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{{Short description|A voluntary land reform movement in India}}
{{Short description|A voluntary land reform movement in India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2024}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2024}}
The '''Bhoodan movement''' (Land Gift movement), also known as the Bloodless Revolution, was a voluntary [[land reform]] movement in India.<ref name=":0" /> It was initiated by Gandhian [[Vinoba Bhave]]<ref name=":0" /> in 1951 at Pochampally village, [[Pochampally]].
The '''Bhoodan movement''' (Land Gift movement), also known as the Bloodless Revolution, was a voluntary [[land reform]] movement in India.<ref name=":0" /> It was initiated by Gandhian [[Vinoba Bhave]]<ref name=":0" /> in 1951 at Pochampally village, [[Pochampally]].


The Bhoodan movement attempted to persuade wealthy landowners to voluntarily give a percentage of their land to landless people. Philosophically, Bhave was influenced by Sarvodaya movement and Gram Swarajya.
The Bhoodan movement attempted to persuade wealthy landowners to voluntarily give a percentage of their land to landless people. Bhave drew philosophical inspiration from the Sarvodaya movement and Gram Swarajya.


== Method ==
== Method ==
Landless laborers were given small plots on which they could settle and grow their crops. This Act was passed so that the beneficiary had no right to sell the land or use it for non-agricultural purposes or forestry. For example, Section 25 of the Maharashtra State Bhoodan Act states that the beneficiary (who must be landless) should only use the land for subsistence cultivation. If the "owner" failed to cultivate the land for over a year or tried to use it for non-agriculture activities, the government would have the right to confiscate it.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Grover |first=Neha |date=9 November 2022 |title=Bhoodan Movement - Agriculture Notes |url=https://prepp.in/news/e-492-bhoodan-movement-agriculture-notes |access-date=27 July 2023 |website=Prepp}}</ref>
Landless labourers were given the
small plots that they could settle and grow their crops on. Bhoodan Acts were passed that stated that the beneficiary had no right to sell the land or use it for non-agricultural purposes or for forestry. For example, Section 25 of the Maharashtra State Bhoodan Act states that the beneficiary (who must be landless) should only use the land for subsistence cultivation. If the "owner" failed to cultivate the land for over a year or tried to use it for non-agriculture activities, the government would have the right to confiscate it.


Bhave wanted peasants to give up using [[Ox|bullocks]], tractors or other machines for agricultural purposes. This was called ''rishi-kheti'' in [[Hindi language|Hindi]]. He also wanted the people to give up using money in the form of ''kanchan-dan''. The movement had the support of [[Indian National Congress|Congress]]. [[Jayaprakash Narayan|JP Narayan]] withdrew from active politics to join the Bhoodan movement in 1953.
Bhave wanted peasants to give up using [[Ox|bullocks]], tractors, or other machines for agricultural purposes. This was called ''rishi-kheti'' in [[Hindi language|Hindi]]. Bhave also wanted the people to give up using money in the form of ''kanchan-dan''. The movement had the support of [[Indian National Congress|Congress]]. [[Jayaprakash Narayan|JP Narayan]] withdrew from active politics to join the Bhoodan movement in 1953.{{fact|date=August 2024}}


== History ==
== History ==
Bhave crossed [[India]] on foot to persuade landowners to give up a piece of their land. His first success came on 18 April 1951 at [[Pochampally]] village in [[Nalgonda district]], Andhra Pradesh<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1152150287|title=Social Science Contemporary India II: Textbook in Geography for Class X|date=2019|publisher=NCERT|isbn=978-81-7450-644-3|location=New Delhi|pages=43|chapter=Agriculture|oclc=1152150287|chapter-url=http://ncertbooks.prashanthellina.com/class_10.SocialScience.ContemporaryIndia/Chapter%204.pdf}}</ref> (now Telangana) which was the centre of [[communist]] activity. It was the culmination of the [[Telangana]] peasant movement. A violent struggle had been launched by peasants against the local landlords.
Bhave crossed [[India]] on foot to persuade landowners to give up a piece of their land. His first success came on 18 April 1951 at [[Pochampally]] village in [[Nalgonda district]], Andhra Pradesh<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1152150287|title=Social Science Contemporary India II: Textbook in Geography for Class X|date=2019|publisher=NCERT|isbn=978-81-7450-644-3|location=New Delhi|pages=43|chapter=Agriculture|oclc=1152150287|chapter-url=http://ncertbooks.prashanthellina.com/class_10.SocialScience.ContemporaryIndia/Chapter%204.pdf}}</ref> (now Telangana) which was the center of [[communist]] activity. It was the culmination of the [[Telangana]] peasant movement. A violent struggle had been launched by peasants against the local landlords.{{fact|date=August 2024}}


Movement organisers had arranged for Bhave to stay at Pochampally, a village of about 700 families, of whom two-thirds were landless. Bhave visited the [[Harijan]] colony. By early afternoon, villagers began to gather around him. The Harijans asked for {{Cvt|80|acres}} of land, forty wet, forty dry, for forty families. Bhave asked, "If it is not possible to get land from the government, is there not something villagers themselves could do?"<ref name=":0" />
Movement organizers had arranged for Bhave to stay at Pochampally, a village of about 700 families, of whom two-thirds were landless. Bhave visited the [[Harijan]] colony. By early afternoon, villagers began to gather around him. The Harijans asked for {{Cvt|80|acres}} of land, forty wet, forty dry, for forty families. Bhave asked, "If it is not possible to get land from the government, is there not something villagers themselves could do?"<ref name=":0" />


[[V. Ramachandra Reddy]] initially offered a donation of {{Cvt|100|acres}} of his {{Cvt|3500|acres|km2}} land. Later, he donated an additional {{Cvt|800|acres|km2}}.<ref name=":0" /> He joined social reform.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2009-11-25|title=The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : 'Bhoodan' board to take on encroachers|url=http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/22/stories/2009112259450400.htm|access-date=2021-06-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091125191015/http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/22/stories/2009112259450400.htm|archive-date=2009-11-25}}</ref> After him, the land donation movement continued under a Bhoodan trust movement with the help of his sons. The 7th [[Nizam]] of [[Hyderabad State|Hyderabad]], [[Mir Osman Ali Khan]] also donated {{Cvt|14000|acres|km2}} of his personal land to the Bhoodan movement.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.outlookindia.com/outlooktraveller/ot-getaway-guides/the-nizams/|title=A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE NIZAMS OF HYDERABAD|date=August 5, 2017|website=outlookindia.com|access-date=June 17, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Much-of-Bhoodan-land-found-to-be-under-encroachment-in-city/articleshow/54001626.cms|title=Much of Bhoodan land found to be under encroachment in city|date=Sep 4, 2016|access-date=June 17, 2018|website=timesofindia.indiatimes.com}}</ref>
[[V. Ramachandra Reddy]] initially offered a donation of {{Cvt|100|acres}} of his {{Cvt|3500|acres|km2}} land. Later, he donated {{Cvt|800|acres|km2}}.<ref name=":0" /> He joined social reform.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2009-11-25|title=The Hindu: Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News: 'Bhoodan' board to take on encroachers|url=http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/22/stories/2009112259450400.htm|access-date=2021-06-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091125191015/http://www.hindu.com/2009/11/22/stories/2009112259450400.htm|archive-date=2009-11-25}}</ref> After him, the land donation movement continued under a Bhoodan trust movement with the help of his sons. The 7th [[Nizam]] of [[Hyderabad State|Hyderabad]], [[Mir Osman Ali Khan]] also donated {{Cvt|14000|acres|km2}} of his personal land to the Bhoodan movement.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.outlookindia.com/outlooktraveller/ot-getaway-guides/the-nizams/|title=A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE NIZAMS OF HYDERABAD|date=5 August 2017|website=outlookindia.com|access-date=17 June 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |access-date=17 June 2018 |date=4 Sep 2016 |title=Much of Bhoodan land found to be under encroachment in city |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Much-of-Bhoodan-land-found-to-be-under-encroachment-in-city/articleshow/54001626.cms |website=timesofindia.indiatimes.com}}</ref>


Other landowners including Raja Bahadur Giriwar Narayan Singh, C.B.E. and Raja of Ranka (Garhwa Jharkhand) [[donated]] a combined {{Cvt|102001|acres|km2}} acres to the Bhoodan initiative, the largest donation in India.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w0dGAQAAIAAJ|title=Documents of the ... Conference of All India Kisan Sabha|publisher=All India Kisan Sabha|year=1954|page=14|quote=Giriwar Prasad Narain Singh, Raja of Ranka (Palamau district) donated (!) 1,02,001 acres}}</ref>
Other landowners including Raja Bahadur Giriwar Narayan Singh, C.B.E. and Raja of Ranka (Garhwa Jharkhand) [[donated]] a combined {{Cvt|102001|acres|km2}} acres to the Bhoodan initiative, the largest donation in India.<ref>{{cite web |page=14 |publisher=All India Kisan Sabha |quote=Giriwar Prasad Narain Singh, Raja of Ranka (Palamau district) donated (!) 1,02,001 acres |title=Documents of the ... Conference of All India Kisan Sabha |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w0dGAQAAIAAJ |year=1954}}</ref> Raja bahadur of [[Namudag|Namudag estate]] also donated 1.01 lakh acres to the bhoodan initiative<ref name="auto1">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ffR1CwAAQBAJ&q=headmasterji+and+bhoodan+movement+in+Jhunjhunu&pg=PT148|title=Headmasterji-The man with literacy mission|publisher=Partridge India Publishing|year=2016|page=230|isbn=9781482857634}}</ref><ref name="auto">{{Cite book|last=Sandeep.|first=Sharma|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1152292663|title=Headmasterji : The Man With Literacy Mission.|date=2016|publisher=Partridge India|isbn=978-1-4828-5763-4|oclc=1152292663}}</ref>


Maharaja Kamakhya Narain Singh Bahadur of Ramgarh Raj donated {{Cvt|200000|acres|km2}} of land to Vinoba Bhave and others under the Bihar Bhoodan Yagna Act, prior to the institution of the suit, making it the biggest donation from any king.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://indiankanoon.org/doc/993401/|title=State Of Bihar vs Ramgarh Farms And Industries Ltd.}}</ref>
[[Kamakhya Narain Singh|Maharaja Kamakhya Narain Singh Bahadur]] of [[Ramgarh Raj]] donated {{Cvt|200000|acres|km2}} of land to Vinoba Bhave and others under the Bihar Bhoodan Yagna Act, before the institution of the suit, making it the biggest donation from any king.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://indiankanoon.org/doc/993401/|title=State Of Bihar vs Ramgarh Farms And Industries Ltd.}}</ref> Maharajadhiraj Kameshwar Singh ji of Darbhanga Raj donated 1.17 lakh acres of land in bhudan movement.


During Vinoba Bhave's [[Surajgarh]] visit, he was welcomed by headmaster Rambilas Sharma and other members. Sharma was instrumental in spreading the Bhoodan movement in Jhunjhunu district in the late 1950s and early 1960s.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ffR1CwAAQBAJ&q=headmasterji+and+bhoodan+movement+in+Jhunjhunu&pg=PT148|title=Headmasterji-The man with literacy mission|publisher=Partridge India Publishing|year=2016|page=230|isbn=9781482857634}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Sandeep.|first=Sharma|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1152292663|title=Headmasterji : The Man With Literacy Mission.|date=2016|publisher=Partridge India|isbn=978-1-4828-5763-4|oclc=1152292663}}</ref>
During Vinoba Bhave's [[Surajgarh]] visit, he was welcomed by headmaster Rambilas Sharma, who was instrumental in spreading the Bhoodan movement in the Jhunjhunu district in the late 1950s and early 1960s.<ref name="auto1"/><ref name="auto"/>


The initial objective of the movement was to secure voluntary donations and distribute it to the landless but soon came to demand 1/6 of all private land. In 1952, the movement widened the concept of ''gramdan''<ref name=":0" /> ("village in gift" or the donation of an entire village) and had started advocating common ownership of land. The first village to come under ''gramdan'' was Mangroth in [[Hamirpur district, Uttar Pradesh|Hamirpur district]] of [[Uttar Pradesh]]. The second and third ''gramdan'' took place in [[Orissa]] in 1955.
The initial objective of the movement was to secure voluntary donations and distribute them to the landless but soon came to demand 1/6 of all private land. In 1952, the movement widened the concept of ''gram dan''<ref name=":0" /> ("village in gift" or the donation of an entire village) and started advocating common ownership of land. The first village to come under ''gramdan'' was Mangroth in [[Hamirpur district, Uttar Pradesh|Hamirpur district]] of [[Uttar Pradesh]]. The second and third ''gramdan'' took place in [[Orissa]] in 1955.{{fact|date=August 2024}}


== Legacy ==
== Legacy ==
This movement developed into a village gift or ''gramdan'' movement and it was a part of a comprehensive movement for the establishment of a Sarvodaya society (the rise of all socio-economic-political order), both in and outside India.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2011-06-11|title=Bhoodan Movement|url=http://www.mkgandhi-sarvodaya.org/bhoodan.htm|access-date=2021-06-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611090656/http://www.mkgandhi-sarvodaya.org/bhoodan.htm|archive-date=2011-06-11}}</ref>
This movement developed into a village gift or ''gramdan'' movement and was a part of a comprehensive movement for establishing a Sarvodaya society (the rise of all socio-economic-political order), both in and outside India.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2011-06-11|title=Bhoodan Movement|url=http://www.mkgandhi-sarvodaya.org/bhoodan.htm|access-date=2021-06-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611090656/http://www.mkgandhi-sarvodaya.org/bhoodan.htm|archive-date=2011-06-11}}</ref>


By the 1960s, the movement had lost momentum. The Sarvodaya Samaj failed to build a mass movement that would generate pressure for social transformation. However, the movement made a significant contribution by creating moral ambivalence, putting pressure on landlords, creating conditions favorable to the landless.<ref>India since independence - Bipin Chandra</ref>
By the 1960s, the movement had lost momentum. The Sarvodaya Samaj failed to build a mass movement that would generate pressure for social transformation. However, the movement made a significant contribution by creating moral ambivalence, putting pressure on landlords, and creating conditions favorable to the landless.<ref>India since independence - Bipin Chandra</ref>


== References ==
== References ==
{{Reflist}}
{{Reflist}}


==Additional reading==
==Further reading==
* ''Bhoodan and the Landless,'' S. V. Khandewale and K. R. Nanekar, Popular Prakashan, 1973
* ''Bhoodan and the Landless,'' S. V. Khandewale and K. R. Nanekar, Popular Prakashan, 1973
* ''Bhoodan Movement in India: An Economic Assessment,'' Raghavendra Nath Misra, New Delhi: S. Chand and Company Pvt Ltd, 1972.
* ''Bhoodan Movement in India: An Economic Assessment,'' Raghavendra Nath Misra, New Delhi: S. Chand and Company Pvt Ltd, 1972.

Latest revision as of 22:06, 25 October 2024

The Bhoodan movement (Land Gift movement), also known as the Bloodless Revolution, was a voluntary land reform movement in India.[1] It was initiated by Gandhian Vinoba Bhave[1] in 1951 at Pochampally village, Pochampally.

The Bhoodan movement attempted to persuade wealthy landowners to voluntarily give a percentage of their land to landless people. Bhave drew philosophical inspiration from the Sarvodaya movement and Gram Swarajya.

Method

[edit]

Landless laborers were given small plots on which they could settle and grow their crops. This Act was passed so that the beneficiary had no right to sell the land or use it for non-agricultural purposes or forestry. For example, Section 25 of the Maharashtra State Bhoodan Act states that the beneficiary (who must be landless) should only use the land for subsistence cultivation. If the "owner" failed to cultivate the land for over a year or tried to use it for non-agriculture activities, the government would have the right to confiscate it.[2]

Bhave wanted peasants to give up using bullocks, tractors, or other machines for agricultural purposes. This was called rishi-kheti in Hindi. Bhave also wanted the people to give up using money in the form of kanchan-dan. The movement had the support of Congress. JP Narayan withdrew from active politics to join the Bhoodan movement in 1953.[citation needed]

History

[edit]

Bhave crossed India on foot to persuade landowners to give up a piece of their land. His first success came on 18 April 1951 at Pochampally village in Nalgonda district, Andhra Pradesh[1] (now Telangana) which was the center of communist activity. It was the culmination of the Telangana peasant movement. A violent struggle had been launched by peasants against the local landlords.[citation needed]

Movement organizers had arranged for Bhave to stay at Pochampally, a village of about 700 families, of whom two-thirds were landless. Bhave visited the Harijan colony. By early afternoon, villagers began to gather around him. The Harijans asked for 80 acres (32 ha) of land, forty wet, forty dry, for forty families. Bhave asked, "If it is not possible to get land from the government, is there not something villagers themselves could do?"[1]

V. Ramachandra Reddy initially offered a donation of 100 acres (40 ha) of his 3,500 acres (14 km2) land. Later, he donated 800 acres (3.2 km2).[1] He joined social reform.[3] After him, the land donation movement continued under a Bhoodan trust movement with the help of his sons. The 7th Nizam of Hyderabad, Mir Osman Ali Khan also donated 14,000 acres (57 km2) of his personal land to the Bhoodan movement.[4][5]

Other landowners including Raja Bahadur Giriwar Narayan Singh, C.B.E. and Raja of Ranka (Garhwa Jharkhand) donated a combined 102,001 acres (412.78 km2) acres to the Bhoodan initiative, the largest donation in India.[6] Raja bahadur of Namudag estate also donated 1.01 lakh acres to the bhoodan initiative[7][8]

Maharaja Kamakhya Narain Singh Bahadur of Ramgarh Raj donated 200,000 acres (810 km2) of land to Vinoba Bhave and others under the Bihar Bhoodan Yagna Act, before the institution of the suit, making it the biggest donation from any king.[9] Maharajadhiraj Kameshwar Singh ji of Darbhanga Raj donated 1.17 lakh acres of land in bhudan movement.

During Vinoba Bhave's Surajgarh visit, he was welcomed by headmaster Rambilas Sharma, who was instrumental in spreading the Bhoodan movement in the Jhunjhunu district in the late 1950s and early 1960s.[7][8]

The initial objective of the movement was to secure voluntary donations and distribute them to the landless but soon came to demand 1/6 of all private land. In 1952, the movement widened the concept of gram dan[1] ("village in gift" or the donation of an entire village) and started advocating common ownership of land. The first village to come under gramdan was Mangroth in Hamirpur district of Uttar Pradesh. The second and third gramdan took place in Orissa in 1955.[citation needed]

Legacy

[edit]

This movement developed into a village gift or gramdan movement and was a part of a comprehensive movement for establishing a Sarvodaya society (the rise of all socio-economic-political order), both in and outside India.[10]

By the 1960s, the movement had lost momentum. The Sarvodaya Samaj failed to build a mass movement that would generate pressure for social transformation. However, the movement made a significant contribution by creating moral ambivalence, putting pressure on landlords, and creating conditions favorable to the landless.[11]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f "Agriculture" (PDF). Social Science Contemporary India II: Textbook in Geography for Class X. New Delhi: NCERT. 2019. p. 43. ISBN 978-81-7450-644-3. OCLC 1152150287.
  2. ^ Grover, Neha (9 November 2022). "Bhoodan Movement - Agriculture Notes". Prepp. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
  3. ^ "The Hindu: Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News: 'Bhoodan' board to take on encroachers". 25 November 2009. Archived from the original on 25 November 2009. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
  4. ^ "A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE NIZAMS OF HYDERABAD". outlookindia.com. 5 August 2017. Retrieved 17 June 2018.
  5. ^ "Much of Bhoodan land found to be under encroachment in city". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 4 September 2016. Retrieved 17 June 2018.
  6. ^ "Documents of the ... Conference of All India Kisan Sabha". All India Kisan Sabha. 1954. p. 14. Giriwar Prasad Narain Singh, Raja of Ranka (Palamau district) donated (!) 1,02,001 acres
  7. ^ a b Headmasterji-The man with literacy mission. Partridge India Publishing. 2016. p. 230. ISBN 9781482857634.
  8. ^ a b Sandeep., Sharma (2016). Headmasterji : The Man With Literacy Mission. Partridge India. ISBN 978-1-4828-5763-4. OCLC 1152292663.
  9. ^ "State Of Bihar vs Ramgarh Farms And Industries Ltd".
  10. ^ "Bhoodan Movement". 11 June 2011. Archived from the original on 11 June 2011. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
  11. ^ India since independence - Bipin Chandra

Further reading

[edit]
  • Bhoodan and the Landless, S. V. Khandewale and K. R. Nanekar, Popular Prakashan, 1973
  • Bhoodan Movement in India: An Economic Assessment, Raghavendra Nath Misra, New Delhi: S. Chand and Company Pvt Ltd, 1972.
  • Moved by Love, Vinoba Bhave, Paramdhan Prakashan, 1994.
[edit]