1997. Independence movement The district had a large contribution to the freedom struggle of the country. It was Gopabandhu Das, the chief animating force, making Congress activities popular in Odisha. From the beginning of his career, he had associated himself with different sessions of the Congress. In 1920, after the special session of the Congress at Kolkata, Gopabandhu decided to carry on Congress programme in Odisha launched by Mahatma Gandhi. The Utkal Provincial Congress Committee was constituted early in 1921 and Gopabandhu became its first president. The arrival of Mahatma Gandhi in Cuttack on 23 March 1921 galvanized the Non-cooperation movement. It was Gopabandhu who translated the speeches of Gandhi which prompted the people to join the Non-cooperation movement. Under his leadership, by 30 June 1921, the Utkal Pradesh Congress Committee collected Rs.21000/- for Tilak Swaraj fund and enrolled 39000 Congress members. To carry out Congress programmes and to train workers and volunteers, Alaka Ashram was established in the district in the year 1922. To establish this Ashram, Gopabandhu Chaudhury, Bhagirathi Mahapatra and Pranakrushna Padhiary acted as the chief mobilizing force. It also became the meeting place of young volunteers (Banarsena) and published a weekly „Utkalika‟ edited by Sarala Devi, spreading Congress ideas like boycott of foreign cloth, law court and government institutions etc. The district had its contribution to the Civil Disobedience movement. Gandhiji had started this movement by breaking the salt law on 6 April 1930. The Salt Satyagraha was a powerful movement in Coastal Odisha. The first batch of Satyagraha, led by Gopabandhu Chaudhury and Acharya Harihar, started for Inchudi from Swaraj Ashram at Cuttack. Kujanga was another important centre of salt Satyagraha. Rama Devi, Malati Devi, Sarala Devi, Rani Bhagyabati Patamahadei and hundreds of women volunteers joined the movement and violated the salt law. The centres of salt Satyagraha in the district were Chatua, Kaliapata, Paradeep, Erasama and Daradia. Apart from the organisation of salt Satyagraha, marches, boycott of foreign cloth, propagation of Khadi, picketing before excise shops and other constructive programmes formed part of the civil disobedience movement. This movement was withdrawn in May 1934. Sarala Devi was the first woman freedom fighter and satyagrahi from Jagatsinghpur in the freedom struggle. On 8 August 1942, the All India Congress Committee in its meeting at Bombay passed the Quit India resolution and gave a call for mass struggle to achieve freedom. Centres of Congress movement like