October 5 this year was the 95th birth anniversary of Baji Rout, the youngest martyr of India’s freedom movement who was born at Nilakanthapur in Dhenkanal district in 1926.

Baji, courageous enough at the tender age of 12 to fearlessly face the bullets of British force, continues to be an inspiration of patriotism for generations to come. The fateful night: The British police in the midnight of October 10, 1938 attacked Bhuban village in the district, arrested some persons and leaders without any reason and took them to Bhuban police station. Several villagers gheraoed the police station and demanded release of the arrested persons.

The cops did not listen to the demand of the agitators and fired at them, during which Raghu Naik and Quri Naik were shot dead and many others were injured. Apprehending their lives at risk, the policemen wanted to go to Dhenkanal through Nilakanthapur Ghat as it was the shortest way to Dhenkanal. On October 11 night, the cops reached Nilakanthapur Ghat of Brahmani river while it was raining.

 Baji Rout, a member of the children’s wing of the Prajamandal Andolan, was in charge of a country boat at the ghat. He was asked by senior activists to keep a vigil on the ghat to ensure that policemen won’t be able to ferry through the river. The Britishers ordered him to carry them across the river on his boat, to which he denied fearlessly. The police force fired at Baji along with two other boatmen Laxman Mallik and Fagu Sahoo, killing them on the spot.

Meanwhile, the Samajwadi Party has demanded to institute a bravery award in Baji Rout’s name and also to name a children’s park after him.

In a letter to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, party State president Rabi Behera also pleaded that the poems written on Baji Rout by famous Odia poet Sachi Routray may be included in the literature in school and college level to inspire the younger generation.