In a 2005 column for The Hindu, historian Ramachandra Guha argued that because the break of day of Independence, there are just a few Govt of India ministers who “will be remembered for having performed programmes that radically reshaped the lives in their folks”.
Guha indexed Sardar Vallabhai Patel, who as house minister between 1947 and 1950, performed the mixing of the princely states, “thus changing the politics and geography of contemporary India”. Subsequent, he indexed Manmohan Singh, who as finance minister between 1991 and 1996, “dismantled the licence-permit-quota-raj, thus changing the financial system and society of contemporary India”.
After Vallabhai Patel and Manmohan Singh, Guha indexed the title of Madhu Dandavate — a physicist, freedom fighter, and socialist chief from Maharashtra — who as railway minister within the Janata Govt between 1977 and 1979 “put two inches of froth on what handed for ‘reserved sleeper berths’ within the second-class sections of trains”. Even though a easy intervention, this initiative had a profound affect at the lives of tens of millions of extraordinary Indians.
As Guha argued, “Prior to 1977 (the yr Dandavate turned into railway minister), there used to be a huge distinction between the top quality, the place the berths had been padded, and the second-class, the place they had been made from arduous and naked picket.”
“When you had been fortunate sufficient to shuttle up entrance, you slept properly; differently you awoke with a painful again and (had been it iciness) a chilly within the head as properly,” he added.
As of late, the Indian Railways carries roughly 23 million passengers day-to-day from just about all strata of society. Dandavate’s determination to introduce those two inches of froth used to be pushed through a want to lend a hand the rustic’s deficient in a sensible means. As he as soon as famously argued, “What I need to do isn’t degrade the 1st category, however lift the second one category”.
As railway minister for the ones two years, the ones two inches of froth had been installed position around the primary trunk strains. The primary educate with those more secure and extra comfy seats used to be flagged off on 26 December, 1977, between Mumbai and Kolkata (and again). Even supposing the Railway Board sought after to name this educate the Japanese Specific, Dandavate made up our minds at the title Gitanjali Specific, impressed through Rabindranath Tagore. The educate even had portraits of the Bengali poet hung inside of it.
As Guha wrote, “As soon as the method used to be begun it will scarcely be stopped. Via the tip of the Nineteen Eighties, all trains of the Indian Railways had those padded berths of their second-class compartments. Via now the trade has helped loads of tens of millions of folks. If a social historical past of the Indian Railways is ever written, it could be divided into two portions, those entitled ‘Existence sooner than Dandavate’ and ‘Existence after Dandavate’.”
But even so this initiative, he additionally offered the computerisation of railway reservations “to curb corruption” and “streamline the procedures”. As he famous in his Railway Funds speech for 1978-79, “To streamline the mammoth and complicated operation concerned within the topic of reservation of rail lodging in trains and to do away with malpractices, I’m additionally taking into consideration computerisation of passenger reservations within the 4 metropolitan towns.”
He additionally repaired the connection between the Indian Govt and railway unions that had suffered all through the strike of 1974 and used to be suppressed through the Indira Gandhi Govt.
A person of his time and forward of his time, Dandavate lived a exceptional existence within the public eye.
Impressed through Gandhi
Born on 21 January, 1924, in Ahmednagar, Dandavate finished his MSc in Physics from the Royal Institute of Science, Mumbai, following which he went on to go the physics division at Siddhartha School of Arts and Sciences, Mumbai. His access into politics, alternatively, used to be impressed through Mahatma Gandhi all through the tumultuous Give up India Motion in 1942.
“As a tender school pupil, I used to be provide on the Gowalia Tank Maidan (August Kranti Maidan), in Bombay at the morning of 9 August, 1942, as it used to be introduced that the nationwide flag could be unfurled there,” wrote Dandavate in his guide ‘Discussion with Existence’.
At the earlier two days, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) held a consultation at this very venue the place Mahatma Gandhi had issued the clarion name for ‘Give up India’.
“I used to be within the Royal Institute of Science. I heard the speech delivered through Mahatma Gandhi on the Congress consultation in 1942. I used to be in school when the decision given to the folks used to be ‘Do or Die’ and the caution given to the British used to be ‘Give up India’,” wrote the Independence activist.
“Mahatma Gandhi sought after his message to be heard in all places the arena, so he delivered his speech each in Hindi and English. I used to be provide as a customer in that consultation and used to be deeply moved and impressed through its court cases,” he added.
Past Gandhi, alternatively, he used to be additionally deeply impressed through the beliefs of the Congress Socialist Birthday celebration. Its leaders — together with the likes of Jayaprakash Narayan, Ram Manohar Lohia, and Yusuf Meherally — performed a pivotal position in shaping his politics.
Following Independence, those socialist leaders hand over the guardian Congress birthday party, offering a powerful and principled opposition to Jawaharlal Nehru. Dandavate adopted their lead on this regard.
Satyagraha for the Liberation of Goa
Even though Goa used to be free of the clutches of Portuguese colonial rule and joined the Indian union handiest on 19 December, 1961 (following army motion through the Indian Military), many leaders — together with the likes of Dandavate — carried out brave acts of Satyagraha marked through nonviolent protests to place drive at the Indian Govt to behave.
As secretary of the Goa Vimochan Sahayak Samiti (Goa Liberation Support Committee) in Mumbai, he bravely led a bunch of 93 folks to release a Satyagraha at Netarda (a small village at the border of Goa) and paid a beautiful heavy worth for it.
As he wrote in his guide ‘Discussion with Existence, “In most cases when the Satyagraha used to be introduced, the police had been posted at the border, however we walked about 7-8 miles past the Portuguese border, elevating slogans. I had the nationwide tricolour flag in my hand.”
“The Portuguese police got here. They had been well-armed. We had been stopped. I used to be within the entrance and used to be requested handy over the flag. I refused to take action. We had come right here to hoist this flag within the Goan territory, and I might no longer give up it. They beat me and after an intense battle, they took away the flag. We had been requested to go back however we didn’t budge,” he added.
Sponsored through slogans like ‘Nahin, nahin, Kabhi nahin, Bharat Goa alag nahin’ and ‘Lathi, goli khayenge, phir bhi Goa jayenge’, he took at the would possibly of the Portuguese colonial police as they started a lathi rate on all satyagrahis and beat them with the butts in their rifles.
“They beat me until I fell subconscious. Surprisingly sufficient, even once I turned into subconscious, they trampled on my again with their army sneakers. After some time, my colleagues took me to the Army Sanatorium at Belgaum after which to Bombay. They discovered that my hip joints had been injured very badly and I needed to be given infrared rays for that harm. My robust younger bones may take the torture then, however afterward, after a few years, it used to be recognized that my hip joints had completely degenerated and the alternative of those joints with metal plates and rods used to be the one resolution. At the moment I’ve two stainless-steel plates and two metal rods in my frame,” he wrote.
It used to be actually a brutal episode so far as police motion is worried. Up to now, the police would most often simply arrest the satyagrahis and take them to prison. However the satyagrahis made their level.
Writing at the affect of this Satyagraha motion, he famous, “I think proud to mention that it did generate a local weather to pressurise the Indian Govt resulting in the army motion to disencumber Goa. There used to be hardly ever any resistance all through the army motion. My feeling is that if this army motion have been taken previous, there don’t have been such a lot sacrifice and loss of life. Our Satyagraha in 1955 did create a spirit of resistance towards Portuguese rule in Goa.”
Taking over Indira Gandhi’s Emergency
Like a lot of his socialist friends, Dandavate challenged the Indira Gandhi management’s proclamation of Emergency (1975 to 1977) — a depressing duration in our historical past marked through the usurping of elementary civil rights and democracy — and served many stints in jail in consequence.
Witnessing the inhuman remedy meted out to political prisoners, specifically his colleague and socialist chief Mrinal Gore, Dandavate shot off a letter to Indira Gandhi from jail.
“I’m reasonably mindful of the results of this letter. I will be able to properly believe that thru this verbal exchange, I’m more likely to incur your wrath and get my detention extended. Alternatively, I think least frightened about it. I can stay utterly undeterred despite the fact that the jail backyard from which I write this letter had been to grow to be my graveyard,” wrote Madhu Dandavate in a letter dated 14 January, 1976, to the then top minister Indira Gandhi all through the Emergency.
He signed off this scathing letter to the then-prime minister through pointing out his timeless will to withstand. “Leisure confident that on this land of Mahatma Gandhi, my will to combat for freedom will ever stay extra tough than the engine of repression that seeks to suppress it,” he wrote.
Dandavate, alternatively, may be famously recognized for his collection of letters from prison to his spouse Pramila, a mythical socialist activist in her personal proper, who used to be additionally imprisoned all through the Emergency.
After just about 23 years of marriage, the couple had been abruptly cut up aside through a distance of over 800 km. As merchandise of the liberty battle, avowed socialists and seasoned activists, the Govt arrested Dandavate on 26 June, 1975, and therefore picked up Pramila on 17 July, 1975.
All the way through their time in jail, the one means they might correspond used to be thru letters. The couple exchanged just about 200 letters, the place they mentioned, amongst different issues, song, poetry, books, philosophy and politics. Extra importantly, alternatively, their letters had been a testomony to how the affection they shared for every different translated into resistance towards an authoritarian regime.
“The letters sign up the ache of separation in addition to how they labored thru it to reaffirm their emotional bond through restating their dedication to freedom….They cherished every different as a result of they cherished freedom. Their love additionally enriched and prolonged the that means of freedom,” wrote pupil Gyan Prakash in Emergency Chronicles: Indira Gandhi and Democracy’s Turning Level.
Leaving at the back of a legacy
Dandavate had an extended and memorable profession in politics — serving as a five-time Member of Parliament from the Rajapur constituency of Maharashtra, finance minister within the VP Singh govt (1989-90), and deputy chairman of the erstwhile Making plans Fee in 1990, and once more from 1996 to 1998. His parliamentary profession got here to an finish after shedding to a Congress candidate in 1991, following which he slowly moved clear of nationwide politics.
After combating most cancers for a prolonged duration, Dandavate kicked the bucket in Mumbai on 12 November, 2005, at age 81. As in line with his needs, his frame used to be donated to town’s JJ Sanatorium.
From preventing for India’s freedom to Goa’s liberation from the Portuguese and impacting the lives of tens of millions as a union minister and parliamentarian, Dandavate represented the most productive people.
(Edited through Pranita Bhat; Photographs courtesy X/Asia Society India Centre and loksabha.nic.in and Shutterstock)
Resources:
‘Two Inches of Foam’ through Ramachandra Guha, Revealed on 20 November 2005 through The Hindu
‘Discussion with Existence’ through Madhu Dandavate; Revealed on 11 March 2005 through Allied Publishers
‘Speech of Prof. Madhu Dandavate Introducing the Railway Funds for 1978-79, on twenty first February 1978’ courtesy Indian Railways
‘An ethical compass’ through Ramachandra Guha; Revealed on 13 January 2024 courtesy The Telegraph (on-line)
‘Emergency Chronicles: Indira Gandhi and Democracy’s Turning Level’ through Gyan Prakash; Revealed on 28 November 2018 courtesy Penguin Viking