Baba Amte: Google doodle celebrates his birth anniversary

His creation, Anandvan, and his compassion and perseverance to redeem the self-esteem of the socially outcast leprosy-affected people are notable.

Google doodle honors the life and legacy of this great social worker and activist. Murlidhar Devidas Amte, known as Baba Amte, was born in 1914 in an affluent family. He studied law and took up a lucrative practice in his home district. Like any young man, he also used to have a taste for good clothes, movies, and fast cars; but also a social conscience calling him to go for social work. It was during this time Baba came under the influence of Indian freedom struggle. He became defense lawyer for the freedom fighters and was imprisoned during Quit India movement in 1942. The sufferings of the poor moved Baba Amte immensely. He began to work with sweepers and carriers of night soil. In fact, the seeds of social activism got implanted in Baba's life very early on. In spite of the strict norms in the family and society, Baba mingled with servants and low caste children with much ease.

He was influenced by Mahatma Gandhi, with whom he spent some time, and by Vinoba Bhave, Gandhi's spiritual successor. Finally, Murlidhar quit his comfortable life and began organizing the downtrodden into unions and fighting for their rights. He even lived and worked among them to experience their plight. His childhood and adolescence, in a rich but conservative family, when the Indian middle and elite classes were imbibing the liberal values of European culture, laid the foundations of a unique revolutionary mind.

Mahatma Gandhi and his ways of life made an indelible impact on Baba Amte. He spent considerable time in Gandhi's Sevagram. He followed the principles of Gandhism the rest of his life and led a Spartan life. He believed in the concept of self-sufficient village industry which he actually implemented later in life. He believed in the empowerment of the people and upliftment of the poor. In his fight for the poor in independent India Baba adopted non-violent methods of Gandhi. Often referred to as the last disciple of Gandhi, Baba believes there was no alternative to Mahatma. According to him, Gandhi is more relevant in 21st century.

His creation, Anandvan, and his compassion and perseverance to redeem the self-esteem of the socially outcast leprosy-affected people are notable. He noticed the struggles of leprosy patients living on the fringes of Warora appalling. He started working with them. He set up weekly clinics to take care of the patients. He took a formal course for leprosy treatment. All these efforts graduated to setting up of Anandwan, the Forest of Joy to socially stigmatized leprosy-affected people. Today Anandwan is a self-sufficient sprawling rehabilitation center with over 5000 residents. It has its own university, a school for the blind, hospital, orphanage, technical units, dairy, and farmlands.