Shibu Soren started the movement against the moneylenders for the upliftment of the tribal society from Pokharia of Tundi. After this movement, the flame of education lit up in this area of the underprivileged. He opened village-village Aqeel Akhda (center of education) for the children of tribal and poor who were deprived of education, while his night school at Pokharia Ashram proved beneficial for the tribal society. In this movement run by him from the year 1970, social work started under the banner of Sonet Santhal Samaj. Seeing the plight of the tribals and the regret of dropping out in the middle, inspired them for tribal education.
Munilal Marandi, a retired teacher from DVC Chandrapura, who was an ally in the Mahajani movement, says that Shibu Soren had established the Akil Akhara so that the children of the poor could stay in the village itself, while in the night school, he added that people would work for agricultural labor throughout the day. , will reach the ashram for some time at night for studies. Due to which they will not have to suffer financial loss.
Ghatimlal Marandi, who was an aide of the movement, says that in those days there was no electricity in the Pokharia Ashram covered with mountains and forests. Despite this, Shibu, on the strength of the lantern, started basic and vocational education for the people who were deprived of education. Women and men were taught alphabet knowledge, collective farming as well as animal husbandry.
Purnadih’s teacher Rajendra Tiwari, who was a companion of Shibu Soren’s struggle, then went from village to village to make people aware about studies. Educated youth were urged to contact village to village and educate at least five people. Shibu Soren had appealed to the needy people that if they are not able to buy slate and pencil, then it does not matter, take the land with cow dung and get alphabet knowledge from the burnt coal and white shadow of the brick kiln. He established village-village libraries. He also called upon the educated youth of every village to educate five uneducated people in that village. People will automatically get education by joining such chains. At the same time, he established a sewing center in the ashram itself, where about 20-30 girls of Pirtand were learning to sew. Seeing all this social work, people around including Tundi started calling him Guruji.
According to Sarita Kumar, research scholar of Vinoba Bhave University Hazaribagh History, when Dhanbad Deputy Commissioner KB Saxena reached Palma to meet Shibu Soren for the first time, there was a crowd of ten thousand tribals. As soon as the Deputy Commissioner arrived, all the tribals stood up, but as soon as Shibu made a sound in the Santhali language, everyone sat down. Seeing this, it struck Saxena’s mind that Shibu has carved a distinct identity among the underprivileged Santhals. After which he proposed to join the mainstream.
(EW correspondent)
