Tribal Revolts in India with Reference to Salem and Baramahal Districts of Madras Presidency during the Late 18th Century

This paper examines the simmering discontent and the underlying reasons behind the tribal revolts against the colonial administration in Salem and Baramahal regions of Madras Presidency at the end of eighteenth century. It reveals that colonial intervention into the traditional tribal administrative boundaries was responsible for their revolt. The colonial government disregarded the tribal revolts with contempt and suppressed them by brute force. Further, this article attempts to reconstruct the historiography of tribal revolts with the help of subaltern literature.