Tribals at Raiboga in Sundergarh district pay homage to the people who sacrificed their lives at Amko-Simko village of the district during the freedom struggle in 1939. Picture by Uttam Kumar Pal

Sambalpur, April 26: Local residents paid homage to the tribal martyrs of the Amco-Simco massacre during the struggle against British rule.

Simco village is located in Biramitrapur constituency along the Orissa-Jharkhand border, 80km from Sundergarh district headquarters.

The Sanskrutik Samaj of Sambalpur had organised a meeting yesterday evening to pay tribute to the martyrs.

“The sacrifice of the tribals of Simco village has not been properly recognised. According to government reports, 42 tribal people had been killed on the Amco-Simco field on April 25, 1939. But some people contradict with the report and say that the death toll was 49,” said Rajat Kujur, a resident of Sundergarh and political science teacher in Sambalpur University.

“This was the biggest massacre by the British government in Orissa,” he added.

“The Jalianwalabagh bloodbath has received wide recognition in the history but the Amco-Simco massacre has not got a proper place even in history books,” said Kujur.

The tribals of the locality had raised their voice of revolt under the leadership of Nirmal Munda against the irrational levy imposed on them. But the queen of Gangpur called the innocent tribals to the Amco-Simco ground to discuss the matter. More than 3,000 people had gathered there to discuss the issue with the queen. But she ordered the British soldiers to disperse the mob and the innocent people were killed in the firing.

“But the sacrifice of the martyrs went unrecognised. Nirmal Munda, who led the movement, got the recognition as a freedom fighter very late. The other tribal peasants, who died in the firing, remained unrecognised,” he said.

Ashok Pradhan, an intellectual and Sambalpur resident, said: “Hundreds of people had died in this incident. It is unfortunate that sacrifice of these people is gradually being forgotten.”

“Freedom fighter and former chief minister Harekrushna Mahatab, in one of his books, had mentioned that 300 people had died in the massacre,” said Pradhan.