Shreya PareekMurlidhar Devidas Amte, fondly known as Baba Amte, the man who did the unthinkable. At a time when class divide and untouchability were prevalent in India, Baba Amte became a positive force the nation desperately needed.
A true Gandhian, Baba Amte made Mahatma Gandhi’s vision a reality. Belonging to an affluent landlord family, Amte stepped into the shoes of the down trodden and destitute to shatter the class divide.
His work can’t be described in words. Today, on his birth day, we celebrate this incredible man’s life through some exclusive and rare photos from his life:
A lawyer by profession, Baba Amte gave up a successful legal practice to participate in the 1942 Quit India Movement, for which he was even imprisoned.
One day, he saw a man terribly affected by leprosy. At first, Baba Amte ran away. Later, he returned to help him. This was a turning point in his life.
He was 34 years old then. He decided to devote himself to the care and rehabilitation of leprosy patients.
Born in a wealthy family, Baba Amte surrendered all of his wealth and dedicated all his life towards leprosy patients and other lesser privileged communities.
To experience the challenges faced by the manual scavengers and sweepers, Baba cleaned toilets and carried the night soil for nine months.
He married Sadhna after witnessing her kind heart. He spotted her leaving a wedding party to help an old servant and decided to marry her.
He and his wife started an organization, Anandwan, for the Leprosy patients in 1950.
At the age of 50, Baba was diagnosed with severe cervical spondylosis, which caused him
Baba was back to working passionately after his partial recovery. He underwent a surgery and one year after that Baba began work on health among the Madia Gond tribals.
He started several unions of sweepers, scavengers, and weavers. He spearheaded the movement to end the class divide.
His legacy goes on through Anandwan, an organization for leprosy patients started in 1950.
Special thanks to Dr. Sheetal Amte for sharing these rare and beautiful photos of Baba Amte’s life
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Nidhi Roy
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