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Saving an Indian Village: The Amazing Work of Anna Hazare
| Article
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10119 |
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Section : |
LIFE
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| Issue
Date : |
4 / 1993 |
765 Words |
| Author
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Monika Nikore
Monika Nikore is a free-lance photographer residing in
Clarkstown, Georgia. |
Nearly twenty-four thousands villages, acutely afflicted by drought and famine, dot the barren hills of the western Ghats of India, proclaiming loudly the devastation that ecological neglect and rampant deforestation have wrought on this once lush landscape.
However, amid this devastation, much like an oasis in the desert, lies the verdant village of Ralegaon Siddhi, once as dry and lifeless as its surrounding villages. The dramatic transformation of Ralegaon is the labor of love of one man, Kishan Baburao Hazare, fondly known as Anna (elder brother) Hazare.
Born into extreme poverty, Hazare was always a deep thinker, greatly disenchanted by materialistic pursuits and distressed by the futility of life.
An unlikely reformer, Hazare is a retired army driver who, twenty-seven years ago, felt he had run of reasons to live and wanted to end it all. His sister's engagement kept him alive--the stigma of suicide would have jeopardized his sister's marriage.
Fortunately, though for Ralegaon, around this time he came across a book by Swami Vivekananda, one of India's leading philosophers. Vivekananda's philosophy that true happiness lay in selflessly serving others made a deep impression on Hazare.
Soon after, during the 1964 Indo-Pakistan war, Hazare was on the front line and survived an air raid that killed on his two hundred fellows troops. Hazare drove to safety by crouching on the truck floor and steering with one hand while shifting gears with the other. Hazare was convinced that his life had been spared for a reason.
Upon retiring from the army in 1975, Hazare returned to Ralegaon and was shocked to see the devastation. There was massive topsoil erosion. The land was devoid of trees, crops, and hope for its inhabitants. The village was plagued by hunger, fights over water, and a mass exodus of young people to escape starvation. Deep in dept, farmers had resorted to brewing, selling, and consuming alcohol. There was widespread moral decay. Owing to bureaucratic red tape, corruption, and apathy, government aid was not forthcoming.
Hazare decided to rebuild his village. Realizing that a family would hinder his effort, he vowed to remain a bachelor, adopting the village and the country as "my family." He renounced all possessions and settled in the
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