Saraswathi Gora (28 September 1912 – 19 August 2006) was an Indian

social activist Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in Social change, social, Political campaign, political, economic or Natural environment, environmental reform with the desire to make Social change, changes i ...

who served as leader of the Atheist Centre for many years, campaigning against

untouchability Untouchability is a form of social institution that legitimises and enforces practices that are discriminatory, humiliating, exclusionary and exploitative against people belonging to certain social groups. Although comparable forms of discrimin ...

and the caste system.

Biography

In the 1930s, Saraswathi championed and performed marriages of devadasis and of widows remarriages along with her husband Gora. After learning about their efforts to abolish untouchability and the caste system, and towards social reform, they were invited to

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- ...

's ashram in

Sevagram Sevagram (meaning "A town for/of service") is a town in the state of Maharashtra, India. It was the place of Mahatma Gandhi's ashram and his residence from 1936 to his death in 1948. After Sabarmati, Sevagram Ashram holds immense importance d ...

in 1944, where they stayed for two weeks. Along with her husband, Saraswathi established the Atheist Center in 1940. Their goal was to promote human values based on atheism,

rationalism In philosophy, rationalism is the epistemological view that "regards reason as the chief source and test of knowledge" or "any view appealing to reason as a source of knowledge or justification".Lacey, A.R. (1996), ''A Dictionary of Philosophy ...

and

Gandhism Gandhism is a body of ideas that describes the inspiration, vision, and the life work of M.K. Gandhi. It is particularly associated with his contributions to the idea of nonviolent resistance, sometimes also called civil resistance. The term " ...

. A political activist of India's freedom movement, she was imprisoned during the Quit India movement. She went to jail carrying her two-and-half-year old son, Niyanta.

Personal life

Her autobiography ''My Life With Gora'' was published (in Telugu) in 2012. She died of lung infection on 19 August 2006 at

Vijayawada Vijayawada, formerly known as Bezawada, is the second largest city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and is a part of the state's Capital Region. It is the administrative headquarters of the NTR district. Its metropolitan region comprises N ...

Awards and recognition

In 2000, she was selected for the Basava Puraskar, conferred by the

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

Government. She is also the recipient of the G. D. Birla International Award for Humanism; the

Jamnalal Bajaj Award Jamnalal Bajaj Award is an Indian award, for promoting Gandhian values, community service and social development. Established in 1978, by the Jamnalal Bajaj Foundation of Bajaj Group, it is given annually in four categories, and usually presente ...

(1999); the Janaki Devi Bajaj Award; and the Potti Sriramulu Telugu University Award.

References

External links

A short biography of Saraswathi Gora
in '' Indian Skeptic'' by Sunanda Shet
Obituary
in ''

Deccan Herald ''Deccan Herald'' is an Indian English language daily newspaper published from the Indian state of Karnataka. It was founded by K. N. Guruswamy, a liquor businessman from Ballari and was launched on 17 June 1948. It is published by The Print ...

''
Obituary at www.newsfix.de
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gora, Saraswathi 1912 births 2006 deaths Indian atheists Indian sceptics Telugu women writers Telugu writers Indian women activists People from Vijayawada Indian independence activists from Andhra Pradesh Prisoners and detainees of British India Women in Andhra Pradesh politics Social workers Writers from Andhra Pradesh 21st-century Indian women writers 20th-century Indian educational theorists 20th-century Indian women scientists 20th-century Indian social scientists Indian women educational theorists Women writers from Andhra Pradesh Women scientists from Andhra Pradesh Activists from Andhra Pradesh Women Indian independence activists Indian human rights activists Social workers from Andhra Pradesh Women educators from Andhra Pradesh Educators from Andhra Pradesh Writers from Vijayawada Scientists from Vijayawada 21st-century Indian biographers Women autobiographers Indian autobiographers Indian women non-fiction writers 20th-century women writers 20th-century women educators