Anugrah Narayan Sinha (18 June 1887 – 5 July 1957), known as '' Bihar Vibhuti'', was an Indian nationalist

statesman A statesman or stateswoman typically is a politician who has had a long and respected political career at the national or international level. Statesman or Statesmen may also refer to: Newspapers United States * ''The Statesman'' (Oregon), a ...

, participant in

Champaran Satyagraha The Champaran Satyagraha of 1917 was the first satyagraha movement led by Mahatma Gandhi in British India and is considered a historically important rebellion in the Indian independence movement. It was a farmer's uprising that took place in C ...

Gandhian The followers of Mahatma Gandhi, the greatest figure of the Indian independence movement, are called Gandhians. Gandhi's legacy includes a wide range of ideas ranging from his dream of ideal India (or ''Rama Rajya)'', economics, environmentalis ...

& one of the architects of modern Bihar, who was the first

Deputy Chief Minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union ter ...

and the

Finance Minister A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", ...

of the Indian state of

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...

(1946–1957). He was also a Member of the

Constituent Assembly of India The Constituent Assembly of India was elected to frame the Constitution of India. It was elected by the 'Provincial Assembly'. Following India's independence from the British rule in 1947, its members served as the nation's first Parliament as ...

, which was elected to write the

Constitution of India The Constitution of India ( IAST: ) is the supreme law of India. The document lays down the framework that demarcates fundamental political code, structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions and sets out fundamental ...

and served in its first Parliament as an independent nation. He also held a range of portfolios including Labour, Local Self Government, Public Works, Supply & Price Control, Health and Agriculture. A.N. Sinha, affectionately called Anugrah ''Babu'', was a very close associate of

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

during the freedom struggle movement and worked with Bihar Kesari

Sri Krishna Sinha Shri Krishna Sinha (21 October 1887 – 31 January 1961), also known as Shri Babu, was the first chief minister of the Indian state of Bihar (1946–61). Except for the period of World War II, Sinha was the chief minister of Bihar from the tim ...

to lead the

movement in Bihar. One of the leading nationalists in the

Indian independence movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending British rule in India. It lasted from 1857 to 1947. The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Indian independence emerged from Bengal ...

from

after Dr

Rajendra Prasad Rajendra Prasad (3 December 1884 – 28 February 1963) was an Indian politician, lawyer, Indian independence activist, journalist & scholar who served as the first president of Republic of India from 1950 to 1962. He joined the Indian Nationa ...

, he was elected as the Congress Party deputy leader in the state assembly to assume office as first Deputy Chief Minister cum

of independent

, and re-elected when the Congress Party won Bihar's first general election with a massive mandate in 1952.

Early life

The qualities that gave Dr Anugrah Narayan Sinha a place among the eminent nationalists of his time were moral as well as intellectual. His genuineness, intensity, abhorrence of sham trickery and imposture and his dauntless determination to arrive at facts gave his action a ring of truth. Loknayak Jay Prakash Narayan in his essay "Hamare Anugrah Babu" wrote that: He was born to Visveshwar Dayal Singh on 18 June 1887 in a family of Poiwan village of the erstwhile Gaya district (today known as Aurangabad) of Bihar. He belonged to the

Rajput Rajput (from Sanskrit ''raja-putra'' 'son of a king') is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Ra ...

caste, his younger son

Satyendra Narayan Sinha Satyendra Narayan Sinha (12 July 1917 – 4 September 2006) was an Indian politician and statesman, participant in the Indian independence movement, a leading light of Jaya Prakash Narayan's ‘ ''complete revolution''’ movement during the E ...

became chief minister of Bihar. As a lad his patriotic virtues were visible. A brilliant student from the beginning of his academic career, Sinha obtained his initial education in the village school. From Junior school till graduation he topped the lists at every examination, obtaining an M.A. (History) in 1914 from the prestigious

University of Calcutta The University of Calcutta (informally known as Calcutta University; CU) is a public collegiate state university in India, located in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Considered one of best state research university all over India every yea ...

. He became the Secretary of the Bihar Students Conference founded by

and the Chanakya Society of the Patna College. He served as a volunteer in the Patna Congress, With fever on he feverishly worked for its success. In 1915, he was appointed Professor of History at the T.N.B. college in Bhagalpur where he remained, known as an ideal professor, until 1916. He organised relief work when Bhagalpur was raved by floods. He began successfully practising law at

Patna High Court The Patna High Court is the High Court of the state of Bihar. It was established on 9 February 1916 and later affiliated under the Government of India Act 1915. The court is based in Patna, the administrative capital of the state of Bihar, ...

Freedom movement

Historic Bihar Image from Archives 1950-PM Pandit Nehru,President Rajendra Prasad, Anugraha Narayan Sinha,SK Singh

In 1917, heeding the call of

to the nation, he left his flourishing law practice to join the

Champaran Champaran is a region of Bihar in India. It is now divided into an East Champaran district and a West Champaran district. Notable people * Manoj Bajpai – Indian film actor * Dinesh Bhramar – poet and noted figure in Hindi and Bhojpuri l ...

Satyagraha movement. The Champaran experiment formed a vital chapter in the development of the

method in India and he was catapulted to the national stage. He served as a teacher in Bihar Vidyapeeth founded by

for motivating young meritorious youths. Among his first students was young

Jayprakash Narayan Jayaprakash Narayan (; 11 October 1902 – 8 October 1979), popularly referred to as JP or ''Lok Nayak'' (Hindi for "People's leader"), was an Indian independence activist, theorist, socialist and political leader. He is remembered for le ...

. In 1922 he organized the Gaya

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

. In the following year he became one of the General Secretaries of the All India Congress Committee (AICC). When Rajendra Prasad was elected Chairman of Patna Municipality, Sinha was elected Vice-Chairman. As he was soon elected Chairman of the Gaya District Board, he resigned. He was the pivotal force behind the Civil Disobedience Movement led by M K Gandhi, in the year 1930 which is considered an important milestone in the history of Indian Nationalism. His patriotism earned him 15 months of rigorous imprisonment in 1933–34. When the M8 Nepal–Bihar earthquake occurred on 15 January 1934, Bihar Central Relief Committee was set up on 17 January 1934, under the Presidency of Rajendra Prasad and Sinha became its Vice-President. He took the task of raising funds to help the people and the relief and rehabilitation work was organised in an elaborate and efficient manner. He was elected as a member of the Central Council in 1935 from Sahabad-cum-Patna Constituency with a massive margin. He became a member of the

Bihar Legislative Assembly The Bihar Legislative Assembly, also known as the Bihar Vidhan Sabha, is the lower house of the Bihar Legislature where the first elections were held in 1952. The total strength of membership in the Assembly was 331, including one nominated ...

in 1936. In the provincial autonomy granted by British, under the Government of India Act of 1935, the first Congress ministry was sworn in on 20 July 1937 and he became the Deputy Premier cum

province. He and Premier

disagreed with the then Governor

Maurice Garnier Hallett Sir Maurice Garnier Hallett (28 October 1883 30 May 1969) was a British administrator who served as governor of the United Provinces and of Bihar Province, collectively from 1936 to 1945. He also served as commander-in-chief of the British I ...

on the issue of the release of political prisoners and both resigned. The Governor had to give in and they again resumed their offices. But they again resigned in 1939, as did all Congress governments in the country, over the question of involving India in the Second World War without the consent of the Indian people. He was among the first freedom fighters to respond to Gandhiji's call for

Satyagraha Satyagraha ( sa, सत्याग्रह; ''satya'': "truth", ''āgraha'': "insistence" or "holding firmly to"), or "holding firmly to truth",' or "truth force", is a particular form of nonviolent resistance or civil resistance. Someone wh ...

in 1940–41. He was arrested by the British authorities and imprisoned in the Hazaribagh Central Jail in 1942. In 1944 he was released and devoted himself to serving the epidemic-ridden people. After independence he dedicated himself to the all round development of Bihar as

and as the

Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar The Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar is the seniormost cabinet member of the state government who serves as the de-facto second head of the state. He is the second highest ranking executive authority of the state's council of ministers. The curr ...

Exemplary government

The first Bihar Government, both in 1937 and 1946, was characterized by the values of the

. Its two eminent leaders

Shri Krishna Sinha Shri Krishna Sinha (21 October 1887 – 31 January 1961), also known as Shri Babu, was the first chief minister of the Indian state of Bihar (1946–61). Except for the period of World War II, Sinha was the chief minister of Bihar from the time ...

and Anugrah Babu were nationalists of unimpeachable integrity and great public spirit. They ran an exemplary government in Bihar. Almost all the development projects needed for the state of Bihar were done by the leadership pair of

and Anugrah Narayan Sinha. It included several river valley projects right from Koshi, Aghaur and Sakri to other such river projects. The first five-year plan period was given to the development in rural development works mainly in the agricultural sector. In fact, Bihar became the top state in the country's first five-year plan and it was announced by Sinha in the assembly. The then

Prime Minister of India The prime minister of India (IAST: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and their chosen Council of Ministers, despite the president of India being the nominal head of the ...

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian Anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India du ...

sent Paul H. Appleby to assess the administration in states and in his famous report, he described Bihar as the best governed state in India mostly due to the excellent leadership of

and Anugrah Narayan Sinha. Since the second five-year plan period, Sinha spearheaded the process of rapid industrialization of Bihar and bought several industries for the all round development of the state. He served India's international interests. He successfully led the Indian Food and Agriculture delegation to Nepal and also the Indian delegation to the

International Labour Organization The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is the first and o ...

(ILO) in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

and

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. He also actively led a number of Government and voluntary organizations in India and abroad.

Political legacy

Anugrah Narayan Sinha 1988 stamp of India

Along with nationalist

and his close colleague in the Indian independence movement

, the first Chief Minister of Bihar, Anugrah Narayan Sinha is considered one of the ''architects of modern Bihar''. His younger son

Satyendra Narayan Singh Satyendra Narayan Sinha (12 July 1917 – 4 September 2006) was an Indian politician and statesman, participant in the Indian independence movement, a leading light of Jaya Prakash Narayan's ‘ ''complete revolution''’ movement during the ...

(who was affectionately called "Chhote Saheb") also became a prominent freedom fighter leader and later became Chief Minister of Bihar. His grandson

Nikhil Kumar Nikhil Kumar (born 15 July 1941) is a former IPS officer-turned politician hailing from Bihar who was Governor of Nagaland from 2009 to 2013 and Governor of Kerala from 2013 to 2014. One of country's well known IPS officers of 1963 batch fr ...

, a former IPS, has served as the

Governor of Kerala The governor of Kerala is the constitutional head of state of the southern Indian state of Kerala. The governor is appointed by the president of India for a term of five years and holds office at the president's pleasure. The governor is ''de j ...

. Sinha served the state continuously, barring war years (Second World War 1939–1945), as the Deputy Chief Minister cum

from the time of the first Congress Ministry in 1937 till his death on 5 July 1957. ''Loknayak''

Jayaprakash Narayan Jayaprakash Narayan (; 11 October 1902 – 8 October 1979), popularly referred to as JP or ''Lok Nayak'' ( Hindi for "People's leader"), was an Indian independence activist, theorist, socialist and political leader. He is remembered for l ...

Bihar Vibhuti's Legacy Drifting into Oblivion?
PatnaDaily (6 January 2012). Retrieved on 7 December 2018. served as the Chairman of ''Anugraha Smarak Nidhi'' (Anugrah Memorial Fund). The

Department of Posts India Post is a government-operated postal system in India, part of the Department of Post under the Ministry of Communications. Generally known as the Post Office, it is the most widely distributed postal system in the world. Warren Hastings ha ...

released a

commemorative stamp A commemorative stamp is a postage stamp, often issued on a significant date such as an anniversary, to honor or commemorate a place, event, person, or object. The ''subject'' of the commemorative stamp is usually spelled out in print, unlike defi ...

in his memory. The 125th birth anniversaryGovt to make documentary films on Sri Babu, Anugrah Babu
Times of India (14 September 2012). Retrieved on 7 December 2018. of Anugrah Babu was also celebrated by a state level committee headed by Bihar Chief Minister

Nitish Kumar Nitish Kumar (born 1 March 1951) is an Indian politician, who is serving as Chief Minister of Bihar since 22 February 2015, having previous held the office from 2005 to 2014 and for a short period in 2000. The leader of the Janata Dal (Unit ...

. In 2013, various programmes were organised throughout the year and biographies of ''Shri babusaheb'' and Anugrah ''Babusaheb'' were included in the school syllabus.

References

Resources

* Anugrah Narayan Sinha, ''Meray Sansmaran'', an autobiography * Anugrah Abhinandan Granth samiti. 1947 '' Anugrah Abhinandan Granth.''

. * Anugrah Narayan Centenary Year Celebration Committee. 1987. '' Bihar Bibhuti : Vayakti Aur Kriti'',

. * A.J. Philip, ''A gentleman among politicians'' * Dr. Rajendra Prasad, ''Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Correspondence and Select Documents'' * R. R. Diwakar, ''Bihar Through The Ages'' * Bihar State Archives, ''Documentaries and Articles on Dr. A N Sinha'' * Bameshwar Singh, ''Congress ministries under the High Command shadow,1988'' * Bimal Prasad (editor). 1980. ''A Revolutionary's Quest: Selected Writings of Jayaprakash Narayan.'' Oxford University Press,

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

. * P. S. Appu, ''The All India Services: Decline, Debasement and Destruction''

External links

Dr.Anugraha Narayan Sinha-Selected SpeechesContributions of Bihar's first Deputy Chief Minister recalled
*[https://books.google.com/books?id=uzNnwUasQ3wC&pg=PA287&lpg=PA287&dq=bihar+anugrah+babu&source=bl&ots=Q3Vc54xhCM&sig=VMB-r1MDXoONqUBSR1M6RI4LR5o&hl=en&ei=XhWhSdOzHIzXkAWcw5DjCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=6&ct=result Dr. Zakir Hussain speaks on Anugrah Babu]
Dr. Rajendra Prasad-Correspondence and Select Documents:Letters to Anugrah Narayan SinhaOfficial website of S.N.S.I.B.M., RanchiDr. S. K. SinhaBihar Governor, CM remembers Anugraha Babu
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sinha, Anugrah Narayan 1887 births 1957 deaths Presidency University, Kolkata alumni Indian National Congress politicians from Bihar Indian independence activists from Bihar Gandhians Members of the Constituent Assembly of India People from Aurangabad district, Bihar University of Calcutta alumni People from Aurangabad, Bihar Finance Ministers of Bihar Patna University alumni Members of the Central Legislative Assembly of India Prisoners and detainees of British India Members of the Imperial Legislative Council of India Bihar MLAs 1952–1957 Bihar MLAs 1957–1962 Deputy Chief Ministers of Bihar People from Gaya district Bihari politicians