bangalore, the second prize winner. Both the paintings reflect the essence of joyous celebrations surrounding the simple country folks during festivals.
DANDI MARCH stamp released on 06 04 2005
Denomination :500,500,500,500p
Stamps Printed :0.8 Million each
Date of Issue :06-04-2005
Theme: Events National and International
“As the march continued, as days broke into dawn and dawn ripened into dusk, we saw before our very eyes the history of the
world changing. We saw the whole of India rising up with rekindled enthusiasm and, faith. ”
- Sarojini Naidu
Dandi March was one of the most inspiring chapters in the history of the Indian freedom struggle. Although every political act of Mahatma Gandhi was rich in symbolism, Dandi March was an outstanding example as it fired a people to believe collectively as a nation and to come together on a common platform.
Mahatma Gandhi believed firmly in opposing all that was morally unjustifiable, and he would, in his own inimitable way, give expression to such a protest. His opposition to the Salt Tax imposed by the British, was thus elemental and yet effective in rousing the nation,. Announcing the decision to launch the Salt Satyagarha, Gandhiji wrote to Lord Irwin, the Viceroy of India, “I regard this Tax (on salt) to be the most iniquitous of all from the poor man’s standpoint. As the independence movement is essentially for the poorest in the land, the beginning will be made with this evil.” The Salt Satyagraha was a masterstroke in political mobilization which also conclusively established that civil disobedience, as a means to achieve freedom was a viable political medium.
On March 12, 1930, Gandhiji started the historic march from Sabarmati Ashram with 78 volunteers to Dandi on the Gujarat Coast. The 25-day long march through dusty and muddy tracks, sometimes through knee-deep waters, culminated on April 6, 1930. Gandhiji picked up a small lump of natural salt, thereby giving the signal to hundreds of thousands of people to similarly defy the law, since the British exercised a monopoly on the production and sale of salt. This was the beginning of the civil disobedience movement. Gandhiji had said in the young India, “I know that the Salt Tax has to go and many other things with it. ”
Gandhiji’s polities was always dictated by a moral logic that went beyond the immediate political priority. To tax salt, a necessity of even the poorest ofthepoor, was to deprive the poor of his basic necessity.
The symbolic struggle to control manufacture of salt soon become a larger statement on what freedom meant.
The effects of the Salt Satyagraha were felt across the country. Thousands of followers were hauled into jail but it was only on May 4, 1930 that the Viceroy’s police arrested Gandhiji under a regulation of 1827.
This period is to be considered the apex of Gandhiji’s political appeal, as the march mobilized many new followers from all sections of the Indian society and with this, the nation had unshackled itself and achieved a symbolic emancipation.
This set of four stamps along with a miniature sheet tries to capture the historic moment and its varied facets. The first stamp (clockwise) catches a glimpse of the marchers, led by Mahatma Gandhi on the move. The second stamp shows Mahatma Gandhi while the headlines in “Bombay Chronicle” of March 13, 1930 announce the beginning of the “Great March for Liberty”. The third stamp shows lines written by Mahatma Gandhi on April 5th, 1930, “I want world sympathy in this battle of Right against the might”.
And finally, the last stamp, while showing the course traversed during the march, has Gandhiji picking up a lump of salt, a simple act, which forever become the powerful symbol of the Salt Satyagrah
.
The miniature sheet extends the idea encapsulated in the stamps with artistic depictions ofthe route taken during the commemoration of 75 years of Dandi March, while showing the historical footage of the followers of Mahatma Gandhi.
The Department of Posts joins the nation in commemorating the 75th anniversary of Dandi March and is privileged to issue this set of stamps on this occasion