SOME IMPORTANT FACTS
ABOUT SHRI GURUSADAY DUTT, ICS
AS ONE OF THE NATIONAL STALWARTS OF INDIA.

Shri Gurusaday Dutt, I.C.S., one of the front ranking pioneers of the identities of Bengali race and freedom movement in Indian Independence, was born on May 10, 1882, in the village Birasree under Jakigunge Police Station in the district Sylhet of the then undivided Bengal (presently in Bangladesh).
Shri Gurusaday Dutt
In education, he stood first in Entrance Examination in Assam Province in 1899. In 1901, he stood first in F. A. Examination from the Presidency College of Calcutta and achieved Sindhia Gold Medal. In 1905, he stood first in I.C.S. Examination and also 1st in Constitutional Law of Bar- at-Law Examination, which was a world record.

Having received the co-operation from Surendranath Bandhopadhyay, a great patriotic leader, he compelled the British Government to form Bengali Regiment, which was later sent to fight in the 1st World War under British Government that ruled India.

Shri Gurusaday Dutt was in close contact with the revolutionary leaders of Bengal and tried his utmost to help them in driving the imperialist forces from the country and make the country free and independent — stated by Benod Bihari Choudhury, a patriot of Indian Independent Movement.

In 1920, as viewed by Rabindranath Tagore, without the extreme effort of Shri Gurusaday Dutt, I.C.S., the then District Magistrate of Birbhum, the developmental activities of Visvabharati, Shantiniketan would not have been done.

In 1924, Shri Gurusaday Dutt made agricultural development through Cooperative movement at the time of his tenure as District Magistrate of Bankura – a neighbouring district of Birbhum, of present West Bengal.

In 1928, he refused to cooperate the British Administration and did not pass the firing order on the agitators of Lilua Railway Workshop, near Howrah and as a Magistrate gave his verdict against the British Government.

In 1929, he represented the Royal Majesty, on behalf of Government of India, in the International Agricultural Conference held in Rome, Italy, where he put emphasis for the urgent and speedy development of Agriculture in India.

In 1929, as a Magistrate, he refused to issue Lathi charge order and also denied firing order against the agitators who opposed the Salt Act under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi and ultimately as a matter of fact he was transferred from Mymensing to the less important district of Birbhum by telegraphic order.

Shri Gurusaday Dutt
In 1929, he started collecting examples of both visual and performing traditional art heritage of undivided India, which ultimately led the foundation of Bratachari Movement in India and - after Shri Dutt’s death - a museum of Folk Arts and Crafts, named after him was established in 1963 and declared open by Prof. Humayun Kabir, the then Union Minister of Education, Government of India, New Delhi.
In 1935, he represented the University of Calcutta in an International Folk Dance competition held in London with successful endeavour.

Despite his sincere service to the motherland, the Royal Majesty had not acknowledged him. On the contrary, he was discouraged by the then British Government for his national spirit. It is our moral obligation to pay Homage to this bright son of our country by celebrating his 125th Birth Anniversary in 2007. If we seriously go through his contribution, we will find out that he had taken a great role to the honour of dignity of labour and also had a desire to establish a secular India, which he expressed through his writings and activities by the way of his Bratachari Movement.