Context: On 23 December every year, Kisan Diwas is celebrated to commemorate the fifth prime minister of India Choudhary Charan Singh and his contributions towards agriculture.
About Farmers’ Day or Kisan Diwas:
It is celebrated to honour India’s farmers along with Choudhary Charan Singh.
It was celebrated for the first time in 2001.
Aims to educate people on the role of farmers and their contribution to the economy.
About Choudhary Charan Singh:
He was born in middle-class peasant family in Uttar Pradesh in 1902.
He was greatly influenced by Mahatma Gandhi’s teachings.
He also took part in India’s fight for independence.
He is known for his pioneering work in agriculture sector.
Political Career:
His political career was largely focused on socialism in rural India.
He served twice as chief minister of India’s state Uttar Pradesh.
He was behind major bills such as Land Utilisation Bill of 1939 and Debt Redemption Bill in 1939 related to farmers.
He stopped Zamindari system and made Land Conservation Act in 1954 to help farmers.
He founded non-political, non-profit making body ‘Kisan Trust’ in 1978.
Its aim is educating India’s rural masses against injustice, and fostering solidarity among them.
He served as Indian prime minister between 1979 and 1980.
He was given the sobriquet ‘Champion of India’s Peasants’ for his work towards the upliftment of farmers and the development of agriculture throughout the country.
Major works: He was the author of several books and pamphlets that includes:
Abolition of Zamindari
Co-operative Farming X-rayed
India’s Poverty and its Solution
Peasant Proprietorship or Land to the Workers
Prevention of Division of Holdings Below a Certain Minimum