Pandit
Jawaharlal Nehru
Independent India's first prime minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru
was born on 14th November, 1889 in Allahabad. His father Pandit Motilal
Nehru was a renowned barrister of India. He was a well-respected and
a well-to-do person. His mother Swaroop Rani was a simple lady.
Since he was born in an affluent and aristocratic family he was brought
up with all luxuries, love and care. He had nannies to look after
him. When he was eleven years old, his parents were blessed with two
daughters Vijaylakshmi and Krishna.
His initial education was taken care of by private tutors at home.
When he was around fifteen years of age he was sent to England for
higher studies. In England he joined one of the most expensive schools,
Harrow. After two years he joined the famous Cambridge University.
He returned to India as a barrister. He started his practice. In 1916,
he met Mahatma Gandhi for the first time at the Congress Session in
Lucknow. He had heard and read about Gandhiji and was impressed by
him. In 1916 itself, he got married to Kamla. At that time his entire
family was participating in the freedom movement of India. Nehruji
also joined in as per Gandhiji's instructions. He was imprisoned many
times for opposing the British rule and taking part in the freedom
movement. He spent many years in jail. He was a great intellectual
and spent his time reading and writing books.
The massacre of Jallianwala Bagh made him very sad. The non- cooperation
movement began. Jawaharlal left his law practice and joined these
movements. Jawaharlal Nehru was bold and hard-working and became very
popular. When the freedom movement became a success on 15th August
1947, and India became indepenent, Jawaharlal Nehru was made the Prime
Minister of India. The nation was passing through a difficult time.
The financial condition of India was not very strong. Nehruji steered
the country through the crisis with great wisdom and far-sighted planning.
He wanted India to be one of the progressive countries and worked
extremely hard for it. Due to his untiring efforts, in the foreign
countries India became well-known. His foreign policies were praised
all over the world. He wanted all the big and small countries of the
world to come together and live peacefully. He was against war. He
was repected all over the world for his policies of peaceful co-existence,
non-alignment, and secularism. He knew that India's greatest problem
was poverty. To solve this problem he started Five-years Plans. This
brought India into a new era. He led the nation on the path of prosperity.
Many industries, powerstations, dams and other social development
plans were implemented by Nehruji. In 1955, he was conferred upon
with one of the highest awards of India, the Bharat Ratna. In 1962,
India was attacked by China. Jawaharlal Nehru was very upset. But
he continued to encourage the Indians.
He loved children and said that they were the future of the nation.
He was popularly known as Chacha Nehru. His birthday 14th November
is hence known as children's day. He loved red roses and sported
a red rose in the button hole of his sherwani. On 27th May 1964 this
great patriot and maker of modern India passed away. Millions of people,
rushed to his residence at Teen Murti to pay their last respects.
He was cremated on the banks of river Yamuna in Delhi and his memorial
is known as Shanti Van.
© 2000 - 2009 VandeMataram.com All rights reserved.
|