Suport Anna Hazare!!!

Hi Guys,

The past few days have been very eventful as 72 year old Anna Hazare started the fight against corruption in India. His demand was to setup a Lokpal (ombudsmen*) to deal with the corruption in Government offices. He started fasting on 5-4-11 and ended it on 9-4-11 after our Government promised to set a committee headed by our finance minister that will draft an effective Lokpal bill. But, in my point of view I doubt that it won’t be formed soon.

Looking back at last 60 years, the corruption levels has been reaching new highs. We are bribed everywhere. If you have to finish a work in any public department or office, then you have to give bribe. This has agitated the people so much. This was the main reason why many youngsters and even school children supported Mr Hazare. It’s heartening to see the support.

So, who is Mr Hazare? Fighting against corruption is not the only battle that Anna Hazare has taken part. He has been at the Indian army for 15 years, after the Indo-China war in 1962. He then retired from army at the age of 39 and returned back to his village, Ralegaon Siddhi a drought prone village in Maharashtra. There he grouped the people to from organizations for getting water.

He then wanted to remove alcoholism from his village, as he thought if there is no alcohol, then the economy would improve. He along with the youths forced the owners to shut down the liquor shops and then people who continued to drink were punished for the sake of their family. 

As years passed, Anna Hazare continued to improve the village by implementing watershed management, promoting milk production, enriching people by education and removing untouchability. As a result, Ralegaon Siddhi became a model village and Mr Hazare was awarded Padma shri in 1990 and Padma Bhusan in 1992.

His fight against corruption began in the initial 90’s and continues till now. His battle has been accepted widely by the public. Though government accuses him of false charges and arrests him sometimes, people are in his support. His battle has led to the resigning of some corrupt cabinet ministers in the past. He was also influential in forming the ‘Right to Information Act’ which was implemented at Mumbai in 2003.

He was awarded World Bank's 2008 Jit Gill Memorial Award for Outstanding Public Service. World Bank’s award committee said, ‘Hazare created a thriving model village in Ralegan Siddhi, in the impoverished Ahmednagar region of Maharashtra state, and championed the right to information and the fight against corruption’.

It’s great that we are having a person like him in our country. The good thing is people have started supporting him and if this grows with time, we can believe India will become a better country in future.

Let us support the great man!!!

*Ombudsmen – It is a Swedish word. It refers to a intermediate person who acts a mediator between the person and the public servant. It is becoming famous in organizations worldwide.

Happy Reading!!!