Nanaji Deshmukh

Why is in news? PM pays tributes to Bharat Ratna Nanaji Deshmukh on his Jayanti

Chandikadas Amritrao Deshmukh BR, better known as Nanaji Deshmukh, was a social reformer and politician from India.

He was born on 11 October 1916 in Maharashtra’s Hingoli district.

He was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award in 2019 by the Government of India.

He was awarded Padma Vibhushan in 1999.

He was a leader of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh and also a member of the Rajya Sabha and one of main architects of the Janata Party.

He was influenced by Lokamanya Tilak and his nationalist ideology.

He actively participated in Acharya Vinoba Bhave’s Bhoodan.

Deshmukh was the main force behind social activist Jayaprakash Narayan's agitation for total revolution.

He was a social reformer with focus on health, education and rural self-reliance.

He established Chitarkoot Gramoday Vishwavidyalaya in Chitrakoot the India’s first rural University.

He did great work towards the anti-poverty and minimum needs programme.

Nanaji implemented the philosophy of integral humanism to improve the living standards of more than 150 villages of Bundelkhand.

Deshmukh died on 27 February 2010 in the premises of Chitrakoot Gramoday Vishwavidyalaya that he established.