Baji Rout: Remembering youngest martyr

Bhubaneswar, Oct 5: Baji Rout is the youngest martyr in the history of the Indian freedom movement. He was killed by Britishers because he refused to ferry them across the Brahmani River at Nilakanthapur Ghat in Bhuban in Dhenkanal district on the night of 11 October 1938. Remembering Baji Rout on his birth anniversary, let us know about his valour and courage. He was born on 5 October 1926 in the village of Nilakanthapur in Dhenkanal district, Odisha. Baji Rout was killed at the age of 12 by a British soldier. As an active member of the Banar Sena (youth brigade) of Prajamandal (People's Party), he volunteered to guard the river at night. British police ordered him to help them cross the river in their boat, which he refused. The police then shot him. He joined Banar Sena Prajamandal at a very young age. He also lost his father very early. Her mother was surviving on the wages she was earning from husking rice. He stood against the oppressive rulers of Dhenkanal and the British. Eminent poet Sachi Routray’s famous poem ‘Baji Rout’, which was translated into English by Harindranath Chattopadhyay, had set the entire nation on an unprecedented motion for freedom of people from the Kings of the princely states. Sachi Routray took several days to regain his composure to finish his poem Baji Rout that he had started on the cremation ground itself in the light of the pyre. A short film on Baji Rout, Baji – the Immortal Boat Boy, directed by Chinmoy Das was released in 2018.