Vinoba Bhave was a nonviolent activist, social reformer, and spiritual leader from India. His Bhoodan (land-gift) programme, which intended to get wealthy landowners to willingly donate a portion of their property to the landless poor, is what made him most famous.
Bhave and his supporters walked hundreds of miles across India during the movement's initial years, persuading landowners to relinquish their property and inspiring the underprivileged to cultivate the land and become self-sufficient. In the fight for India's independence, Bhave collaborated closely with Mahatma Gandhi, who was also a student of his. Bhave continued to spread Gandhi's ideas and values, including as nonviolence and self-reliance, after Gandhi was assassinated in 1948.
He was awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award, in 1983, the year after his death.
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