Page 21 - Swatantrata to Atmanirbharta : Lokmanya Tilak’s legacy

commentator of public affairs, who is impartial in the praise or
criticism of the powers that be. Today when we see the media
persons clamoring on, the perceived attack on freedom of press,
even in presence of a vigilant judiciary, it becomes obvious that
the former should learn from the life and times of Lokmanya
Tilak.
B) Education: it is heartening to see that the educational
institutions, started by Lokmanya Tilak, have blossomed into
centers of excellence. The way he brought them up should be
an object lesson to the present-day politicians, running various
professional colleges, which inside their edifices of glass and
chrome are, many a times, short of adequate facilities and
faculty. The exorbitant fees of such colleges stand out in sharp
contrast to the moderate one, affordable to middle-class families,
in the institutions run by Lokmanya’s trusts.
C) Instruments of social awakening: it is pathetic to see
the deterioration of the community celebrations started by
Lokmanya Tilak. Apart from some respectable exceptions,
many of them, from being the agents of social awakening
and the nurseries for budding artists, have reduced to, forceful
extortion of contributions, noise pollution and general vulgarity.
Had the Lokmanya been alive, he would certainly have taken
help of these annual celebrations to exhort the public to follow
Covid appropriate behavior. He would have formed bands of
volunteers to help the Covid warriors, front-line workers and to
give succor to the impoverished masses and the migrant labour
force.

The ongoing pandemic has brought home the fact that no
government alone can look after the health needs of the vast
multitude of citizens who just do not have the financial strength
to take care of themselves. Thus, there is a crying need for a
leader with Lokmanya Tilak’s social conscience to erect a
chain of secondary and tertiary care medical establishments,
on the lines of those run by the Ram Krishna Mission in the
eastern part of the country. This is needed more in the states
of Maharashtra, Gujrat, and Karnataka, where many of the
private medical institutions are unaffordable to the lower strata
of the society.
19 Swatantrata to Atmanirbharata