Lives of great men all remind us,
We can make our lives sublime,
And departing, leave behind us,
Footprints on the sands of time. ‑ H W Longfellow
National leader Kamaraj is one such personality. He devoted his entire life to serving the country’s people. His birthday falls on July 15, which is observed as ‘Growth of Education Day’ in recognition of his yeoman service in the field of youth education in Tamil Nadu.
April 13, 1919, is a black day in Indian history. The British administration ruthlessly opened fire on a peaceful assembly of people at Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar killing nearly a thousand people and injuring many. The ghastly incident laid the foundation for the Non-cooperation Movement launched by Mahatma Gandhi.
Young Kamaraj, who was all of 16 at that time, had only completed Class 6 and used to assist his uncle in his textile shop. He was so moved by the incident that he left the job and joined the National Freedom Movement.
He was born into a poor family in Virudupatti in southern Tamil Nadu. His family had to battle poverty and caste discrimination. Young Kamaraj was inspired by Gandhiji and Subhas Chandra Bose. He was imprisoned several times and spent ten years in prison.
One unique feature of the national leaders of those times was that they never hankered after power and only volunteered to serve the larger cause. Kamaraj was no exception. The true mark of a leader is compassion, magnanimity, simplicity and the ability to inspire and encourage those around him. Kamaraj had all these qualities and more. Post Independence, he was the natural choice for the post of Chief Minister of Madras, which he occupied with distinction for ten years from 1954. Initially, there was opposition to his candidature as some criticised his poor educational background and said that he would not be able to fulfil his responsibility as Chief Minister, but his performance proved the critics wrong. During his tenure as the Chief Minister, Madras witnessed well-directed growth in the industrial and agricultural fields. A huge industrial estate, the biggest in Asia at that time, was established on the outskirts of Chennai. He was assisted by the Minister for Industries, Venkatraman, who later became the President of India.
Kamaraj played a stellar role when India faced the crisis of three wars in the 60s. Immediately after the death of India’s first Prime Minister, Kamaraj effectively mediated the transition of leadership to Lal Bahadur Shastri. After Shastri’s untimely demise, thanks to his acumen and sagacity as the Congress president, he paved the way for Indira Gandhi to take on the mantle of Prime Minister.
He had a larger-than-life image and many people wanted him to take over the governance. But selfless as he was, he placed the country before himself. Such was his honesty and commitment to the country.
He will forever be remembered in Tamil Nadu for his pioneering effort to ensure that education reached the poorest of the poor. He believed that only education had the power to break the man-made barriers of caste and creed. He took a census of schools in 17,000 villages in the State and found that nearly 6,000 villages had no schools. He initiated action to start primary schools in all these areas, appointed teachers and started the scheme of single teacher schools in remote places, thereby fulfilling the dream of Swami Vivekananda who said that if children couldn’t go to school, the school should go to the children.
Kamaraj led a simple life and was the epitome of honesty and sincerity. His aged mother continued to live in the village even after he became Chief Minister. There was no water connection in her house and she continued to draw water from the public well. Some over-enthusiastic officials tried to provide the house with water connection as a favour, but Kamaraj heard about it and stopped them. He took a stand that though he was Chief Minister, he or his family should not be given any special privilege. They’d live like other citizens. What a contrast to the present day values of most of our politicians!
He was a bachelor but embraced all children as his own. He understood the problems of people living in rural areas and the need for nourishment for growing children. He started the scheme of mid-day meals in schools, which served as a precursor to many such welfare schemes by governments in several States.
Kamaraj may not have had formal education. He may not have had a college degree. But he was instrumental in revolutionary reforms and infrastructure for education in Tamil Nadu. Primary, secondary, tertiary and higher education registered phenomenal growth thanks to the strong foundation he laid.
Having a skill gives the youth confidence and self esteem, which are essential for personality growth. Self esteem cannot be given. But what we can do is help them attain it. How, you ask? Give them a task that they think they cannot do. And tell them to work on it until they get it done without giving up. When they finish the task, they would have found true self esteem.
There is a statue of Kamaraj in Chennai. But unlike statues of most famous personalities, this is not a stand alone. On either side of the leader, are a boy and a girl holding his hand. This shows the kind of person he was while he was alive – a compassionate man, a leader and a guiding light.