Ambedkar Jayanti 2021 is annually observed on the 14th of April every year, as the name suggests the day is dedicated to Dr. Ambedkar, who was a polymath and a social rights activist. The day is also known as ‘Bhim Jayanti.’ The Bhim Jayanti is not just observed in India, but also around the globe.
In India, this day is celebrated as ‘Equality Day’ as a tribute to Dr. Ambedkar. Dr. Ambedkar is known as the chief architect of the world’s longest constitution – the Indian Constitution. Apart from this, everyone remembers him because of his ideas, beliefs, and faith. He raised a voice against the evils that prevailed in the social society, he dedicated his whole life fighting against caste discrimination. He made the society more conscious about the caste system, in detail explained the principles of the same in the constitution.
Ambedkar was posthumously awarded by ‘Bharat Ratna’ in 1990.
Dr. Ambedkar was born in 1891, in Mhow, Madhya Pradesh, now renamed as Dr. Ambedkar Nagar. Dr. belongs to the Mahar (Dalit) caste, at that time they were treated as untouchables and Ambedkar himself was subjected to many discriminations. Although Dr. Ambedkar rose above all the discriminations and earned many doctorate degrees in Economics both from the Columbia University and the London School of Economics.
As the years passed, the name Dr. Ambedkar grew in the field of law, economics, and political science. Later, he too contributed to the struggle for independence, advocated for the equal and social rights of Dalits. He also fought against gender inequality, he had a vision of ‘women empowerment’. It is because of his efforts, today women in India enjoy some equal rights and opportunities.
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He was the first Minister of Law and Justice in free India and he was assigned with a task to frame the Constitution of the country. He believed that the caste system and democracy cannot go hand in hand, and this belief is now a part of the Indian Constitution which states that there should be no discrimination based on caste, language, and gender.
In 1956, Baba Saheb steered a socio-political movement called Dalit-Buddhist Movement, the movement was later converted into ‘Navayana Buddhism’ or ‘Neo-Buddhism’. This re-explained the principles of Buddhism.
Dr. Ambedkar’s first birth anniversary was publicly celebrated in 1928 in Pune by an ‘Ambedkarite’ Janardhan Sadashiv Ranapisay.
This year, like last year, it is expected that people will celebrate Bhim Jayanti safely at their homes.
Take a look at the quotes by Baba Saheb:
- “I measure the progress of a community by the degree of progress which women have achieved.”
- “If I find the constitution being misused, I shall be the first to burn it.”
- “A people and their religion must be judged by social standards based on social ethics. No other standard would have any meaning if religion is held to be necessary good for the well-being of the people.”
- “Caste is not just a division of labour, it is a division of labourers”