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seized Puri and declared the hesitant king, Mukunda Dev II as their ruler. The priests of the Jagannath Temple also extended the Paiks their full support. Seeing the situation going out of hand, the British clamped Martial Law. The King was quickly captured and sent to prison in Cuttack with his son. The Buxi with his close associate, Krushna Chandra Bhramarabar Rai, tried to cut off all communications between Cuttack and Khurda as the uprising spread to the southern and the north-western parts of Orissa. Consequently, the British sent Major-General Martindell to clear off the area from the clutches of the Paiks while at the same time announcing rewards for the arrest of Buxi Jagabandhu and his associates. In the ensuing operation, hundreds of Paiks were killed, many fled to deep jungles and some returned home under a scheme of amnesty. Thus by May 1817, the uprising was mostly contained. However, outside Khurda it was sustained by Buxi Jagabandhu with the help of supportersliketheRajaofKujungandtheunflinchingloyaltyofthePaiksuntilhissurrender in May 1825. On their part, the British henceforth adopted a policy of ‘leniency, indulgence andforbearance’towardsthepeopleofKhurda. Thepriceofsaltwasreducedandnecessary reforms were made in the police and the justice systems. Revenue officials found to be corrupt were dismissed from service and former land-holders were restored to their lands. The son of the king of Khurda, Ram Chandra Dev III was allowed to move to Puri and take charge of the affairs of the Jagannath Temple with a grant of rupees twenty-four thousand. In sum, it was the first such popular anti-British armed uprising in Orissa, which had far reaching effect on the future of British administration in that part of the country. To merely call it a ‘Paik Rebellion’ will thus be an understatement. Let’srecall Let’simagine 1. What was the demand of Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi Imagine you are a that was refused by the British? 2. What did the British do to protect the interests of British officer in Awadh those who converted to Christianity? during the rebellion. What would you do 3. What objections did the sepoys have to the new to keep your plans of cartridges that they were asked to use? fighting the rebels a top secret? 4. How did the last Mughal emperor live the last years of his life? when peop le revolt 63 Reprint 2024-25