ANNA HAZARE (work, bibliography, life & other details) - ADMiN - 04-17-2011 01:06 AM

Anna Hazare From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search Page semi-protected Kisan Baburao Hazare िकसन बाबुराव हजारे Born 15 January 1940 (1940-01-15) (age 71) Bhingar, Bombay Province, British India Nationality Indian Other names Anna Hazare Known for Watershed development programmes Right to Information movement Anti-corruption movement Religion Hinduism Spouse Unmarried Parents Laxmibai Hazare (Mother) Baburao Hazare (Father) Awards Padma Shri 1990 Padma Bhushan 1992 Website http://www.annahazare.org

Kisan Baburao Hazare (Marathi: िकसन बाबुराव हजारे) (born 15 January 1940), popularly known as Anna Hazare (Marathi: अणणा हजारे), is a pre-eminent Indian social activist who is especially recognised for his contribution to the development of Ralegan Siddhi, a village in Parner taluka of Ahmednagar district, Maharashtra, India and his efforts for establishing it as a model village, for which he was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the government of India in 1992.[1]

On 5 April 2011, Hazare started a 'fast unto death' to exert pressure on the government of India to enact a strong anti-corruption act as envisaged in the Jan Lokpal Bill, a law that will establish a Lokpal (ombudsman) that will have the power to deal with corruption in public offices. The fast led to nation wide protests in support of Hazare. The fast ended on 9 April 2011, the day after all of Hazare's demands were agreed by the government of India and the government issued a gazette notification on the formation of a joint committee (of government and civil society representatives) to draft an effective Lokpal Bill.[2][3] Contents [hide]

* 1 Early life * 2 In the Indian Army * 3 Transformation of Ralegan Siddhi o 3.1 Uprooting alcoholism o 3.2 The Watershed Development programme o 3.3 Milk production o 3.4 Education o 3.5 Removal of untouchability o 3.6 Collective marriages o 3.7 Gram Sabha * 4 Anti-corruption protests in Maharashtra * 5 Right to Information movement * 6 Lokpal Bill movement * 7 Awards and honours o 7.1 Awards o 7.2 Felicitations * 8 Publications * 9 See also * 10 References * 11 External links

Early life

Anna Hazare was born on 15 January 1940 in Bhingar, a small village near the city of Ahmednagar, in Bombay Province (present-day Maharashtra).[4] Hazare's father, Baburao Hazare worked as an unskilled labourer in Ayurveda Ashram Pharmacy and his grandfather was in the army, posted at Bhingar when Anna was born. He died in 1945 but Hazare's father continued to stay at Bhingar. In 1952, Hazare's father resigned from his job and returned to his own village, Ralegan Siddhi. At that time Hazare had six younger siblings and his family had to face significant hardships. Hazare's childless aunt then took Anna to Bombay (now known as Mumbai) and offered to look after him and his education.

Hazare studied up to the 7th standard in Bombay and took up a job after the 7th standard due to the economic situation in his household. He started selling flowers at Dadar in order to make his living and support his family. After gaining some experience, he started his own shop and brought two of his brothers to Bombay. Gradually, Hazare's income increased to around Indian Rupee symbol.svg 800 per month, a decent income in those times. In the Indian Army

Anna Hazare started his career as a driver in the Indian Army in 1963.[5] He spent his spare time reading the works of Vivekananda, Gandhi, and Vinoba Bhave; they inspired him to become a social worker and activist.[4] During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, he was the only survivor in a border exchange of fire, while driving a truck.[6] During the mid-1970s he survived a road accident while driving.[7] Transformation of Ralegan Siddhi

The dream of India as a strong nation will not be realized without self-reliant, self-sufficient villages, this can be achieved only through social commitment & involvement of the common man. -Anna Hazare “ ” annahazare.org

After voluntary retirement from the army, Hazare came to Ralegan Siddhi village in 1975. Initially, he organised the youth of the village into an organisation named the Tarun Mandal (Youth Association). He also helped to form the Pani Puravatha Mandals (Water Supply Associations) to ensure proper distribution of water.[8] Uprooting alcoholism

As the next step towards social and economic change, Anna Hazare and the youth group decided to take up the issue of alcoholism. It was very clear that there could be no progress and happiness in the village unless the curse of alcoholism was completely removed from their lives. At a meeting conducted in the temple, the villagers resolved to close down the liquor dens and ban the drinking of alcohol in the village. Since these resolutions were made in the temple, they became in a sense religious commitments. Over thirty liquor brewing units were closed by their owners voluntarily. Those who did not succumb to social pressure were forced to close down their businesses, when the youth group smashed up their liquor dens. The owners could not complain as their business was illegal.[9]

Though the closure of liquor brewing reduced alcoholism in Ralegan Siddhi, some villagers continued to drink. They obtained their liquor from neighbouring villages. The villagers decided that those men would be given three warnings, after which they would be physically punished. Twelve men who were found in a drunken state even after initial warnings were tied to a pole with help from the youth group and flogged. Anna Hazare says, “Doesn’t a mother administer bitter medicines to a sick child when she knows that the medicine can cure her child? The child may not like the medicine, but the mother does it only because she cares for the child. The alcoholics were punished so that their families would not be destroyed.”[citation needed]

Anna Hazare appealed to the government of Maharashtra to bring in a law whereby prohibition would come into force in a village if 25% of the women in the village demanded it. In July 2009, the state government issued a government resolution amending the Bombay Prohibition Act, 1949. As per the amendments, if at least 25% of women voters demand liquor prohibition through a written application to the state excise department, voting should be conducted through a secret ballot. If 50% of the voters vote against the sale of liquor, prohibition should be imposed in the village and the sale of liquor should be stopped. Similar action can be taken at the ward level in municipal areas. Thereafter, another circular was issued, making it mandatory to get the sanction of the Gram Sabha for issuing new permits for sale of liquor. In some instances, when women agitated against the sale of liquor, cases were filed against them. Anna took up the issue again and in August 2009 the government issued another circular that sought withdrawal of cases against women who sought prohibition of liquor in their villages.[10]

Along with the removal of alcohol from the village, it was decided to ban the sale of tobacco, cigarettes and beedies. In order to implement this resolution, the youth group performed a unique "Holi" ceremony twenty two years ago. The festival of Holi is celebrated as a symbolic burning of evil. The youth group brought all the tobacco, cigarettes and beedies from the shops in the village and burnt them in a ‘Holi’ fire. From that day, no tobacco, cigarettes, or beedies are sold in any shop at Ralegan Siddhi.[11][12][13] The Watershed Development programme

Anna Hazare realised that the only way to increase agricultural production in a sustainable manner was to build a better irrigation system. Taking into account the geographical location of Ralegan , located in the foothills, Anna Hazare persuaded villagers to construct a watershed embankment to stop water and allow it to percolate and increase the ground water level. He motivated the residents of the village into shramdan (voluntary labour) to build canals, small- scale check-dams and percolation tanks in the nearby hills for watershed development; efforts that solved the problem of scarcity of water in the village that also made irrigation possible.[4][7] The first embankment that was built using volunteer efforts developed a leak and had to be reconstructed this time with government funding.

Hazare also took steps to stop the second big problem, soil erosion. In order to conserve soil and water by checking the run off, contour trenches and gully plugs were constructed along the hill slopes. Grass, shrubs and about 3 lakh ( 300,000) trees were planted along the hillside and the village. This process was supplemented by afforestation, nullah bunds, underground check dams and cemented bandhras at strategic locations. The Watershed Development programme became a huge success and helped increase the fortunes of many farmers as they now had a reliable source of water. Ralegan has also experimented with drip and bi-valve irrigation in a big way. Papaya, lemon and chillies have been planted on a plot of 80 acres (320,000 m²) entirely irrigated by the drip irrigation system. Cultivation of water-intensive crops like sugar cane was banned. Crops such as pulses, oilseeds and certain cash crops with low water requirements were grown. The farmers started growing high yield varieties of crop and the cropping pattern of the village also changed. He has helped farmers of more than 70 villages in drought-prone regions in the state of Maharashtra since 1975.[14]

The Government of India plans to start a training centre here to understand and implement Hazare's watershed development model in other villages in the country.[15] Milk production

As a secondary occupation, milk production was promoted in Ralegan Siddhi. Purchase of new cattle and improvement of the existing breed with the help of artificial insemination and timely guidance and assistance by the veterinary doctor has resulted in an improvement in the cattle stock. As a result, the milk production has increased. Crossbred cows are replacing local ones which give a low milk yield. The number of milk cattle has also been growing, which resulted in growth from one hundred litres (before 1975) to around 2500 litres per day which is sent to a co- operative dairy (Malganga Dairy) in Ahmednagar. Some milk is also given to Balwadi (kindergarten) children and neighbouring villages under the child nutrition program sponsored by the Zilla Parishad.[16]

From the surplus generated, the milk society bought a mini-truck and a thresher. Besides transporting milk to Ahmednagar, the mini-truck is also used for taking vegetables and other produce directly to the market, thus eliminating intermediate agents. The thresher is rented out to the farmers during the harvesting season.[citation needed] Education

In 1932, Ralegan Siddhi got its first formal school, a single class room primary school. In 1962, the villagers added more classrooms through community volunteer efforts. By 1971, out of an estimated population of 1209, only 30.43% were literate (72 women and 290 men). Boys moved to the nearby towns of Shirur and Parner to pursue higher education, but due to socioeconomic conditions, girls could not do the same and were limited to primary education. Anna Hazare along with the youth of Ralegan Siddhi worked to increase literacy rates and education levels. In 1976, they started a pre school for the primary school and a high school in 1979. The villagers started taking active interest in the village school and formed a charitable trust, the Sant Yadavbaba Shikshan Prasarak Mandal, which was registered in 1979.[17] The trust decided to take over the function of the village school which was in a bad state due to government neglect and also lack of interest on behalf of teachers who were moonlighting.

The trust obtained a government grant of Indian Rupee symbol.svg 4 lakhs (400,000) for the school building using the National Rural Education Programme (NREP). A new school building was built in the next 2 months with volunteer efforts and the money obtained via the grant. A new hostel was also constructed to house 200 students from poorer sections of society. After the opening of the school in the village, a girl from Ralegan Siddhi became the first female in the village to complete her SSC in 1982.[11] Since then the school has been instrumental in bringing in many of changes to the village. This school has a hostel for 150 boarders. Traditional farming practices are tought in this school in addition to the government curriculum.[7] Removal of untouchability

The social barriers that existed due to the caste system in India have been broken down by Ralegan Siddhi villagers and people of all castes come together to celebrate social events. The people of Ralegan have largely succeeded in eradicating social discrimination on the basis of caste. The Dalits have been integrated into the social and economic life of the village. The villagers have built houses for the Dalits, and helped to repay their loans to free them from their indebtedness.[17] Collective marriages

Most rural poor get into a debt-trap as they have to incur heavy expenses at the time of marriage of their son or daughter. It is an undesirable practice but has almost become a social obligation in India. Ralegan's people have started celebrating marriages collectively. The feast is held together where the expenses are further reduced by the Tarun Mandal taking the responsibility for cooking and serving the food. The vessels, the Loudspeaker system, the mandap and the decorations have also been bought by the Tarun Mandal members belonging to the oppressed castes. From 1976 to 1986, 424 marriages have been held under this system.[17] Gram Sabha

The Gandhian philosophy on rural development considers the Gram Sabha as an important democratic institution for collective decision making in the villages in India.[18] If villagers are involved in the planning and decision making process, they are more open to any changes taking place in the village. Anna campaigned between 1998 and 2006 for amending the Gram Sabha Act, so that the people (meaning the villagers) have a say in the development works in their village. While the state government refused to bend to his demand, it had to give in due to public pressure. As per the amendments, seeking sanction of the Gram Sabha (an assembly of all village adults, and not just the few elected representatives in the gram panchayat) for expenditure on development works in the village, is mandatory. In case of expenditure without the sanction of the Gram Sabha, 20% of Gram Sabha members can lodge a complaint to the chief executive officer of the zilla parishad with their signatures. The chief executive officer is required to visit the village and conduct an inquiry within 30 days and submit the report to the divisional commissioner, who has powers to remove the sarpanch or deputy sarpanch and dismiss the gram sevak involved. Anna was not satisfied, as the amended Act did not include "the right to recall a sarpanch". He insisted that this should be included and the state government relented.[10]

In Ralegan Siddhi, the Gram Sabha meetings are held periodically to discuss issues relating to the welfare of the village. Projects like Watershed development activities are undertaken only after they are discussed in the Gram Sabha. All decisions like Nashabandi (bans on alcohol), Kurhadbandi (bans on tree felling), Charai bandi (bans on grazing), and Shramdan were taken in the Gram Sabha. Decisions are taken in a simple majority consensus. In case of a difference of opinion the majority consensus becomes acceptable. The decision of the Gram Sabha is accepted as final.

In addition to the panchayat, there are several registered societies that take care of various projects and activities of the village. Each society presents its annual report and statement of accounts in the Gram Sabha every year. The Sant Yadavbaba Shikshan Prasarak Mandal monitors the educational activities. The Vividh Karyakari Society gives assistance and provides guidance to farmers regarding fertilizers, seeds, organic farming and financial assistance. The Sri Sant Yadavbaba Doodh Utpadhak Sahakari Sanstha gives guidance regarding the dairy business. Seven Co-operative irrigation societies provide water to the farmers from cooperative wells. The Mahila Sarvage Utkarsh Mandal attends the welfare needs of the women.[18] Anti-corruption protests in Maharashtra

In 1991, Hazare launched the Bhrashtachar Virodhi Jan Aandolan (BVJA) (People's Movement against Corruption), a popular movement to fight against corruption[19] in Ralegaon Siddhi. In the same year he protested against the collusion between 40 forest officials and the timber merchants. This protest resulted in the transfer and suspension of these officials.[20]

In May 1997, Hazare protested against the alleged malpractices in the purchase of powerlooms by the Vasantrao Naik Bhathya Vimukt Jamati Vikas Manch and the Mahatma Phule Magasvargiya Vikas Mandal. These institutions were directly under the charge of then Maharashtra Social Welfare minister Babanrao Gholap of the Shiv Sena, since their managing committees were dissolved after the Shiv Sena-BJP government came to power in the state in 1995. Hazare also raised the issue of alleged massive land purchase by Gholap's wife Shashikala in Nashik between April to September 1996. He forwarded the available documentary evidences in support of his allegations to then Maharashtra Governor P. C. Alexander.[21] On 4 November 1997, Gholap filed a defamation suit against Hazare for accusing him of corruption. He was initially arrested in April 1998 and was released on a personal bond of Rs 5,000.[22] On 9 September 1998, Anna Hazare was imprisoned in the Yerawada Jail after being sentenced to simple imprisonment for three months by the Mumbai Metropolitan Court.[6][23] The sentencing came as a huge shock at that time to all social activists. Leaders of all political parties except the BJP and the Shiv Sena came in support of him[24][25] Later due to public protests, the Government of Maharashtra ordered his release from the jail. After release, Hazare wrote a letter to then chief minister Manohar Joshi demanding Gholap's removal for his role in the alleged malpractices in the Awami Merchant Bank.[26] Gholap resigned from the cabinet on 27 April 1999.[27]

In 2003, the corruption charges were raised by Hazare against 4 ministers of the Congress-NCP government belonging to the NCP.[28] He started his 'fast unto death' on 9 August 2003. He ended his fast on 17 August 2003 after then chief minister Sushil Kumar Shinde formed a one man commission, headed by the retired justice P. B. Sawant to probe his charges.[29] The P. B. Sawant commission report, submitted on 23 February 2005, indicted Sureshdada Jain, Nawab Malik and Padmasinh Patil. The report exonerated Vijaykumar Gavit.[30][31] Suresh Jain and Nawab Malik resigned from the cabinet in March 2005.[32] Right to Information movement

In the early 2000s, Anna Hazare led a movement in Maharashtra state, which forced the Government of Maharashtra to repeal the earlier weak act and pass a stronger Maharashtra Right to Information Act. This Act was later considered as the base document for the Right to Information Act 2005 (RTI), enacted by the Union Government. It also ensured that the President of India assented to this new Act.[33] Law professor Alasdair Scott Roberts mentions, “ The state of Maharashtra - home to one of the world's largest cities, Mumbai, adopted a Right to Information Act in 2003, prodded by the hunger strike of prominent activist, Anna Hazare. ("All corruption can end only if there is freedom of information," said Hazare, who resumed his strike in February 2004 to push for better enforcement of the Act).[34] ”

On 20 July 2006, the Union Cabinet decided to amend the Right to Information Act 2005 to exclude the file notings by the government officials from its purview. Hazare began his 'fast unto death' on 9 August 2006 against the proposed amendment in Alandi. He ended his fast on 19 August 2006, after the government agreed to change its earlier decision.[35] Lokpal Bill movement Anna Hazare's hunger strike at Jantar Mantar in Delhi Main article: 2011 Indian anti-corruption movement

On 5 April 2011, Anna Hazare initiated a movement for passing a stronger anti-corruption Lokpal (ombudsman) bill in the Indian Parliament. As a part of this movement, N. Santosh Hegde, a former justice of the Supreme Court of India and Lokayukta of Karnataka, Prashant Bhushan, a senior lawyer in the Supreme Court along with the members of the India Against Corruption movement drafted an alternate bill, named as the Jan Lokpal Bill (People's Ombudsman Bill) with more stringent provisions and wider power to the Lokpal (Ombudsman). [36] Hazare began a fast unto death from 5 April 2011 at Jantar Mantar in Delhi, to press for the demand to form a joint committee of the representatives of the Government and the civil society to draft a new bill with stronger penal actions and more independence to the Lokpal and Lokayuktas (Ombudsmen in the states), after his demand was rejected by the Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh[37] Before commencing his 'fast unto death' he stated, "I will fast until Jan Lokpal Bill is passed".[38]

The movement attracted attention very quickly through various media. It has been reported that thousands of people joined to support Hazare's effort. Almost 150 people reportedly joined Hazare in his fast.[39] He said that he would not allow any politician to sit with him in this movement. Politicians like Uma Bharti and Om Prakash Chautala were shooed away by protesters when they came to visit the site where the protest was taking place.[40] A number of social activists including Medha Patkar, Arvind Kejriwal and former IPS officer Kiran Bedi and Jayaprakash Narayan have lent their support to Hazare's hunger strike and anti-corruption campaign. This movement has also been joined by many people providing their support in Internet social media such as Twitter and Facebook. In addition to spiritual leaders Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Swami Ramdev, Swami Agnivesh and former Indian cricketer Kapil Dev,[41] many celebrities showed their public support through micro-blogging site Twitter.[42] As a result of this movement, on 6 April 2011 Sharad Pawar resigned from the group of ministers formed for reviewing the draft Lokpal bill 2010.[43] Wikinews has related news: Indian activist begins "fast-unto-death" hunger strike to end corruption

The movement gathered significant support from India's youth visible through the local support and on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter.[44] There have also been protests in Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Shillong, Aizawl among other cities of India.[45]

On 8 April 2011, the Government of India accepted all demands of the movement. On 9 April 2011 it issued a notification in the Gazette of India on formation of a joint committee. It accepted the formula that there be a politician Chairman and an activist, non-politician Co-Chairman. According to the notification, Pranab Mukherjee will be the Chairman of the draft committee while Shanti Bhushan will be the co-chairman. “The Joint Drafting Committee shall consist of five nominee ministers of the Government of India and five nominees of the civil society. The five nominee Ministers of the Government of India are Pranab Mukherjee, Union Minister of Finance, P. Chidambaram, Union Minister of Home Affairs, M. Veerappa Moily, Union Minister of Law and Justice, Kapil Sibal, Union Minister of Human Resource and Development and Minister of Communication and Information Technology and Salman Khursheed, Union Minister of Water Resources and Minister of Minority Affairs. The five nominees of the civil society are Anna Hazare, N. Santosh Hegde, Shanti Bhushan Senior Advocate, Prashant Bhushan, Advocate and Arvind Kejriwal.[46][47]

On the morning of 9 April 2011 Anna Hazare ended his 98-hour hunger strike by first offering lemon juice to some of his supporters who had gone on a hunger strike in his support. The social activist then broke his fast by consuming some lemon juice. He addressed the people and set a deadline of 15 August 2011 to pass the Lokpal Bill in the Indian Parliament. “ Real fight begins now. We have a lot of struggle ahead of us in drafting the new legislation, We have shown the world in just five days that we are united for the cause of the nation. The youth power in this movement is a sign of hope.[48] ” Anna Hazare also said that if the bill was not passed, then he will call a mass nation-wide agitation.[48][49] He called his movement as "second struggle for independence" and he will continue the fight.[50] Awards and honours Awards

* 2011 - Rabindranath Tagore International Peace Prize, awarded by the Indian Institute of Planning and Management.[51] * 2008 - On 15 April 2008, Anna Hazare received the World Bank's 2008 Jit Gill Memorial Award for ::Outstanding Public Service: "Hazare created a thriving model village in Ralegaon Siddhi, in the impoverished Ahmednagar region of Maharashtra state, and championed the right to information and the fight against corruption."[52] * 1992 - Padma Bhushan award, by the Government of India * 1990 - Padma Shri award, by the Government of India * 1989 - Krishi Bhushana award by the Government of Maharashtra. * 1986 - Indira Priyadarshini Vrikshamitra award by the Government of India on 19 November 1986 from the hands of Prime Minister of India Rajiv Gandhi.

Early life Kisan Hazare was born on 15 June 1937[citation needed] (some sources say 1940)[11] in Bhingar, near to Ahmednagar. The eldest son, with two sisters and four brothers, the later adoption of the name Anna reflects the Indian word for "elder brother". His father worked in a pharmacy and struggled to support the family financially. In time, the family moved to their ancestral village of Ralegan Siddhi, where they owned a small amount of agricultural land. A relative took on the burden of providing Kisan with an education, taking him to Mumbai because the village had no primary school. The relative became unable financially to continue the support and Kisan's schooling ended in the Standard Seventh grade; his siblings were not schooled at all.[12] He started selling flowers at the Dadar railway station in Mumbai and was able eventually to own two flower shops in the city.[13] He also became involved in vigilantism, joining groups who acted to prevent the poor from being bullied out of their shelters by thugs in the employ of landlords.[14] Military service The Indo-China War of 1962 caused the Indian Army to commence emergency recruitment measures. Hazare was recruited in April 1963, despite not meeting the physical requirements, and was attested as a soldier on 16 November of that year after undertaking training at Aurangabad.[12][15] During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, Hazare was posted at the border in the Khem Karan sector. He was the sole survivor of an enemy attack - variously claimed to have been a bomb, an aerial assault and an exchange of fire at the border - while he was driving a truck.[12][13][16] The experiences of war time, coupled with the poverty from which he had come, affected him. He had considered suicide at one point but now turned to pondering the meaning of life and death.[12] He has said of the truck attack that "[It] sent me thinking. I felt that God wanted me to stay alive for some reason. I was re-born in the battlefield of Khem Karan. And I decided to dedicate my new life to serving people."[13] He spent his spare time reading the works of Swami Vivekananda, Gandhi, and Vinoba Bhave.[17] In a blog post, Hazare expressed his views on Kashmir by saying that it was his "active conviction that Kashmir is an integral part of India" and that if required once again for service, he would remain "ready to take part in war against Pakistan."[18] During the mid-1970s, Hazare survived a road accident while driving for the army. He interpreted his survival as a further sign that his life was intended to be dedicated to the service of the community.[14] Despite subsequent allegations that he had deserted from the army, official records show that he was honourably discharged in 1975 after completing his 12 years of service. [15] Transformation of Ralegan Siddhi Hazare returned to Ralegan Siddhi, a village described by Satpathy and Mehta as being then "one of the many villages of India plagued by acute poverty, deprivation, a fragile ecosystem, neglect and hopelessness."[19] Although most of the villagers owned some land, cultivation was extremely difficult due to the rocky ground preventing retention of the monsoon rains; this situation had not been assisted by a gradual deterioration as trees were cut down, erosion spread and droughts were also experienced. The shortage of water also led to disease because conditions became unsanitary and water was re-used for multiple purposes. The economy of the village had become reliant on illegal manufacture and sale of alcohol, a product to which many of the villagers had themselves become addicted. Many inhabitants were at the mercy of moneylenders in order to survive, and those lenders would charge monthly interest rates of as much as 10%. Crime and violence (including domestic violence) had become commonplace, while education and employment opportunities were poor.[14][20] Hazare was relatively wealthy because of the gratuity from his army service. He set about using that money to restore a run-down, vandalised village temple as a focal point for the community. Some were able to respond with small financial donations but many other villagers, particularly among the elderly, donated their labour in a process that became known as shramdaan. Some youths also became involved in the work and these he organised into a Tarun Mandal (Youth Association). One of the works of Vivekananda which he had read was Call to the youth for nation building.[21] Prohibition of alcohol Hazare and the youth group decided to take up the issue of alcoholism as a means to drive a process of reform. At a meeting conducted in the temple, the villagers resolved to close down liquor dens and ban alcohol in the village. Since these resolutions were made in the temple, they became, in a sense, religious commitments. Over thirty liquor brewing units were closed by their owners voluntarily. Those who did not succumb to social pressure were forced to close down their businesses when the youth group smashed up their liquor dens. The owners could not complain as their businesses were illegal.[22] When some villagers were found to be drunk they were tied to pillars and then flogged, sometimes personally by Hazare. He justified this punishment by stating that “rural India was a harsh society”,[23] and that Doesn’t a mother administer bitter medicines to a sick child when she knows that the medicine can cure her child? The child may not like the medicine, but the mother does it only because she cares for the child. The alcoholics were punished so that their families would not be destroyed.[24] Hazare appealed to the government of Maharashtra to bring in a law whereby prohibition would come into force in a village if 25% of the women in the village demanded it. In 2009 the state government amended the Bombay Prohibition Act, 1949 to reflect this.[25] It was decided to ban the sale of tobacco, cigarettes, and beedies (an unfiltered cigarette where the tobacco is rolled in tendu also known as Diospyros melanoxylon leaves instead of paper) in the village. In order to implement this resolution, the youth group performed a unique "Holi" ceremony twenty two years ago.[when?] The festival of Holi is celebrated as a symbolic burning of evil. The youth group brought all the tobacco, cigarettes, and beedies from the shops in the village and burnt them in a Holi fire. Tobacco, cigarettes, or beedies are no longer sold.[26][27] Grain Bank In 1980, the Grain Bank was started by him at the temple, with the objective of providing food security to needful farmers during times of drought or crop failure. Rich farmers, or those with surplus grain production, could donate a quintal to the bank. In times of need, farmers could borrow the grain, but they had to return the same amount of grain they borrowed, plus an additional quintal as an interest. This ensured that nobody in the village ever went hungry or had to borrow money to buy grain. This also prevented distress sales of grain at lower prices at harvest time.[12] Watershed development programme Ralegan is located in the foothills, so Hazare persuaded villagers to construct a watershed embankment and associated works to stop water and allow it to percolate and increase the ground water level and improve irrigation in the area. These efforts solved the problem of water scarcity in the village and made irrigation possible.[14][17] Cultivation of water-intensive crops like sugar cane was banned. Crops such as pulses, oil-seeds, and certain cash crops with low water requirements were grown. The farmers started growing high-yield varieties of crop and the cropping pattern of the village was changed. Hazare has helped farmers of more than 70 villages in drought-prone regions in the state of Maharashtra since 1975.[28] When Hazare came in Ralegan Siddhi in 1975 only 70 acres (28 ha) of land was irrigated, Hazare converted it into about 2,500 acres (1,000 ha).[22] Milk production As a secondary occupation, milk production was promoted in Ralegan Siddhi. Purchase of new cattle and improvement of the existing breed with the help of artificial insemination and timely guidance and assistance by a veterinarian resulted in an improvement in the cattle stock, increasing production of milk. Crossbred cows are replacing local ones which gave a lower milk yield.[citation needed] Education In 1932, Ralegan Siddhi got its first formal school, a single classroom primary school.[clarification needed] In 1962, the villagers added more classrooms through community volunteer efforts. By 1971, out of an estimated population of 1,209, only 30.43% were literate (72 women and 290 men). Boys moved to the nearby towns of Shirur and Parner to pursue higher education, but due to socioeconomic conditions, girls could not do the same and were limited to primary education. Hazare, along with the youth of Ralegan Siddhi, worked to increase literacy rates and education levels. In 1976 they started a pre-school and a high school in 1979. The villagers formed a charitable trust, the Sant Yadavbaba Shikshan Prasarak Mandal, which was registered in 1979. [citation needed] Removal of untouchability The social barriers and discrimination that existed due to the caste system in India have been largely eliminated by Ralegan Siddhi villagers. It was Hazare's moral leadership that motivated and inspired the villagers to shun untouchability and caste discrimination. Marriages of Dalits are held as part of community marriage program together with those of other castes. The Dalits have been integrated into the social and economic life of the village. The upper caste villagers have built houses for the lower caste Dalits by shramdaan and helped to repay their loans to free them from their indebtedness.[29][30][31] Collective marriages Most rural poor get into a debt trap as they incur heavy expenses at the time of marriage of their daughter or son. It is an undesirable practice but has almost become a social obligation in India. Ralegan's people have started celebrating marriages collectively. Joint feasts are held, where the expenses are further reduced by the Tarun Mandal taking responsibility for cooking and serving the food. The vessels, the loudspeaker system, the mandap, and the decorations have also been bought by the Tarun Mandal members belonging to the oppressed castes. From 1976 to 1986, 424 marriages have been held under this system.[citation needed] Gram Sabha The Gandhian philosophy on rural development considers the Gram Sabha as an important democratic institution for collective decision making in the villages of India.[32] Hazare campaigned between 1998 and 2006 for amending the Gram Sabha Act, so that the villagers have a say in the development works in their village. The state government initially refused, but eventually gave in due to public pressure. As per the amendments, it is mandatory to seek the sanction of the Gram Sabha (an assembly of all village adults, and not just the few elected representatives in the gram panchayat) for expenditures on development works in the village.[25] Activism Anti-corruption protests in Maharashtra

Anna Hazare listening to the problems of people at Nanded, Maharashtra. In 1991 Hazare launched the Bhrashtachar Virodhi Jan Aandolan (BVJA) (People's Movement against Corruption), a popular movement to fight against corruption[33] in Ralegaon Siddhi. In the same year he protested against the collusion between 40 forest officials and timber merchants. This protest resulted in the transfer and suspension of these officials.[34] In May 1997 Hazare protested against alleged malpractices in the purchase of powerlooms by the Vasantrao Naik Bhathya Vimukt Jhtra Governor P. C. Alexander.[35] On 4 November 1997 Gholap filed a defamation suit against Hazare for accusing him of corruption. He was arrested in April 1998 and was released on a personal bond of 5,000 (US$100).[36] On 9 September 1998 Hazare was imprisoned in the Yerawada Jail to serve a three-month sentence mandated by the Mumbai Metropolitan Court.[16][37] The sentencing caused leaders of all political parties except the BJP and the Shiv Sena came in support of him. [38] Later, due to public protests, the Government of Maharashtra ordered his release from the jail. After release, Hazare wrote a letter to then chief minister Manohar Joshi demanding Gholap's removal for his role in alleged malpractices in the Awami Merchant Bank.[39] Gholap resigned from the cabinet on 27 April 1999.[40] In 2003 corruption charges were raised by Hazare against four NCP ministers of the Congress- NCP government.[41] He started his fast unto death on 9 August 2003. He ended his fast on 17 August 2003 after then chief minister Sushil Kumar Shinde formed a one-man commission headed by the retired justice P. B. Sawant to probe his charges.[42] The P. B. Sawant commission report, submitted on 23 February 2005, indicted Sureshdada Jain, Nawab Malik, and Padmasinh Patil. The report exonerated Vijaykumar Gavit. Suresh Jain and Nawab Malik resigned from the cabinet in March 2005.[43]

Three trusts headed by Anna Hazare were also indicted in the P. B. Sawant commission report. 220,000 (US$4,180) spent by the Hind Swaraj Trust for Anna Hazare's birthday celebrations was concluded by the commission as illegal and amounting to a corrupt practice,[44][45] though Abhay Firodia, an industrialist subsequently donated 248,000 (US$4,710) to the trust for that purpose. [46] The setting apart of 11 acres of its land by the trust in favour of the Zilla Parishad without obtaining permission from the charity commissioner was concluded as a case of maladministration. The commission also concluded that the maintenance of accounts of the Bhrashtachar Virodhi Janandolan Trust after 10 November 2001 had not been according to the rules and 46,374 (US$880) spent by the Sant Yadavbaba Shikshan Prasarak Mandal Trust for renovating a temple was in contravention to its object of imparting secular education.[44][45] Right to Information movement In the early 2000s Hazare led a movement in Maharashtra state which forced the state government to enact a revised Maharashtra Right to Information Act. This Act was later considered as the base document for the Right to Information Act 2005 (RTI), enacted by the Union Government. It also ensured that the President of India assented to this new Act.[47] On 20 July 2006 the Union Cabinet amended the Right to Information Act 2005 to exclude the file noting by the government officials from its purview. Hazare began his fast unto death on 9 August 2006 in Alandi against the proposed amendment. He ended his fast on 19 August 2006, after the government agreed to change its earlier decision.[48] Regulation of Transfers and Prevention of Delay in Discharge of Official Duties Act Before 2006 in the state of Maharashtra, even honest government officers were transferred to other places according to ministers wish. Sometimes within months of being posted to a place, whereas some corrupt and favoured officials were cozy in their postings for many years in some cases even for 10 to 20 years and since there was not any guideline or law many government officials were reluctant to process files that contained important public proposals and decisions. Anna fought hard for a law whereby a government servant must clear a file within a specified time and that transfers must take place only after three years. After many years of relentless efforts of Anna, finally on 25 May 2006 state government of Maharashtra issued a notification announcing that the execution of the special act, The Prevention of Delay in Discharge of Official Duties Act 2006, aimed at curbing the delay by its officers and employees in discharging their duties. This act provides for disciplinary action against officials who move files slowly and enables monitoring officials who stay too long in a post, or in a department, and for involvement in a corrupt nexus. Within this act, it is mandatory for the government to effect transfers of all government officers and employees, except Class IV workers, after the stipulated three years. Act also prevents the government from effecting frequent transfers of officers before the stipulated three-year tenure, except in case of emergency and under exceptional circumstances. Maharashtra is the first state in the country to have introduced such act.[25] However, like others, this law has also not been followed in its true spirit.[49][50] Campaign against liquor from food grains Constitution of India Article 47 commits the State to raise the standard of living and improve public health, and prohibit the consumption of intoxicating drinks and drugs injurious to health. [51][52][53] In 2007 Maharashtra Government rolled out the grain-based liquor policy aimed to encourage production of liquor from food grain in the light of the rising demand for spirit – used for industrial purposes and potable liquor and Issue 36 licenses for distilleries for making alcohol from food grains.[53] Anna Hazare opposed the governments policy to promote making liquor from food grains in Maharashtra. He argued the government that Maharashtra is a food-deficit State and there was shortage of food grains and it is not logical to promote producing liquor from food grains.[54] One of the State ministers Laxman Dhoble said in his speech that those opposing the decision to allow use of food grains for the production of liquor are anti-farmers and those people should be beaten up with sugarcane sticks.[55][56] Hazare initiated fast at Shirdi, but on 21 March 2010 government promised to review the policy and Anna ended his 5 day long fast.[57] But the government later granted 36 licences and grants of 10 (US$0.19) (per litre of alcohol) to politicians or their sons who were directly or indirectly engaged in making alcohol from foodgrains. Some of the main beneficiaries of these licences includes Amit and Dheeraj Deshmukh, sons of Union Heavy Industries Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Gopinath Munde's daughter Pankaja Palwe and her husband Charudatta Palwe, sons-in- law of P.V. Narasimha Rao, Rajya Sabha MP Govindrao Adik.[54][58][59] The government approved the proposal for food grain-based alcohol production in spite of stiff opposition from the planning and finance departments saying there is a huge demand in other countries for food grain made liquor in comparison with that of molasses.[60] Anna filed a Public Interest Litigation against the Government of Maharashtra for allowing food-grains for manufacturing liquor in the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court. On 20 August 2009 Maharashtra government stopped the policy. However, distilleries sanctioned before that date and those who started production within two years of sanction were entitled for subsidies. On 5 May 2011 court refused to hear a Public Interest Litigation saying "not before me, this is a court of law, not a court of justice" as a reason of not hearing the plea.[61][62] One of Principal Secretary in Maharashtra state C.S. Sangeet Rao, enlighten that there is no law exists to scrap these licences as this is a government policy.[54]

Lokpal Bill movement Anna Hazare's hunger strike at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. Main article: 2011 Indian anti-corruption movement In 2011, Hazare initiated a Satyagraha movement for passing a stronger anti-corruption Lokpal (ombudsman) bill in the Indian Parliament as conceived in the Jan Lokpal Bill (People's Ombudsman Bill). The Jan Lokpal Bill was drafted earlier by N. Santosh Hegde, former justice of the Supreme Court of India and Lokayukta of Karnataka, Prashant Bhushan, a senior lawyer in the Supreme Court and Arvind Kejriwal, a social activist along with members of the India Against Corruption movement. This draft bill incorporated more stringent provisions and wider power to the Lokpal (Ombudsman) than the draft Lokpal bill prepared by the government in 2010.[63] These include placing "the Prime Minister within the ambit of the proposed lokpal’s powers".[64] Hunger strike in Delhi Wikinews has related news: Anna Hazare begins "fast-unto-death" hunger strike to end corruption. Hazare began his Indefinite Fast [65] on 5 April 2011 at Jantar Mantar in Delhi to press for the demand to form a joint committee of the representatives of the Government and the civil society to draft a stronger anti-corruption bill with stronger penal actions and more independence to the Lokpal and Lokayuktas (Ombudsmen in the states), after his demand was rejected by the Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh.[66] He stated, "I will fast until Jan Lokpal Bill is passed".[67] The movement attracted attention in the media, and thousands of supporters. Almost 150 people reportedly joined Hazare in his fast.[68] Social activists, including Medha Patkar, Arvind Kejriwal, former IPS officer Kiran Bedi, and Jayaprakash Narayan lent their support to Hazare's hunger strike and anti-corruption campaign. People have shown support in internet social media such as Twitter and Facebook. In addition to spiritual leaders Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Swami Ramdev, Swami Agnivesh and former Indian cricketer Kapil Dev, many celebrities showed their public support through Twitter.[69][70] Hazare decided that he would not allow any politician to sit with him in this movement. Politicians like Uma Bharti and Om Prakash Chautala were shooed away by the protesters when they came to visit the site where the protest was taking place.[71] On 6 April 2011 Sharad Pawar resigned from the group of ministers formed for reviewing the draft Lokpal bill 2010.[72] Protests spread to Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Shillong, Aizawl and a number of other cities in India.[73] End of hunger strike after meeting demands On 8 April 2011 the Government of India accepted all demands of the movement. On 9 April 2011 it issued a notification in the Gazette of India on formation of a joint committee. It accepted the formula that there be a politician Chairman and an activist, non-politician Co-Chairman. According to the notification, Pranab Mukherjee will be the Chairman of the draft committee while Shanti Bhushan will be the co-chairman. “The Joint Drafting Committee shall consist of five nominee ministers of the Government of India and five nominees of the civil society. The five nominee Ministers of the Government of India are Pranab Mukherjee, Union Minister of Finance, P. Chidambaram, Union Minister of Home Affairs, M. Veerappa Moily, Union Minister of Law and Justice, Kapil Sibal, Union Minister of Human Resource and Development and Minister of Communication and Information Technology and Salman Khursheed, Union Minister of Water Resources and Minister of Minority Affairs. The five nominees of the civil society are Anna Hazare, N. Santosh Hegde, Shanti Bhushan Senior Advocate, Prashant Bhushan, Advocate and Arvind Kejriwal.[74][75] On the morning of 9 April 2011 Hazare ended his 98-hour hunger strike. He addressed the people and set a deadline of 15 August 2011 to pass the Lokpal Bill in the Indian Parliament. "Real fight begins now. We have a lot of struggle ahead of us in drafting the new legislation, We have shown the world in just five days that we are united for the cause of the nation. The youth power in this movement is a sign of hope." Anna Hazare said that if the bill does not pass he will call for a mass nation-wide agitation.[76][77] He called his movement as "second struggle for independence" and he will continue the fight.[78] Differences with the government on draft bill

Anna Hazare's hunger strike at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. During the meeting of the joint drafting committee on 30 May 2011, the Union government members opposed the inclusion of the prime minister, higher judiciary and the acts of the MPs under the purview of the Lokpal in the draft bill.[79] On 31 May 2011, Pranab Mukherjee, chairman of the joint drafting committee sent a letter to the chief ministers of all states and the leaders of the political parties seeking their opinion on six contentious issues in the proposed Lokpal Bill, including whether to bring the prime minister and judges of Supreme Court and High Courts under the purview of the proposed law.[80] But the civil society members of the drafting committee considered that keeping the prime minister and judges of Supreme Court and High Courts out of the purview of the Lokpal would be a violation of the United Nations Convention against Corruption.[81] Anna Hazare and other civil society members decided to boycott the meeting of the joint Lokpal Bill drafting committee scheduled on 6 June 2011 in protest against the forcible eviction of Swami Ramdev and his followers by the Delhi Police from Ramlila Maidan on 5 June 2011, while they were on hunger strike against the issues of black money and corruption and doubting seriousness of the government in taking measures to eradicate corruption.[82] On 6 June 2011, the members of the civil society of the joint Lokpal bill drafting committee in New Delhi sent a letter to Pranab Mukherjee, the chairman of the committee, explaining reasons for their absence at the meeting and also asked government to make its stand public on the contentious issues related to the proposed draft legislation. They also decided that the future meetings will be attended only if they were telecast live.[83] On 8 June 2011 at Rajghat, describing his movement as the second freedom struggle, Anna criticised the Government for trying to discredit the joint Lokpal Bill drafting committee and threatened to go on indefinite fast again from 16 August 2011 if the Lokpal Bill is not passed by then. He also criticised the Government for putting hurdles in the drafting of a strong Lokpal Bill and its attempts to malign the civil society members of the joint Lokpal panel.[84][85][86] Indefinite fast

India Against Corruption campaign in Whitefield, Bangalore. On 28 July 2011 the union cabinet on approved a draft of the Lokpal Bill, which keeps the Prime Minister, judiciary and lower bureaucracy out of the ambit of the proposed corruption ombudsman Lokpal. Hazare rejected the government version by describing it as “cruel joke’’ and wrote a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, and told him his decision to go on an indefinite fast from 16 August 2011 at Jantar Mantar if the government introduced its own version of the bill in Parliament without taking suggestions from civil society members.[87][88] Why are you (government) sending the wrong draft? We have faith in Parliament. But first send the right draft, our agitation is against government, not Parliament. The government has overlooked many points. How will it fight corruption by excluding government employees, CBI and prime minister from the Lokpal's purview? We were told that both the drafts would be sent to the Cabinet. But only the government's draft was sent. This is a deceitful government. They are lying. How will they run the country? Now I have no trust in this government. If it is really serious about fighting corruption, why is it not bringing government employees and CBI under Lokpal?[89] Within twenty four hours of cabinet's endorsement of a weak Lokpal Bill, over ten thousand peoples from across the country sent faxes directly to the government demanding a bill with stronger provisions.[90] The Mumbai Taxi Men’s Union, comprises over 30,000 taxi drivers have extended their full support to Hazare’s fast by keeping all taxis off the roads on 16 August 2011. [91] Lawyers of Allahabad High Court described Lokpal Bill proposed by the government as against the interest of the country and pledged their support to Hazare by hunger strike at Allahabad on 16 August 2011.[92] On 30 July 2011 Vishwa Hindu Parishad supported Hazare's indefinite fast by saying movement for an effective anti-corruption ombudsman needs the backing of people.[93] On 1 August, Public interest litigation was filed in the Supreme Court of India by Hemant Patil, a Maharashtra-based social worker and businessman, to restrain Hazare from going on his proposed indefinite fast. The petitioner demanded to prohibit the fast alleging that Hazare's demands are unconstitutional and amount to interference in legislative process.[94] Arrest and aftermath Wikinews has related news: Anna Hazare to resume "fast-unto-death" hunger strike from August 16, 2011. On 16 August 2011, Hazare was arrested four hours before the planned indefinite hunger strike. [95] Rajan Bhagat, spokesman for Delhi Police, said police arrested Hazare under a legal provision that bans public gatherings and protests at the park in Delhi where he was planning to begin his hunger strike. Police took that action after Hazare refused to meet the conditions put forward by police for allowing the protest.[96] The conditions included restricting the length of the fast to three days and the number of protesters at the site to 5,000. Later in the afternoon, Anna was produced before a magistrate who offered him bail but Anna Hazare refused to provide the bail bond. The magistrate sent him judicial custody for seven days and he was taken to Tihar jail.[97] After announcements by Prashant Bhushan, local television, and social media sites (including Facebook), a march of thousands in support of Hazare began from the India Gate to Jantar Mantar.[98] Along with Hazare, other key members of the India Against Corruption movement including Arvind Kejriwal, Shanti Bhushan, Kiran Bedi and Manish Sisodia were also detained from different locations. It was reported that about 1,300 supporters were detained in Delhi.[99] Media also reported that the arrest sparked off protests with people courting arrests in different parts of the country. The opposition parties in the country came out against the arrest, likening the government action to the emergency imposed in the country in 1975. Both the houses of Parliament were adjourned over the issue.[100] Eventually, after being kept in judicial detention for just four hours, he was released unconditionally without any bail bond by the magistrate on a request by the police, but Hazare refused to leave Tihar Jail.[101] He demanded an unconditional permission from the police to observe a fast at Ramlila Maidan (Ground) in support of the Jan Lokpal bill and refused to leave the jail.[102] Hazare continued his fast inside the jail and refused to leave the jail though the jail authorities had technically released him.[103] After his arrest, Anna Hazare received support from people across the country. There were reports of "nearly 570 demonstrations and protests by Anna supporters across the country" against the government's imprisonment of Hazare and others.[64][104] Due to the nationwide protests of millions,[105] the government agreed to allow him to begin a public hunger strike of fifteen days.[106] After talks with public authorities, Hazare decided to hold his protest at Ramlila Maidan, New Delhi.[107] On 20 August 2011 Hazare "left the Tihar Jail for the Ramlila Grounds". [108] Hazare promised reporters "he would fight to the 'last breath' until the government gets his team's Jan Lokpal Bill passed in this session of Parliament, which ends on 8 September."[64] Fast at Ramlila Maidan, New Delhi Anna Hazare on fast unto death protest. On 20 August 2011 thousands came to the Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi[109] to show their support for Hazare, while "his advisers made televison appearances to rally public support and defend themselves against criticism that their protest campaign and refusal to compromise is undermining India's parliamentary process."[110] The National Campaign for People’s Right to Information (NCPRI) condemned Hazare's deadline for passing the bill as undermining democracy, which operates by "holding wide-ranging consultations and discussions, allowing for dissent and evolving a consensus. ...He [Hazare] has the right to protest and dissent. But nobody can claim it as an absolute right and deny the right of dissent to others."[111] The Congress party confirmed that Maharashtra Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Umesh Chandra Sarangi (who has a history of mediating between Hazare and government officials) was meeting with the social activist again "to find points of consensus and defuse the situation".[112] On 21 August 2011 "tens of thousands" came to Ramlila Maidan to support Hazare as he sat on an elevated platform.[113] It was reported that Hazare at that point had "lost more than seven pounds since beginning his fast", despite this he stated "'I will not withdraw my hunger strike until the Jan Lokpal bill is passed in the Parliament. I can die but I will not bend.'"[113] Hazare ended his fast on 28 August 2011, after the Indian Government had passed the resolution for the Lokpal Bill unanimously, He was admitted to Medanta Medicity, Gurgaon for post-fast care.[114] He had lost 7.5 kg[114] and was very dehydrated after the 288 hour long fast.[115] I Am Anna Chant Within a few days of Anna Hazare's first fast demanding a strong Lokpal (on 5 April 2011), supporters across various cities of India started a campaign known as "I Am Anna Hazare", which is similar to the "We Are All Khaled Said" campaign well known in the Egyptian uprising.[116] At during Anna Hazare's second fast, the topi, the cap which Anna Hazare became synonymous with, became almost a fashion statement.[117] Sales of the topis hit an all time high. [118] Kiran Bedi declared that the "I am Anna" topi should be used as a deterrence method whenever someone asked for a bribe. She went to say that the topi should be always kept in one's bag and whenever anybody ask for a bribe, the topi should be shown to them.[119] Fast on MMRDA ground On 27 December 2011, Hazare began a 3 day hunger strike at MMRDA grounds, Bandra Kurla Complex in demand to a stronger version of the Lokpal bill than the is in debate in the Parliament of India.[120] Before reaching the venue, Anna payed his tributes to Mahatma Gandhi at Juhu Beach. On his way in a rally, which was joined by several thousand people,[120] he took two-and-half hours to reach the ground, passing through Santacruz, Tulip Star Hotel, Mithibai College, SV Road, Vile Parle, Khar and Bandra Highway.[121] Reiterating Anna Hazare's position, a PIL filed against the fast was turned down by the Karnataka High Court. Anna Hazare's fast last only two days in place of three days because of his ill-health. However, his critics believe that since response to his three days fast was poor because of which he had to call off his fast.[122] Electoral reform movement In 2011, Anna Hazare demanded an amendment to the electoral law to incorporate the option of None of the above in the electronic voting machines during the Indian elections.[123][124] The "None of the above (NOTA)" is a ballot option that allows an electorate to indicate disapproval of all of the candidates in an electoral system, in case of non-availability of any candidate of his choice, as his Right to Reject. Soon, the Chief Election Commissioner of India Shahabuddin Yaqoob Quraishi supported Hazare's demand for the electoral reforms.[125] Protest against atrocities against Swami Ramdev and his supporters On 8 June 2011, Anna Hazare and thousands of his supporters observed fast from 10 am to 6 pm at Rajghat to protest against the midnight crackdown of 5 June 2011 by the Delhi Police on Swami Ramdev’s fast at Ramlila Maidan, New Delhi. The fast was initially planned to be held at Jantar Mantar, but the venue was shifted after the denial of permission by the Delhi police.[84][126] Anna Hazare held the Prime Minister of India responsible for the atrocities[127] and termed the police action as a blot on humanity and an attempt to stifle democracy.[84] According to one of the Anna's young supporters, the large presence of youths in the protest was due to their support to his use of nonviolence means of protest similar to Gandhi.[128] Controversies and criticism RSS Agent Anna Hazare has often being criticized for being an agent of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh a right-wing Hindu body in India.[129] United Progressive Alliance,the present ruling government in India has seldom charged Hazare with it. According to Digvijay Singh a senior leader of the Indian National Congress the entire crusade of 2011 Indian anti-corruption movement is a process being planned by Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in which Plan-A was Baba Ramdev while Plan-B was Anna Hazare. Their basic job was to disturb the national security of the country[130]. Further Digvijay Singh had charged Anna Hazare for having links with late Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh leader Nanaji Deshmukh [131] with whom he worked as a secretary.[132] However Anna has declined for having any such associations. Views on Narendra Modi In a press conference in April 2011, Anna Hazare praised Narendra Modi, the chief minister of Gujarat for his efforts on rural development along with Nitish Kumar, chief minister of Bihar, saying that the same should be emulated by the chief ministers of all states.[133] Subsequently, Modi wrote an open letter to him, hailing him as a Gandhian and anti-corruption activist[134] while Digvijay Singh, the General Secretary of the Congress party, criticised him for his comment.[135] In May 2011, Hazare, during his visit to Gujarat, changed his view and criticised Modi for rampant corruption by Government officials in Gujarat. He urged Modi to appoint a Lokayukta in Gujarat. He also commented that the media had projected an incorrect image of Vibrant Gujarat, very different from the prevalent situation.[136] Fraud during fasts A cardiologist from Pune, Abhijit Vaidya – founder of Arogya Sena, a non-governmental agency active in public health, disaster management and social campaigns – claimed that he was informed by the close associates of Anna Hazare during a fast in Ralegan-Siddhi, that he was given glucose and electrolyte solutions during a fast. Hazare and his associates refused to comment on the allegation.[137] Accusations of corruption The government of the state of Maharashtra instituted a Commission of Inquiry under Justice PB Sawant in September 2003 to enquire into allegations of corruption against several people, including four ministers in the state as well as the "Hind Swaraj Trust" headed by Hazare. The Commission submitted its report on 22 February 2005 in which it indicted the Hind Swaraj Trust for corrupt practice of spending Rs. 2.20 lakhs of its funds on the birthday celebrations of Hazare.[138] Two days ahead of Hazare's proposed indefinite fast on 16 August 2011, the ruling party of India, the Indian National Congress, launched an attack on him alleging that "the moral core of Hazare has been ripped apart" by the Justice P B Sawant Commission.[139] In response to this allegaton, Hazare's lawyer Milind Pawar, claimed that the commission had remarked about "irregularities" in the accounts, but had not held him guilty of any "corrupt" practices. Pawar said that on 16 June 1998, a celebration was organised to facilitate Hazare on winning an award from a US based NGO and it coincided with his 61st birthday. The trust spent Rs 2.18 lakh for the function. Abhay Phirodia, a Pune-based industrialist, who took the initiative to organise this function donated an amount of Rs 2,48,950 to the trust by cheque soon after the function.[140] Hazare himself responded to the allegation by daring the government to file a First Information Report (FIR) against him to prove the charges.[141] Accusation of being anti-democratic and anti-dalit An article written in The Telegraph (Kolkata) by writer and historian Ramchandra Guha state that that environmental journalist Mukul Sharma found that that Anna Hazare forced the Dalit families in Ralegan Siddhi to adopt a vegetarian diet, and that those who violated the decree were tied to a post and flogged.[142] Mukul Sharma also found that no panchayat elections have been held in the village for the past two decades, and that no campaigning was allowed during state and national elections, upon the instructions of Anna Hazare.[142] Dalit columnists like Chandrabhan Prasad have opined that the movement initiated by Anna Hazare against corruption and for the Jan Lokpal bill is taking us to a situation of rejecting representative democracy and also alleged that this movement is an upper-caste uprising against India's political democracy. He also claimed that the centralisation such huge powers in Lokapal, which is a non-elected entity will lead the democratic setup to a very dangerous situation. Dalit activist Kancha Ilaiah also commented in a similar fashion, that "The Anna movement is an anti-social justice, manuvadi movement. The Dalits, tribals, OBCs and minorities have nothing to do with it. We oppose it."[143] Another activist Anoop Kheri claimed that "The language, symbols used by the movement clearly reflects its upper caste Hindu nature, a very rightwing Hindu patriotism is being used to get the entire country against corruption. And as a dalit, I have a problem with it."[143] There was also an allegation that an RTI activist was denied permission to protest by having a fast-unto-death at Ralegan Siddhi, the grama sabha stating that the reason was that only Anna Hazare can hold such fasts in his village.[144] During his protest against corruption, another activist, Udit Raj, who was denied permission to protest against Anna Hazare, warned that succumbing to Hazare's demands, which he claimed were against the parliamentary processes will set a dangerous trend rendering the backward classes more vulnerable, as such mass mobilisations coercing the government with a "set of solutions" against constitutional processes could also be used against affirmative action, and is a threat to democracy.[145] Later, it came to light that poor dalits had been paid money of up to 200 each, exploiting their desperation. The participants said that they were asked to shout slogans against Anna, although the organizers have denied it. Some protesters said that they had been told that it was a pro-Anna protest, but feel cheated after realising that it was against Anna hazare.[146] Accusation of being nonsecular On 22 August 2011 writer-actor Arundhati Roy accused Hazare in a newspaper article of being nonsecular. She questioned his secular credentials pointing out Hazare's "support for Raj Thackeray's Marathi Manoos xenophobia and (has praised) the 'development model' of Gujarat's CM who oversaw the 2002 pogrom against Muslims". The website of the newspaper published many responses to her article and these were mostly critical of her views.[147] Activist Medha Patkar also strongly criticised Roy, saying that her views were misplaced.[148] Hazare has in the past stood in firm opposition to the Shiv Sena and BJP governments in Maharashtra. Activist and writer Asghar Ali Engineer in an EPW article on Communalism and Communal Violence reported,[149] The Shiv Sena is also facing serious problems from the social activist Anna Hazare who has accused its ministers of corruption and demanded their resignation. The SS-BJP government is facing serious corruption charges and is greatly worried. The Anna Hazare movement began in late November when he went on fast against the corrupt practices of the Shiv Sena ministers. The BJP initially supported the Hazare movement and now its deputy chief minister Gopinath Munde is also under a cloud. Initially the Hazare movement had created a rift between the Shiv Sena and the BJP but with Gopinath Munde himself under a cloud, both may close ranks. The Anna Hazare movement has certainly posed a great challenge for the saffron government at the end of 1996. Hazare was accused of working for RSS and BJP's behest, and against Muslims by cleric Bukhari of the Jama Masjid. Bhukhari was subsequently criticised for being a Royal Imam and the communal comments being his personal views which did not represent the view of ordinary Muslims.[150] Anna supports violence selectively Hazare, who imitates Gandhi in dressing, acknowledged his belief in violence after his infamous remark "just one slap" in which the victim of violence was Sharad Pawar, a rival in maharashtra in terms of popularity. [151] Conspiracy to murder Hazare Anna Hazare has exposed large corruption in co-operative sugar factories of Maharashtra. One of the sugar factories which Anna exposed corruption of is controlled by Dr.Padamsinh Bajirao Patil, a member of Parliament of 15th Lok Sabha and higher-ranking Leader of Nationalist Congress Party from Osmanabad, and also a prime accused and conspirator in the 2006 murder case of Indian National Congress leader Pawanraje Nimabalkar.[152][153] The conspiracy to kill Hazare was exposed when Parasmal Jain, an accused in the Nimbalkar murder case, in his written confession before a magistrate said that Padamsinh Bajirao Patil had paid a sum of 3,000,000 (US$57,000) to murder Nimbalkar, and also offered him supari (contract killing sum) to kill Anna Hazare.[154][155] After this written confession, Anna appealed to the state government of Maharashtra to lodge a separate First Information Report ( FIR ) against Padamsinh Bajirao Patil for conspiring to murder him but the government did not take any action in this regard. Anna Hazare decided to lodge a complaint himself and on 26 September 2009, he lodged complaint at Parner police station of Ahmednagar District in Maharashtra against the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MP Padamsinha Patil for conspiring to eliminate him.[156] Padamsinh Patil approached the High Court seeking anticipatory bail but on 14 October 2009, the Aurangabad bench of Bombay High Court rejected the anticipatory bail application of Padamsinh Patil in connection with a complaint filed by Anna after observing that there is a prima facie evidence against him.[157][158] Padmasinh Patil appealed for an anticipatory bail in Supreme Court of India which the court rejected on 6 November 2009.[159] On 11 November 2009 Padmasinh Patil surrendered before the sessions court in Latur as per a directive of the Supreme Court and was sent to judicial remand for 14 days.[160] On 16 December 2009 Aurangabad bench of Bombay High Court granted bail to him.[161] As of 16 August 2011, the verdict is pending. As of December 2011, Anna Hazare has got Z+ security. [162] Honours, awards and international recognition This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (October 2011)

Year Award Awarding organization 2011 NDTV Indian of the Year with Arvind Kejriwal [163] NDTV 2008 Jit Gill Memorial Award World Bank 2005 Honorary Doctorate Gandhigram Rural University 2003 Integrity Award Transparency International 1998 CARE International Award CARE (relief agency) 1997 Mahaveer Award 1996 Shiromani Award 1992 Padma Bhushan President of India 1990 Padma Shri President of India 1989 Krishi Bhushana Award Government of Maharashtra 1986 Indira Priyadarshini Vrikshamitra Award Government of India Personal life Anna Hazare is unmarried. He has lived in a small room attached to the Sant Yadavbaba temple in Ralegan Siddhi since 1975. On 16 April 2011, he declared his bank balance of 67,183 (US$1,280) and 1,500 (US$30) as money in hand.[164] He owns 0.07 hectares of family land in Ralegan Siddhi, which is being used by his brothers. Two other pieces of land donated to him by the Indian Army and by a villager have been donated by him for village use.[165] His only income is a pension he receives from the Indian Army.[citation needed] Writings Writings • Hazare, Anna; Ganesh Pangare, Vasudha Lokur (1996). Adarsh Gaon Yojana: government participitation in a peoples program : ideal village project of the Government of Maharashtra. Hind Swaraj Trust. p. 95. Retrieved 20 August 2011. • Hazare, Anna. My Village – My Sacred Land. New Delhi: CAPART. • Hazare, Anna (1997). Ralegaon Siddhi: a veritable transformation. Translated by B.S. Pendse. Ralegan Siddhi Pariwar Prakashan,. Retrieved 7 April 2011. • Hazare, Anna (2007) (in Marathi). ववव वव ववववववववव. Pune: Signet Publications. • Anna Hazare: The Face of Indias Fight Against Corruption . Pentagon Press. 2011. p. 124. ISBN 9788182745452. Retrieved 14 June 2011. References 1. ^ Kohari, Alizeh (16 August 2011). "Hunger strikes: What can they achieve?". BBC News. 2. ^ "Anna Hazare - Biography & Facts About Anna Hazare". Retrieved 21 August 2011. 3. ^ Yardley, Jim (18 August 2011). "Unlikely Echo of Gandhi Inspires Indians to Act". The New York Times. Retrieved 19 August 2011. 4. ^ "Padma Bhushan Awardees". Retrieved 10 April 2011. 5. ^ "India activist Anna Hazare ends hunger strike". BBC News. 9 April 2011. Retrieved 9 April 2011. 6. ^ "Govt issues notification on committee to draft Lokpal Bill". The Hindu (New Delhi). 9 April 2011. Retrieved 9 April 2011. 7. ^ "Foreign Policy top 100 global thinkers". Foreign Policy. 30 November 2011. Retrieved 30 November 2011. 8. ^ "The DNA power list: Top 50 influentials". Mumbai: DNA. 29 July 2011. Retrieved 30 July 2011. 9. ^ "Spare Us the Gandhian Halo", The Open Magazine, retrieved 18 August 2011 10. ^ Amit Varma, The Rorschach Effect in Indian Politics, Yahoo! News, retrieved 18 August 2011 11. ^ Alphons 1996, p. 181. 12.^ a b c d e Satpathy, Trishna; Mehta, Aasha Kapur (September 2008). Escaping poverty: the Ralegan Siddhi case. Hyderabad: Chronic Poverty Research Centre of Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA). p. 12. ISSN 978-1-906433-20-8. Retrieved 14 June 2011. 13.^ a b c Ghosh, Avijit (17 April 2011). "I was re-born in the battlefield of Khem Karan". The Times of India. Retrieved 17 April 2011. 14.^ a b c d Seabrook, Jeremy (1993). Victims of Development: Resistance and Alternatives. London: Verso. p. 110. ISBN 0-86091-385-6. Retrieved 20 August 2011. 15.^ a b Anna didn't desert Army: RTI The Times of India. Retrieved on 29 August 2011. 16.^ a b Gosling, David L. (2001). Religion and ecology in India and Southeast Asia. London: Routledge. pp. 64–6. ISBN 0-415-24031-X. Retrieved 20 August 2011. 17.^ a b "Anna Hazare: The man who can't be ignored". The Times of India. 7 April 2011. 18. ^ "Ready to take part in war against Pakistan if needed: Hazare". The Express Tribune. 19 October 2011. 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The New York Times. 111. ^ Radhika RAmaseshan (August, 20, 2011). "Hazare runs into civil society protest". The Telegraph. 112. ^ "Sarangi meets Hazare to find points of consensus and defuse crisis". The Hindu. 21 August 2011. 113.^ a b Jim Yardly (21 August 2011). "Thousands Back Antigraft Hunger Strike in New Delhi". New York Times. 114.^ a b Anna dehydrated and exhausted, say doctors – India News – IBNLive. Ibnlive.in.com (10 May 2011). Retrieved on 29 August 2011. 115. ^ Anna Hazare breaks fast after 288 hours. IBNlive (10 May 2011). Retrieved on 29 August 2011. 116. ^ Anna Hazare's campaign awakens middle class | Reuters. In.reuters.com. Retrieved on 29 August 2011. 117. ^ Anna Hazare 'topi' becomes fashion statement. Economic Times (India). Retrieved on 29 August 2011. 118. ^ Brand Anna is a rage: Youth wear him on T-shirts The Times of India. (19 August 2011). Retrieved on 29 August 2011. 119. ^ Wear the Anna cap to fight corruption, says Kiran Bedi The Times of India. 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Retrieved 12 June 2011. 160. ^ "NCP leader Padamsinh Patil surrenders, sent to 14-day judicial remand". The Times of India (LATUR ( MAHARASHTRA)). 11 November 2009. Retrieved 12 June 2011. 161. ^ PTI (16 December 2009). "Padamsinh gets bail in Anna Hazare murder plot case". Aurangabad: Zee News. Retrieved 12 June 2011. 162. ^ "Anna's fast: Cops take stock of security situation at MMRDA". Hindustan Times (MUMBAI ( MAHARASHTRA)). 25 December 2011. Retrieved 25 December 2011. 163. ^ "NDTV Indian of the Year 2011". ndtv.com. Retrieved 19 October 2011. 164. ^ "Anna Hazare declares bank balance of Rs 67,183 and Rs 1,500 as money in hand". The Economic Times (New Delhi). 16 April 2011. Retrieved 14 June 2011. 165. ^ "Anna Hazare, others declare assets". The Hindu (New Delhi). 16 April 2011. Retrieved 14 June 2011. Further reading • Reilly, Carmel (2007). Ralegan Siddhi: a special community. Thomson Nelson. pp. 24 pages. ISSN 0170126900. OCLC 9780170126908. (subscription required). Retrieved 9 April 2011. • Sivanand, Mohan (1986). Why God Saved Anna Hazare. The Reader's Digest Association, Inc. p. 3. Retrieved 4 August 2011. • Seabrook, Jeremy (1986). Victims of development: resistance and alternatives. Verso. p. 250. ISSN 0860913856. OCLC 9780860913856. Retrieved 10 April 2011. • Ismail Serageldin, David R. Steeds (1998). Rural well-being from vision to action. World Bank Publications. p. 433. ISSN 0821339877. OCLC 9780821339879. Retrieved 10 April 2011. • Periwinkle Environmental Education Part-X Author-Harendra Chakhaiyar, Publisher- Jeevandeep Prakashan Pvt Ltd, ISBN-8177444948, 9788177444940 • From poverty to plenty: the story of Ralegan Siddhi Volume 5 of Studies in ecology and sustainable development. Authors- Ganesh Pangare, Vasudha Pangare. Publisher: Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage,1992.Original from the University of Virginia. Digitized 20 Oct 2009. ISBN 8190006142, 9788190006149 Length-47 pages. • Dynamics of rural development: lessons from Ralegan Siddhi Publisher- Foundation for Research in Community Health, 2002. Original from The University of Michigan. Digitized 21 Jul 2009 Length 181 pages. • Troubles and Wet Solutions: Success Story of Ralegan Siddhi's Watershed Development Project Centre for Alternative Agriculture Media • Bron Raymond Taylor, Jeffrey Kaplan, Laura Hobgood-Oster, Adrian J. Ivakhiv, Michael York (2005). The Encyclopedia of Religion and Nature: K-Z. Thoemmes Continuum. p. 1877. ISBN 1843711389. OCLC 9781843711384. Retrieved 17 June 2011. • Ralegan Siddhi Authors: Ramesh Awasthi, Dashrath K. Panmand, Foundation for Research in Community Health (Bombay, India) Publisher: Foundation for Research in Community Health, 1994. Original from The University of Michigan. Digitized 22 Dec 2009. Length 92 pages • Religion and ecology in India and Southeast Asia Authors- David L. Gosling, Ninian Smart, Contributor- Ninian Smart, Edition-illustrated, Publisher- Routledge, 2001, ISBN 0415240301, 9780415240307, Length 210 pages • Springs of life: India's water resources Authors Ganesh Pangare, Vasudha Pangare, Binayak Das, World Water Institute (Pune, India), Bharathi Integrated Rural Development Society, Edition- illustrated, Publisher-Academic Foundation, 2006. ISBN 817188489X, 9788171884896 • Alphons, K.J. (1996), Making a difference, Penguin Books, LCCN 96902754