• Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is renowned for leading the most significant resistance against Aurangzeb’s territorial ambitions during the Mughal era in India. Beginning his journey as a Maratha warrior, Shivaji rose through sheer determination and became a self-proclaimed ruler.
• With a hands-on leadership approach, he frequently led his troops in perilous missions, often putting his own life at stake. His courage and commitment earned him the unwavering loyalty of his soldiers, many of whom willingly laid down their lives for his vision—paving the way for the establishment of Hindavi Svarājya, a self-sufficient Indian state.
• Starting in the 1640s with a modest force, Shivaji expanded his army to tens of thousands by the mid-1660s, gaining the confidence of numerous warriors. A strategist in guerrilla warfare—known as ganimi kawa in Marathi—his swift, agile methods repeatedly outmaneuvered the numerically superior yet sluggish Mughal forces. He employed rapid cavalry strikes, disrupted enemy supply chains, and used hit-and-run tactics in challenging terrains, inflicting significant damage on his adversaries.
• French administrator François Martin, the first Governor-General of Puducherry, highlighted the stark differences between the Mughal and Maratha military structures in his Mémoires. He noted that the Maratha army was mobile, efficient, and accustomed to a disciplined yet austere lifestyle. Martin also described Shivaji as a ruler who eschewed grandiosity, often sitting among his soldiers rather than indulging in royal extravagance.
• Another French traveler, Jean de Thévenot, characterized Shivaji as being of short stature, with a sharp gaze indicative of intelligence. He documented that Shivaji followed a frugal lifestyle, eating only once a day and sharing meals with his troops. Similarly, Abbé Barthélemy Carré likened Shivaji’s generosity and strategic acumen to that of Julius Caesar, emphasizing how his kindness won over even those he had previously defeated in battle.

A Ruler Beyond Caste Boundaries

• In contemporary times, debates around Shivaji’s caste identity have often emerged, overshadowing his true legacy. His army and administration comprised individuals from diverse backgrounds—so-called lower castes, impoverished Brahmins, peasants, nomads, and small landlords.
• Some notable figures in his military included Hambirrao Mohite (a Maratha), Tanhaji Malusare (a Koli), Baji Prabhu Deshpande (from a Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu lineage), and Ragho Atre (a Brahmin).
• Additionally, Shivaji’s forces enlisted members of nomadic communities, such as the Narikuravars, and the Koli caste, known for their maritime expertise. His naval forces also had significant representation from the Kolis, who transitioned from fishermen to skilled seafarers. Notably, Siddi Hilal, a Muslim of African descent, was among his distinguished commanders.
• Shivaji’s governance was remarkably meritocratic, ensuring that at the time of his death, all 240 forts under his rule were overseen by capable administrators rather than hereditary nobility.
• He also supported religious inclusivity, allowing those who had converted to other faiths to return to Hinduism—a policy implemented long before similar reforms were championed by the Arya Samaj in the 19th century.
• Figures such as Netaji Palekar and Bajaji Nimbalkar were notable beneficiaries of this policy. His defiance of orthodox Brahmins, who initially opposed his coronation due to his uncertain caste origins, further highlights his progressive outlook.
• Cosme de Guarda, in his 1695 account Life of the Celebrated Sevagy, recorded Shivaji’s progressive stance on sati, noting that he opposed forcing his wives to commit self-immolation upon his death. He stated that while they were free to choose, coercion was strictly forbidden—demonstrating his humane and reformist approach.
• Shivaji also sought to replace Persian legal terminology with indigenous Indian languages. In 1677, he commissioned the RājavyavahārakoÅ›a, a Sanskrit lexicon that translated over 1,500 Persian administrative terms. This effort reinforced Marathi, written in both Devanagari and Modi scripts, as the primary language of administration and literature. By doing so, he facilitated greater accessibility to governance, allowing ordinary citizens to engage with state affairs without relying on Persian.

A Champion of Social Justice and Economic Reform

• During Aurangzeb’s reign, slavery remained a prevalent institution, with the Al-Fatawa al-Alamkiriyyah (1672) legitimizing the ownership and trade of enslaved individuals while also rendering their testimonies inadmissible in court. Shivaji took a firm stand against this practice.
• In 1677, he issued a charter banning the slave trade under his jurisdiction, particularly in Dutch-controlled trading posts like Porto Novo (modern-day Parangipettai) and Tevenapatam (in present-day Tamil Nadu).
• His decree warned that any attempt to engage in slavery would be met with active resistance, emphasizing that such actions would not be tolerated.
• Shivaji’s economic policies were equally revolutionary. He abolished the vatandari system—a feudal practice that allowed landlords to exercise control over peasant labor—and introduced the Ryotwari system instead. This reform empowered cultivators by granting them greater autonomy over their land and produce.
• The Sabhasad Bakhar, a biography of Shivaji written in 1697, underscores his commitment to peasant welfare, stating that his policies freed farmers from the oppressive grip of landlords.
• The Adnyapatra, a royal directive composed by his finance minister Ramchandra Pant Amatya, further condemned the feudal elites, describing them as a persistent threat to the state due to their insatiable greed for power and land.
• In essence, Shivaji’s rule was characterized by progressive governance, military ingenuity, and an unwavering commitment to justice. He sought to dismantle oppressive structures, championed meritocracy over hereditary privilege, and ensured that all under his rule, regardless of caste or creed, found dignity and opportunity in his Svarājya

Impact of the Earthquakes

• The earthquakes caused widespread destruction, affecting the entire region, resulting in thousands of casualties and extensive damage to homes. The impact zone extended as far as Bangkok, Thailand’s capital, nearly 1,000 km from the quake’s epicenter.
• In Bangkok, the destruction was minimal, except for the total collapse of a 33-story high-rise under construction and an overflow of water from a rooftop swimming pool of another building.
• Despite their limited impact, these incidents were widely reported due to the city's prominence in global tourism. The water overflow resulted from seismic seiches—water oscillations triggered by seismic waves passing through the area. Even at a significant distance from the epicenter, slower, long-period seismic waves can intensify movements in taller structures, as observed in this case.
• According to the U.S. Geological Survey's damage assessment models, the total death toll in the affected region was estimated to exceed 10,000. Mandalay, with a population of over 1.5 million, bore the brunt of the destruction.
• Many structures, including religious sites, bridges, and mosques, were either severely damaged or completely destroyed.
• Analysis of the destruction indicates that the southern part of the Sagaing fault experienced the most damage due to its thick deposits of alluvium from the Irrawaddy River, which amplified the seismic energy. In contrast, China’s Yunnan Province, located north of the fault, remained largely unaffected by the quake.
• The earthquake originated at a depth of just 10 km, significantly contributing to the widespread damage and the large area where tremors were felt. Eastern parts of India remained largely unscathed because the seismic energy dispersed predominantly in a north-south direction along the fault line.

Frequency of Earthquakes in South Asia

• South Asia, including Myanmar, is particularly susceptible to earthquakes due to its proximity to significant tectonic features such as the Himalayas, the Shillong Plateau, the Southern Indo-Burman Range, and the Andaman-Nicobar subduction zone.
• The collision of the Indian and Eurasian plates, which began around 40 million years ago, has led to an active plate boundary in Southeast Asia.
• This boundary has generated some of the most powerful earthquakes in history, including the 9.2-magnitude earthquake in 2004, which triggered a devastating transcontinental tsunami.
• The accumulation of tectonic stress along these plate boundaries results in frequent seismic events. A major earthquake of magnitude 8.5 struck in 1792 along the Arakan coast of Myanmar, triggering a tsunami in the northern Bay of Bengal and causing extensive soil liquefaction in the Chittagong region of Bangladesh.
• This thrust fault extends further north into the Chittagong-Tripura fold belt, where moderate seismic activity continues to occur. However, the potential for another major earthquake in this region remains uncertain.
• Southeast Asia is home to a variety of geological structures capable of producing earthquakes with different faulting mechanisms, at depths ranging from 5 km to as deep as 400 km. Deeper earthquakes tend to occur in the southern regions near Indonesia or in the Indo-Burmese regions near the subduction front between the Indian and Eurasian plates.
• The 2025 Mandalay earthquake, however, originated within the continental part of the mountain range. In the process of mountain formation, sediments from the subducting Indian plate get pushed onto the overriding Asian plate, forming the tectonic setting from which such earthquakes emerge.

Geodynamics of the Sagaing Fault

• The eastern margin of the Indian Ocean is shaped by the intricate interactions of multiple tectonic plates. The Indian and Eurasian plates are converging in an oblique manner rather than directly colliding.
• This oblique convergence results in a partitioning of strain—some deformation occurs perpendicular to the plate boundary, while the rest occurs parallel to it. The Sagaing fault, running north-south, forms a major tectonic boundary between the Central Myanmar Lowlands and the Indo-Burman Range.
• Between the Indian plate and the Sagaing fault lies an elongated micro-tectonic block known as the Burma plate or Burma sliver. This block has emerged due to strain partitioning at the subduction front.
• Studies indicate that the Sagaing fault accommodates a significant portion of the strike-slip component of the oblique convergence, moving at a rate of 15-25 mm per year, with a cumulative displacement of 100-700 km. The fault accounts for approximately 50-55% of the overall plate motion in the region.
• Unlike thrust faults, where vertical movements of fault blocks are common, the Sagaing fault primarily exhibits horizontal movements, with tectonic blocks sliding past each other. This makes it similar to the San Andreas Fault in the western United States. While thrust faults can generate both shallow and deep earthquakes, strike-slip faults, such as the Sagaing fault, typically produce shallower earthquakes at depths of 10-15 km.
• As a ridge-trench transform fault, the Sagaing fault spans approximately 1,400 km from the Andaman Sea’s spreading center in the south to the eastern Himalayan bend in the north.
• The fault has a history of strong earthquakes, with six major quakes of magnitude 7.0 or higher occurring between 1930 and 1956 along this structure. Historical seismic activity suggests that nearly half of the fault has ruptured in the past few decades.
• The 2025 earthquake, therefore, was not an isolated event but rather part of an ongoing sequence of quakes that release built-up stress from active plate movements.

Implications of the Mandalay Earthquake

• Records indicate that in 1839, an earthquake known as the Ava earthquake struck central Myanmar, killing over 500 people. This event is believed to have originated along a segment of the Sagaing fault, with an estimated magnitude of 7.8.
• Another notable earthquake in 1927 was reported to have been strongly felt north of Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city, which currently has a population of over four million. Additionally, an earthquake of magnitude 7.7 occurred in 1946 on the Sagaing fault north of Mandalay, similar in magnitude to the 2025 earthquake.
• The historic city of Bagan, known for its dense collection of religious monuments, has also been impacted by multiple earthquakes over the centuries, with the most recent occurring in 2016.
• Scientific research helps us understand earthquake processes, identify potential locations for future earthquakes, and estimate their possible magnitudes. However, the Sagaing fault is more than just an area of scientific interest—it directly affects millions of people living along its length.
• The recent earthquake has compounded Myanmar’s struggles, with rising casualties and widespread destruction of infrastructure, further exacerbated by the ongoing civil conflict in the region