The Champaran Agrarian Act, which provided relief to the indigo cultivators of Champaran after Gandhi's satyagraha, was passed in:

The Champaran Agrarian Act was passed by the Bihar and Orissa Legislative Council in 1918 (Act I of 1918), after Gandhi's satyagraha in Champaran.

Background:

• In Champaran district (north Bihar), European planters forced the peasants to grow indigo on part of their land under harsh contracts.
• By the early 20th century, the demand for natural indigo had fallen because of synthetic dyes from Germany.
• The planters then demanded higher rents and illegal dues (abwabs) from the peasants as compensation for releasing them from indigo cultivation.
• The peasants suffered greatly.

Gandhi's Champaran Satyagraha (1917):

• In 1917, at the request of local peasants, Gandhi went to Champaran to inquire into the condition of the peasants.
• The district authorities ordered him to leave, but he refused, and was ready to face punishment; the government then withdrew the order.

He was assisted by local leaders such as Rajendra Prasad, Brajkishore Prasad, Mazharul Haq, J. B. Kripalani, Anugrah Narayan Sinha and Mahadev Desai.

He collected statements from thousands of peasants about their grievances.

The government appointed an inquiry committee, with Gandhi as one of its members.

Main provisions of the Act:

• It abolished the system that forced peasants to grow indigo on part of their land.
• It reduced the enhanced rents by about 20-26 per cent.
• The planters agreed to refund about 25 per cent of the money they had taken illegally from the peasants.

Significance:

• Champaran was Gandhi's first satyagraha in India.
• It showed that non-violent resistance could succeed, and made Gandhi a national figure.
• Within a decade, the planters left the district.

Why not the other options?

• ✗1915 was not the year of the Act.
• ✗1917 was the year of the satyagraha.
• ✗1920 was the year the Non-Cooperation Movement began.