- Bindeshwar Pathak
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Bindeshwar Pathak 175px Born April 2, 1943
Rampur, Bihar, IndiaNationality Indian Education M.A. (Sociology 1980), M.A. (English 1986), Ph.D. (1985), D.Litt. (1994) Alma mater Patna University Known for Founding Sulabh International
and social reform in IndiaBindheshwar Pathak (Hindi: बिंदेश्वर पाठक) is an Indian sociologist. He is the founder of Sulabh International, an India-based social service organization which works to promote human rights, environmental sanitation, non-conventional sources of energy, waste management and social reforms through education. His work is considered one of the pioneer in social reform especially in the field of sanitation and hygiene.[citation needed] He received various national and international awards for his work with this organization.
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Family Background
Bindeshwar belonged to a brahmin, prosperous and respected family. His grandfather was a famous astrologer and his father was an ayurvedic doctor. Then the family faced a reversal of fortune. The property they possessed had to be sold.
Education
Bindheshwar Pathak graduated in Sociology in 1964. He earned his master's degree in 1980 and his PhD in 1985, from the University of Patna.[1] A prolific writer and speaker, Pathak has authored several books, the most well-known of which is The Road to Freedom, and is a frequent participant in conferences on sanitation, health, and social progress around the world.
Movement for Sanitation and Hygiene
Born to a Brahmin family in 1943 and raised in the Indian state of Bihar, Pathak attended Patna University where he earned an MA in Sociology, an MA in English, a PhD. in “Liberation of scavengers through low cost sanitation” and a Doctorate of Literature in “Eradication of scavenging and environmental sanitation in India: a sociological study.”
He first came to understand the plight of scavengers in 1968 when he joined the Bhangi-Mukti (scavengers’ liberation) Cell of the Bihar Gandhi Centenary Celebrations Committee. During that time, he traveled throughout India, living with scavenger families as part of his Ph.D. research. Drawing on that experience, he resolved to take action, not only out of sympathy for the scavengers but also in the belief that scavenging is a dehumanizing practice that would ultimately have a destructive impact on modern Indian society. With the establishment of the Sulabh International Social Service Organization in 1970, he thus launched a unique movement that combines technical innovation with humanitarian principles.[2]
Sulabh International
Bindheshwar Pathak founded Sulabh International in 1970.[3] Sulabh International is a social service organization which works to promote human rights, environmental sanitation, non-conventional sources of energy, waste management and social reforms through education. The organization counts 50,000 volunteers. He has made innovative use of biogas creation by linking Sulabh toilets to fermentation plants, he had designed over three decades ago and which are now becoming a byword for sanitation in developing countries all over the world. One of the distinctive feature of Pathak's project lies in the fact that besides producing odour-free bio-gas, it also releases clean water rich in phosphorus and other ingredients which are important constituents of organic manure. His sanitation movement ensures cleanliness and prevents greenhouse gas emission.
Awards
Bindeshwar Pathak is a Padma Bhushan recipient from the Government of India. In 2003, his name was added to the Global 500 Roll of Honour. Bindheshwar Pathak also received the Energy Globe Award,[4] the Dubai International Award for Best Practices, and the Indira Gandhi Priyadarshini Award for Environment. Stockholm Water Prize was awarded to him in year 2009. Antarrashtriya Bhojpuri Samman was awarded to him in the 4th world Bhojpuri Sammelan in Port Louis.[5]
References
- ^ Profile of a national crusader. Retrieved on August 14, 2007.
- ^ Indian Sanitation Innovator and Social Reformer. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
- ^ Profile, Aims & Objectives. Retrieved on August 14, 2007.
- ^ Sulabh founder gets Energy Globe Award. Retrieved August 14, 2007.
- ^ Dr Bindeshwar Pathak get vishwa bhojpuri samman
External links
Categories:- 1943 births
- Indian sociologists
- Living people
- Recipients of the Padma Vibhushan
- People from Bihar
- Patna University alumni
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