‘BUSTING THE MYTH’: A CRITICAL STUDY ON THE GENDER AND CLASS OF THE 1866 FAMINE OF ODISHA
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29121/shodhkosh.v4.i2.2023.2842Keywords:
1866 Famine, Women, Odisha, Caste, Class, Mortality Rate, Food CrisisAbstract [English]
One of the greatest famines ever reported happened in Odisha was the famine of 1866. The terrible famine claimed the lives of around one-third of the whole population.In the famine of 1866, massively affected the common people, such as poor people, daily wage earners, lower class people, and farmers, who suffered highly because of their low purchasing power. In studying the impact of the famine on vulnerable groups in a society, gender often ignored, however, it is a well-known fact that the poorer sections of society are the first ones to fall victims. The study examines the multidimensional aspects of the gender issue that include mortality, fertility, migration, nutrition and deprivations faced by women in general and girl child in particular during the 1866 famine of Odisha. In the epidemic phase of the famine, female deaths were highest.Women of low caste suffered the most as they did not possess ornaments to sell and certainly not enough to sustain themselves for a long time.This study also signifies revisiting the cataclysmic experience of the 1866 Famine in Orissa that saw increasing mortality rates among the females, crimes against women, food riots, distress sale of land, distress migration, prostitution, child abandonment, eating of famine foods which had toxins, cannibalism, and even rebellion.
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Visual References:
Viewpoint: How British let one million Indians die in famine. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-36339524
Na’AnkaDurbhikshya' –revisiting the darkest chapter in Odisha history. https://sambadenglish.com/naanka-durbhikshya-revisiting-the-darkest-chapter-in-odisha-history/
Odisha: Researchers showcase famine of 1866 through exhibition
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