Anna Hazare biography is about a patriot who came to national attention with his determined fight against corruption. His sudden place in the limelight has people wonder who he is and what he has done before. The curiosity is no surprise when the movement for the Jan Lokpal bill has been like an earthquake on the national scene.
He is a humble person with no personal ambition. In Maharashtra, he has lived in Ralegan Siddhi village since 1975. His residence is a small attached room to the Sant Yadavbaba temple restored with his pension money. His brothers use the small 0.07 hectare plot of family land in Ralegan Siddhi. Two other pieces of land donated by a villager and the army to him have been donated in turn by him to villagers.
However, there is a burning ambition to make life have meaning. This ambition developed after he escaped a second incident that would have killed him. Both incidents were suffered during his period in the army. They transformed his thinking as he thought there was some reason he was spared.
He spent his spare time reading the works of Gandhi, Swami Vivekananda and Vinoba Bhave. After honourable discharge in 1975 after completion of 12 years of service, the future anti-corruption fighter returned home village. The plight of this village was another formative environment.
On his return, pension money was first used to restore the local temple. Villagers including youths became involved in providing their labor to the restoration effort. This inspired him to use the force of youth towards another purpose. A youth group organized thereafter became involved in a program to eradicate alcoholism. It was the first of their many efforts to come.
The first group effort waged a successful fight against illegal alcohol manufacturers and their alcoholic customers. Subsequently the battle was taken to a higher level. The state government was called upon to pass a law that would enforce prohibition should it be demanded by 25 percent of women residing in a village. State government acquiesced in 2009. The Bombay Prohibition Act, 1949 was amended to meet this demand. The next goal was to ban tobacco use in the village.
A grain bank in the temple was established in 1980 to make hunger history. A number of other beneficial efforts were directed at improving life for villagers. They burnished the flame of his reputation as a social activist beyond its territory. These efforts included a major program to aid drought prone regions. Replacement of water intensive crops, a watershed development program and improving milk production were among changes that brought relief and productivity to 70 villages since 1975. Other programs included ending untouchability, introducing collective marriage celebration to reduce expense and actions to boost literacy and education. A pre school was begun in 1976 and a high school was established in 1979.
A major political campaign brought more power to Gram Sabhas. A dedicated campaign supported an amendment to the law to give villagers greater say in development. Subsequently, it became mandatory that the Gram Sabha be consulted for spending on development projects. A continuation of this is his August 2012 call for elected representatives at national level to be subject to Gram Sabhas. A belief in the power of the people is a consistent commitment. An anti corruption fight begun in 1991 at home was the germination of a larger battle. The national campaign is a crystallization of years of activity. One should also not forget the enactment of the Right to Information Act in Maharashtra that later established a foundation for the Right to Information Act passed by the Union Government in 2005. A life lived to benefit the mass is a consistent feature of the Anna Hazare biography.
He is a humble person with no personal ambition. In Maharashtra, he has lived in Ralegan Siddhi village since 1975. His residence is a small attached room to the Sant Yadavbaba temple restored with his pension money. His brothers use the small 0.07 hectare plot of family land in Ralegan Siddhi. Two other pieces of land donated by a villager and the army to him have been donated in turn by him to villagers.
However, there is a burning ambition to make life have meaning. This ambition developed after he escaped a second incident that would have killed him. Both incidents were suffered during his period in the army. They transformed his thinking as he thought there was some reason he was spared.
He spent his spare time reading the works of Gandhi, Swami Vivekananda and Vinoba Bhave. After honourable discharge in 1975 after completion of 12 years of service, the future anti-corruption fighter returned home village. The plight of this village was another formative environment.
On his return, pension money was first used to restore the local temple. Villagers including youths became involved in providing their labor to the restoration effort. This inspired him to use the force of youth towards another purpose. A youth group organized thereafter became involved in a program to eradicate alcoholism. It was the first of their many efforts to come.
The first group effort waged a successful fight against illegal alcohol manufacturers and their alcoholic customers. Subsequently the battle was taken to a higher level. The state government was called upon to pass a law that would enforce prohibition should it be demanded by 25 percent of women residing in a village. State government acquiesced in 2009. The Bombay Prohibition Act, 1949 was amended to meet this demand. The next goal was to ban tobacco use in the village.
A grain bank in the temple was established in 1980 to make hunger history. A number of other beneficial efforts were directed at improving life for villagers. They burnished the flame of his reputation as a social activist beyond its territory. These efforts included a major program to aid drought prone regions. Replacement of water intensive crops, a watershed development program and improving milk production were among changes that brought relief and productivity to 70 villages since 1975. Other programs included ending untouchability, introducing collective marriage celebration to reduce expense and actions to boost literacy and education. A pre school was begun in 1976 and a high school was established in 1979.
A major political campaign brought more power to Gram Sabhas. A dedicated campaign supported an amendment to the law to give villagers greater say in development. Subsequently, it became mandatory that the Gram Sabha be consulted for spending on development projects. A continuation of this is his August 2012 call for elected representatives at national level to be subject to Gram Sabhas. A belief in the power of the people is a consistent commitment. An anti corruption fight begun in 1991 at home was the germination of a larger battle. The national campaign is a crystallization of years of activity. One should also not forget the enactment of the Right to Information Act in Maharashtra that later established a foundation for the Right to Information Act passed by the Union Government in 2005. A life lived to benefit the mass is a consistent feature of the Anna Hazare biography.
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