Ambedkar Jayanti - Everything You Need To Know About This Day

Ambedkar Jayanti is celebrated every year on 14 April on the birth date of B.R. Ambedkar. He was an economist, professor, and lawyer and had a remarkable political career. He was the chairman of the drafting committee of the Constitution of India. In his life, he saw many struggles because he was born into a Mahar caste which is Dalits, also known as untouchables. He was the son of Ramji Sakpal and Bhimabai Sakpal.He was the fourteenth and last child of his parents. His ancestors were in the army for a very long time serving the British East India Company, and his father served in the British Indian Army at the Mhow cantonment.

Ambedkar had a tough life in school, as because of his lower caste, he and some other Dalit children were not allowed to sit inside the classroom. Moreover, they were not allowed to drink water from the vessel on their own because they were not allowed to touch it. Somebody from the upper caste would fetch water and pour it from a heightened distance, and then they could quench their thirst. For Ambedkar, the school peon used to pour water, and in his absence, he had to go the whole day without water.

Ambedkar, with his family, moved to Satara after the retirement of his father, where soon his mother passed away. Things got more complicated thereon. He was the only one of his siblings to go to high school after passing his examinations. His original surname was Sakpal, but his father changed his surname to Ambadawekar in school related to the village Ambadawe where they belonged. However, in school records, his Marathi Brahmin teacher changed his surname to Ambedkar after his own surname.

Ambedkar Jayanti is celebrated to cherish and reminisce about all the good works done by him. He led many movements to get rights and freedom for Dalits. For instance, Dalits were not allowed to fetch drinking water from public water sources. And the entry of Dalits into Hindu temples was banned. Even his wife, in her long sickness, had a long-standing wish to go on a pilgrimage to Pandharpur. Still, Ambedkar refused to let her go by saying that he would create a new Pandharpur for her rather than the Hinduism Pandharpur, where they were considered untouchables.

Ambedkar was married twice throughout his life. He first got married when he was 15 years old to a nine-year-old girl named Ramabai. This matchmaking was done by both their parents. But in 1935, Ramabai passed away due to a long-time sickness. In the late 1940s, Ambedkar started going through some health issues like lack of sleep and neuropathic pain in his legs, for which he started taking medicines. He went to Bombay for treatment, where he met Sharada Kabir, whom he married in 1948. Sharada changed her name to Savita Ambedkar and cared for Ambedkar for the rest of his life.

Ambedkar is also called Babasaheb, meaning respected father and Savita Ambedkar is known as MaiSaheb. Ambedkar was perplexed and wanted to change his religion, so he considered some religions other than Hindu and settled for Buddhism. He, along with his wife, converted to Buddhism a few weeks ago before his death. Ambedkar’s activities as a socio-political reformer in India have deeply impacted modern India. He has changed his perspectives of looking at things and directions. His speeches, papers and books have brought out many changes indeed. He was awarded the Bharat Ratna Award. He started a weekly publication of Mooknayak (Leader of the Silent) in Mumbai in 1920.

While Ambedkar was practising law in the Mumbai High Court, he tried to promote education to the untouchables to spread awareness among them and uplift them. Other than Mooknayak, he started many periodicals to defend the rights of Dalits, like Bahishkrit Bharat and Equality Janta. In 1927, he decided to launch active movements against untouchability. He held marches and public activities. There were many struggles for the basic survival of life, which is water, that they were denied due to caste and discrimination.

He publicly destroyed the classic Hindu text and the manuscripts. He burned them down in a proper way, which, till date, is celebrated by Daltis and followers of Ambedkar on 25 December as Manusmiriti Dahan Din.

Overall, Ambedkar Jayanti is not only the celebration of a man but also a respect for thought and ideas that transformed the course of the Indian constitution and social status. Thus, this day should be celebrated as the day of awareness, education, rights, constitution, equality and a road to a better India. We wish you a Happy Ambedkar Jayanti!!

Further Reading BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR JAYANTI - WHO WAS DR AMBEDKAR, HISTORY AND SIGNIFICANCE