Major Anthony Gilchrist McCall (7 January 1895-8 May 1978) was an Indian Civil Service officer and an officer of the British military. He was the superintendent of the Lushai Hills District from 1931 to 1943.
Early life Anthony McCall was born in Yorkshire on 7 January 1895 to Dr Anthony McCall and Mary Greer McCall (b. Gilchrist). He had one sister. He was educated at Cheltenham College before going to Woolwich to train as an officer in the Royal Artillery. He was commissioned in the early summer of 1914. McCall was on leave in Germany on the outbreak of World War I and escaped detention by German authorities. He served with the Royal Artillery and participated in the Balkans theatre, particularly on special duty in the Serbian campaign. His ranks include being a Lieutenant and a Captain Temporary Major. He ended his service with the rank of Major.
Indian civil service In 1921, McCall joined the Indian Civil Service as the only regular soldier in his year to be accepted. He was posted to Bengal where he received further training. He was then posted to the Government of Assam.
In 1928, McCall was appointed President of the Durbar in Manipur State. He held this position until 1931, when he was transferred as the Superintendent of the Lushai Hills District.
Superintendent of the Lushai Hills district The Lushai Hills was described as a pleasant backwater that was underdeveloped and underinvested by the Government of Assam. Little had been done to modernize the region. Due to the inner line and excluded areas designation, outside contacts were also limited. McCall took on a modernisation policy for the Lushai Hills to prepare them for their place as a wider community. McCall designated policies for the Lushai Hills while preserving Lushai customs and traditions. Efforts were made in education, health, hygiene, agriculture and social activities. Due to this, the Assam Government permitted McCall to remain as superintendent for a term far longer than average. McCall's efforts in the Lushai Hills were ambitious, as he even attempted to convince the British to establish electricity.
Response to the Kelkang Revival
As Superintendent McCall presided over the unfolding the Kelkang Revival. A Mizo preacher, Thanghnuaia who was illiterate began to get individuals to read out verses he pointed and claim communion with the Holy Spirit. Thanghnuaia's influence grew through his preaching and constant prayer. His influence became diluted over two more men known as Thanzinga and Pasina according to Chief Liannawla. Pasina who was literate presided over the meetings and handled biblical discussion. McCall claimed that the three men succeeded in wielding considerable spiritual influence over the people of Kelkang.
Thanzinga claimed to have had a holy vision, and the message spread across Kelkang. Revivalists began to sing and dance and stopped cultivating their crops. Individuals began to sacrifice animals in feasts for God as a result. McCall analyses the revival of individuals inhibiting the spirit of the Holy Ghost in their hearts. McCall recorded instances of hysteria such as a naked woman in Church during the revival celebrations who went insane. He criticised the missions for the failure to police the behaviour of revivalists and lack of worship etiquette.
Eventually the Kelkang Revival spread to neighbouring villages. McCall left with an escort of Gurkha riflemen of the First Battalion of the Assam Rifles on 4 September towards Kelkang. McCall uncovered a plan that the revivalists planned to ambush him by slapping him and trampling him. He claimed this plan was made so that no one killer would be identified in his attempted intervention. Pasina was alleged to have devised a plan to prompt McCall to say "damn" in order to trigger the ambush. McCall thus made a surprise visit to the village and surrounded the houses of the ringleaders and arrested the three men.
Pasina was taken to the camp and spoke in tongues. McCall gave an ultimatum to Pasina to persist in worship and not be fed, or revoke the behaviour and allow his family to feed him and visit him. He conducted an investigation and trial over a span of ten days. McCall stacked several allegations against the ringleaders. Thangngnuaia was accused of disrupting food cultivation after an end-of-the-world revelation was announced. McCall charged them with false witness and prophecy. The ringleaders also defamed sexual relations without proof. McCall further charged the revival movement with challenging authority. McCall sentenced the three men, Thanghnuaia, Pasina and Thangzinga to three years in Sylhet. The men were soon granted clemency on condition of refraining from public worship. McCall exacted heavy fines and increased impressed coolie labour to six days of unpaid labour.
McCall's reforms Chief's Durbar McCall established the chief's durbar in the Lushai Hills. Using the pre-established circle system, the chiefs of each circle would record votes under a secret ballot system to appoint a chief spokesperson for the circle. This position would be held for term of three years. An appointed chief would be required to sign a document to hand to the district officer or superintendent. The document would require allegiance to the British monarch and faithful duty to advance the standards for all lushais. The office would also place chiefs in charge of all grievances and subjects within the circle to encourage leadership cultivation and cooperation. The document further outlines an anti-corruption clause to not place material and personal ambitions by reaching an office as a circle chief. Chiefs would be required to learn all the principles of administration and accept necessary changes in traditional Lushai customs regarding chieftainship. Lastly, the document states that all chiefs in office are equal. McCall implemented this clause to prevent conflicts of clan precedence and history from justifying inequality and conflict. McCall's intention of the durbar policy was to encourage chiefs to become able administrators who could maintain foresight for the wellbeing of their people as opposed to their traditional privileges.
The Durbar would meet twice a year and last 7-10 days with the superintendent. Apart from policy negotiations, the superintendent would become responsible for teaching administrative policy on certain topics such as legal procedure, soil and forest conservation, agriculture, public works and politics. The functions of the durbar were established to consider changes to the Lushai District Cover, which codified customary Lushai laws. The durbar would also encourage chiefs to raise grievances on the implemented policies of the British government or other sources which are not indigenous. Overall the durbar would maintain the policy of indirect rule while simultaneously granting a machinery for fully examining and debating policies relating to the Lushai people.
However the durbar also led to failure. The chiefs at one point allocated funds to an agitator who wished to start a highschool and become educated into a headmaster for the future high school. However, he failed to gain a degree from Calcutta before becoming embroiled in a cotton deal scandal. In another durbar, the chiefs opposed supplying rice to schoolteachers on account of no high school being established despite the British funding over 200 schools.
+October 1940 Chief's Durbar elections Circle name clan village Aizawl subdivision Circle I Lalsailova Sailo Kelseih Circle I Kamlaiana Sailo Tachhip Circle II Khawkunga Chenkual Pukpui Circle II Ngurliana Sailo Kolasib Circle III Hrangtinaia Hmar Vaitin Circle III Laltinkhuma Sailo Lailak Circle IV Awksarala Sailo Phullen Circle IV Hrangchhuma Sailo Khawdungsei Circle V Thlahthiauva Hualngo Khuangleng Circle V Thanglianga Sailo Tlangsam Circle VI Thangchuanga Sailo Biate Circle VII Lalzuala Sailo Baktawng Circle VIII Saihnuna Sailo Mualcheng Circle IX Ngurchhina Sailo Thenzawl Circle X Lalbuanga Sailo Kanghmun Circle XI Lalluaia Sailo ReiekLunglei Subdivision Circle XII Laldula Sailo Buarpui Circle XIII Thanzama Sailo Thiltlang Circle XIV Sena Sailo Sekhum Circle XIV Taikhuma Ralte Pukpui Circle XV Khuahupa Pawi Cheural Circle XV Lalsailova Fanai Lungleng Circle XVI Achhuma Fanai Tawipui Circle XVII Chungmunga Lakher Serkawr Circle XVIII Lianhnuna Palian Tiante
Welfare Committee System On account of only 3% of te population in permanent contact with amenities, the village welfare committees were inaugurated in response. The policy was established in the interest of the public health and living conditions of all villages. The final authority of the system was the civil surgeon of the Lushai Hills. The welfare committees were largely under the guidance of the Red Cross District Committee in Aizawl. It employed both Lushais and Europeans in this endeavour. Only unanimous decisions are enacted by the committee. This was to ensure that policies were not enforced without amending Lushai conditions or technical approval of the civil surgeon. Furthermore, the committee was bipartisan in religion, education, and politics, making it easy to implement.
Welfare committees were required to comply with district rules. The rules were that committees must be formed with the chief as president who will be assisted by heads of the village church and school along with pensioners and two ordinary men and women. This structure ensured unity and kept checks of power on all individuals among the Lushai hierarchy. The formation of a committee by a chief is not compulsory but must follow the rules if chosen. Upon advice or new health alerts from the headquarter committee of the chief surgeon, the chief will call the committee members to his house for local consultation and gain a unanimous acceptance to apply the new advice. Advice would range from hygiene, diet pamphlets, pregnancy etc. If the committee is not unanimous the matter is dropped until it can be brought up again favourably. Once the advice is accepted by consensus a meeting is held for the village. The villagers are called together once a month and the advice is read out with a short discussion. To limit long debates, villagers are told the advice beforehand and encouraged to bring up question during the monthly meeting. During the meeting a vote will be held in which a majority of villagers would have to support the advice to implement it as a custom. There is no penalty or enforcement of the new rule apart from public opinion.
McCall established the village welfare committees to encourage choice-making among the Lushai people and take responsibility for their wellbeing. The policy was also cost-effective as there were no expenses apart from the printing fees of the pamphlets and advice. The pamphlets educated the Lushais on epidemics, Lushai cuisine and nutrition which were handed out free of cost.
Ten Point Code Another reform under McCall was the ten point code. This was established as a policy of forming a national identity that would resist becoming absorbed into the spheres of Indian or Burmese domination. McCall states that "this will sow the seeds of a temperate nationhood". The ten point code would be learnt by children in school to the point of being recited beginning to end without fault. The code was translated into Lushai verses by the poet and Chief Saihnuna, a Fanai of the Leng village in the Eastern lushai Hills. It was largely used as a choir song and used for the village welfare meetings at the beginning and end. The code was developed with full consultation of the missionaries to ensure no disagreement was reached.