Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel – Biography, Facts, Life, and Contributions to Modern India

 Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel – Biography, Facts, Life, and Contributions to Modern India

Sardar Vallabhbhai PatelSardar Vallabhbhai Patel was a senior leader of the Indian National Congress and a prominent figure in the Indian Freedom Struggle, who later became India’s first Deputy Prime Minister and first Home Minister.

Sardar Patel’s contribution in integrating 565 princely states into a newly independent India is unforgettable.

In this post on Sardar Patel – who is popularly known as the Iron Man of India – we cover his life, vision, views, anecdotes, and important contributions to modern India.

Vallabhbhai Patel’s early life

Vallabhbhai Patel was born in Nadiad, Gujarat, on October 31, 1875 (His birth anniversary is now observed as National Unity Day or Rashtriya Ekta Diwas).

He hailed from a farmer’s family. In his early years, Patel was considered by many as an unambitious man destined for a commonplace job. However, Patel proved them wrong. He passed law examination, often studying himself, with borrowed books.

Patel practised law at Godhra, Borsad, and Anand in Gujarat, after passing the bar examination. He earned the reputation of being a fierce and skilled lawyer.

Vallabhbhai Patel’s early life

Vallabhbhai Patel was born in Nadiad, Gujarat, on October 31, 1875 (His birth anniversary is now observed as National Unity Day or Rashtriya Ekta Diwas).

He hailed from a farmer’s family. In his early years, Patel was considered by many as an unambitious man destined for a commonplace job.   thought , Patel proved them wrong. He passed law examination, often studying himself, with borrowed books.

Patel practised law at Godhra, Borsad, and Anand in Gujarat, after passing the bar examination. He earned the reputation of being a fierce and skilled lawyer.

Patel’s Journey to England

In 1911, at the age of 36, two years after the death of his wife, Vallabhbhai Patel journeyed to England and enrolled at the Middle Temple Inn in London. Patel finished at the top of his class despite having had no previous college background. He completed the 36-month course in 30 months.

Returning to India, Patel settled in Ahmedabad and became one of the city’s most successful barristers.

Statue of Unity, a tribute to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel?

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was an Indian National Congress leader – until his death. Many historians like Ramchandra Guha, thinks it is ironic that Patel is being claimed by the BJP when he “was himself a lifelong Congressman”.

Congress leader Shashi Tharoor alleged that BJP was trying to ‘hijack’ the legacy of freedom fighters and national heroes like Patel as they have no leaders of their own in history to celebrate.

Many opposition leaders see vested interests in the right-wing party’s effort to appropriate Patel and depict the Nehru family in a bad light.

Built at a cost of Rs. 2,989 crore, the statue depicts Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, India’s first Home Minister, wearing a traditional dhoti and shawl, towering over the Narmada River.

At 182-metre, the statue is touted as the world’s tallest – it is 177 feet higher than China’s Spring Temple Buddha, currently the world’s tallest statue.

Iron was collected from all over the country for the statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, also known as the Iron Man of India.

 

 Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel – Biography, Facts, Life, and Contributions to Modern India

 

Sardar Vallabhbhai PatelSardar Vallabhbhai Patel was a senior leader of the Indian National Congress and a prominent figure in the Indian Freedom Struggle, who later became India’s first Deputy Prime Minister and first Home Minister.

Sardar Patel’s contribution in integrating 565 princely states into a newly independent India is unforgettable.

In this post on Sardar Patel – who is popularly known as the Iron Man of India – we cover his life, vision, views, anecdotes, and important contributions to modern India

Sardar Patel’s Economic Ideas

Self-reliance was among the chief tenets of Patel’s economic philosophy. He wanted to see India industrialise quickly. The imperative was to reduce dependence on external resources.

Patel guided the cooperative movements in Gujarat and helped in setting up of the Kaira District Cooperative Milk Producers’ Union which proved to be a game-changer for dairy farming throughout the country.

Sardar was unimpressed with the slogans raised for socialism and spoke often of the need for India to create wealth before debating over what to do with it, how to share it.

The role he envisaged for the government was that of a welfare state but realised that other countries had taken up the task at more advanced stages of development.

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel rejected nationalisation completely and was against controls. To him, the profit motive was a great stimulant to exertion, not a stigma.

Patel was against people remaining idle. In 1950 he said, “Millions of idle hands that have no work cannot find employment on machines”. He urged labourers to participate in creating wealth before claiming a just share.

Sardar championed investment-led growth. He said, “Spend less, save more, and invest as much as possible should be the motto of every citizen.

Was Patel against the partition of British India – into India and Pakistan?

Sardar in his early years opposed the partition of British India. However, he accepted the division of India by December 1946. Many including VP Menon and Abul Kalam Azad felt that Patel was more receptive to the idea of Partition than Nehru.

Abul Kalam Azad was a staunch critic of Partition right till the very end, however, that was not the case with Patel and Nehru. Azad in his memoir India wins Freedom says that he was ‘surprised and pained when Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in reply to why Partition was needed said that ‘whether we liked it or not, there were two nations in India’.

  Statue of Unity, a tribute to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel?

 

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was an Indian National Congress leader – until his death. Many historians like Ramchandra Guha, thinks it is ironic that Patel is being claimed by the BJP when he “was himself a lifelong Congressman”.

Congress leader Shashi Tharoor alleged that BJP was trying to ‘hijack’ the legacy of freedom fighters and national heroes like Patel as they have no leaders of their own in history to celebrate.

Many opposition leaders see vested interests in the right-wing party’s effort to appropriate Patel and depict the Nehru family in a bad light.

Built at a cost of Rs. 2,989 crore, the statue depicts Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, India’s first Home Minister, wearing a traditional dhoti and shawl, towering over the Narmada River.

At 182-metre, the statue is touted as the world’s tallest – it is 177 feet higher than China’s Spring Temple Buddha, currently the world’s tallest statue.

Iron was collected from all over the country for the statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, also known as the Iron Man of India.

 Statue of unity - Sardar Patel

“Work is worship but laughter is life. Anyone who takes life too seriously must prepare himself for a miserable existence. Anyone who greets joys and sorrows with equal facility can really get the best of life.”

“My culture is agriculture.”

“We worked hard to achieve our freedom; we shall have to strive harder to justify it”.

Conclusion

Patel was a selfless leader, who placed the country’s interests above everything else and shaped India’s destiny with single-minded devotion.

The invaluable contribution of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in building a modern and unified India needs to be remembered by every Indian as the country marches ahead as one of the largest economies in the world.