75 years of Bhoodan Movement
April 18 Acharya Vinoba ‘Bhoodan Day’ …..
‘Acharya Vinoba Bhave,’ laid foundation for the upliftment of the common people: 75 years of the Bhoodan movement led by the Sarva Seva Sangh
On the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the ‘Bhoodan’ movement initiated by ‘Acharya Vinoba Bhave,’ which laid the foundation for the complete upliftment of the common people across the country, a ‘Round Table’ meeting was held at the Hyderabad Somajiguda Press Club under the aegis of the Sarva Seva Sangh (All India Sarvodaya Mandal) and led by the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh Sarvodaya Mandals.
Several prominent speakers who participated as chief guests praised the movement, stating that the common people would never forget the transformative impact of Acharya Vinoba’s ‘Bhoodan’ movement.
Chandan Paul, National President of the Sarva Seva Sangh (All India Sarvodaya Mandal), who inaugurated the event, stated that Acharya Vinoba Bhave, the first Satyagrahi of India, traveled nearly 28 states and covered 80,000 kilometers to make landless poor families landowners with the singular goal of providing even a cent of land to the impoverished.
He alleged that the central and state governments have not given him any respect. He noted that the courage and sacrifice shown by Acharya Vinoba since the dawn of independence were unparalleled, and no one else has made a similar effort to establish Gandhian principles of non-violence in the lives of ordinary citizens.
He indicated that April 18, 1951, marked the day Acharya Vinoba Bhave initiated the ‘Bhoodan’ movement as a beacon of hope for the landless poor, reiterating that it was on this day that the land from his hundred acres was confirmed as the first donation, leading us into the 75th year today.
He extolled the significance of Pocharam Palli, a remote village in Telangana, being included in the ‘Bhoodan Pocharam’ movement, as it was from here that the Bhoodan movement began. He emphasized that the movement, which aimed for the holistic welfare of all and the eradication of social and economic disparities, sparked a nationwide response. Unexpectedly, landowners across the country responded generously, voluntarily donating millions of acres of land.
The then Government of India recognized this effort by introducing the robust ‘1965 Bhoodan-Gramdan’ Act, under which nearly 50 percent of the Bhoodan land was distributed to truly impoverished families until 1982 under the leadership of Acharya Vinoba Bhave. After his death in 1982, the central and state governments have been sluggish, undermining the lofty objectives of a great soul, which Chandana Paul urged the people to strongly condemn. He noted that, along with Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, about 2.5 million acres of Bhoodan land remain under the control of various state governments, and to distribute this land to the poor, Bhoodan Yagna Boards must be established in those states.
He criticized that the central and state governments have shown no inclination to distribute Bhoodan land to the poor or to implement the 1965 Bhoodan-Gramdan Act, by delaying the establishment of Bhoodan Yagna Boards in the states, which is indirectly and directly facilitating the encroachment of these lands by illegal occupants.
He warned that this law cannot be amended for anyone other than the needy and that this political manipulation of the prestigious Bhoodan distribution could severely harm the country’s unity and the people’s trust if it does not change immediately. Therefore, he demanded the immediate establishment of Bhoodan Yagna Boards in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh as suggested by the Sarva Seva Sangh and emphasized proper distribution of Bhoodan land to the needy.
Sheikh Hussain, managing trustee of the Sarva Seva Sangh, remarked that if the central and state governments had any sincerity, they would conduct the official celebrations of the 75-year ‘Acharya Vinoba Bhoodan’ anniversary, but the celebrations are being organized under the All India Sarvodaya Mandal instead, due to government indifference.
Gourang Chandra Mohapatra, National Secretary of the Sarva Seva Sangh, stated that according to the 1965 Bhoodan-Gramdan Act, the government is merely the custodian of Bhoodan land and has no rights to ownership or to allocate it to others. He noted that the government’s indifference has resulted in these lands designated for the poor being in the hands of encroachers. He demanded the establishment of Bhoodan Yagna Boards in the two Telugu states to rectify these issues.
This program saw participation from M. Krishna Prasad, the coordinator of Sarva Seva Sangh in the southern states, R. Shankar Naik, president of the Telangana Sarvodaya Mandal, and N. Rambabu Naidu, president of the Andhra Pradesh Sarvodaya Mandal, all of whom expressed their commitment to propagate Gandhian principles and the ideals of Acharya Vinoba Bhave. Numerous members from the Sarvodaya Mandal committees of both states and districts attended the event in significant numbers.
