In Service with Love: Legacy of Baba Amte

Contributor: Prakhar Bhartiya

When I first heard about Baba Amte and his incredible work, I was in college preparing for IRMA's G.K Test. I was memorising the people who have received Magasaysay Award and was amazed to see that Baba Amte's son Prakash Amte also received it.

Since last couple of years, I had been thinking to go spend time in Anandvan and Hemalkasa in Maharashtra and witness the amazing work being done there in past 70 years. Fortunately, I was invited there to talk about my journey of Youth Alliance and take another session around "Life Choices" during the 51st Somnath Camp (Shram Sanskar Chaavni 2018). I planned my travel in a way so that I can visit Hemalkasa and Anandvan which were around 150kms away from Somnath.

Over the years, I have heard how Baba Amte and his future generations have committed them in service which is a phenomenon seen in business and political class but not in the space of service. Spending couple of days at Somnath, meeting people and the team members working there, I understood that it not just Amte's generation but there are numerous other families whose third generation are working there. I was amazed to see the strength of community and how deeply inter-dependent they were. The sense of pride can easily be looked on their faces. Today young people change jobs every other year and working at same place for 3-5 years is considered a big deal, it was inspiring to see this eco-system.

Later when I visited Hemalkasa, I was fortunate to spend good 5-6 hours with Prakash Ji (Baba's younger son). He took me around to show the work of Lok Biradari Prakalp, his simplicity and depth of thought inspired me. While he took me around the animal rehabilitation space, he shared how by being friends with wild animals they have been able to communicate live example with tribals that they need not kill any wild animal they see around and it is possible to co-habitat. He shared his initial journey post doing MBBS, when he along with Mandakini Kaki and two more people came to this place in 1973 and just lived here for two years before they got their first patient. For decades that area used to be cut from the world for six months of monsoon. All I was imagining was the grit, courage, and resilience that they had to just stay put.

Meeting Vikas Ji (Baba's elder son) and visiting Anandvan made me realise the potential of building self-sustaining societies. It is a village with a population of 2500 people and how beautiful and thoughtfully every need from manufacturing clothes to three wheelers, from school/college to hospital, from dignified work to homes for leprosy patients has been taken care of internally.

"I am deeply inspired by the profound vision that Baba Amte held for the society, his idea of dignity for all and self-reliance has left a deep mark in the eco-system."

Maharogi Seva Samiti is a testimony to what is possible if we bow our head in the relentless service of people. In future, I wish to take my team and alumni to this place and look for collective inspiration.

I have two questions that I came back with:

What will it take for me to commit myself in selfless service?

What does it take to inspire a generation to commit to a cause for 4-5 decades?

Hoping that my quest brings me close to these answers.