Hanumappa Sudarshan
Encyclopedia
Dr. Hanumappa Sudarshan (born 30 December 1950) is an India
n social worker and tribal rights activist. He is well known for his contributions to the upliftment of the forest dwelling tribes (mainly Soliga
s) in the Chamarajanagar district
of Karnataka. He is also a recipient of the Right Livelihood Award
and the Padma Shri
.
on the outskirts of Bangalore
. He graduated from Bangalore Medical College
and became a medical doctor in the year 1973. He is also an Adjunct Professor at IGNOU.
which took him to the Himalayas
of Uttar Pradesh
, Belur Math
in West Bengal
and Ponnampet in Karnataka as part of the job. Instead of pursuing a medical practice in the cities, he decided to work with tribal communities and in 1980, he started the Vivekananda Girijana Kalyana Kendra for the integrated development of the tribals in the Chamarajanagar district of Karnataka. He is also the founder and Honorary Secretary of the Karuna Trust, which is dedicated to rural development in the states of Karnataka and Arunachal Pradesh
. He claims inspiration from the man-making and nation-building ideals of Swami Vivekananda
. He advocates Gandhian ideals for rural development.
VGKK is an organization with a mission of Sustainable development of tribal people through rights-based approaches to health, education, livelihood security and biodiversity conservation. Founded in October 1981 by Dr. Sudarshan, VGKK has worked with tribals in the Chamarajanagar district and Mysore district
of Karnataka and also with tribals in the states of Tamil Nadu
, Arunachal Pradesh and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and has interacted with about 20,000 people. The organization has always had a tribal youth as its President. Presently, Jadeya Gowda one of the first few children who was taught by Dr. Sudarshan is the President. He went on to do a graduation and post-graduation in agriculture and is presently doing his PhD at the University of Agricultural Sciences
, Bangalore.
VGKK runs a 450 pupil school for the tribes of B R Hills where the students are provided education equivalent to that provided in the urban areas. Subjects related to the tribal welfare such as environmental issues, tribal values and culture are also a part of the curriculum. VGKK also has a vocational training institute where 16 crafts are taught. As a result of the efforts of VGKK, about 60% of the Soliga tribe now get a minimum of 300 days of employment per year from the Forest Department of Karnataka and other agencies. VGKK also has a system of co-operatives which employ the tribals directly and it has also made an effort towards sustainable extraction of non-timber products and creation of tribal enterprises to process them.
VGKK is an established voluntary agency recognized by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India
.
Started in the year 1986 by Dr. Sudarshan, Karuna Trust (India)
is an organization involved with integrated rural development and is affiliated to VGKK. The prevalence of leprosy
in Yelandur
Taluk of Chamarajanagar district was the motivation to start this trust. Another focus area for this trust is education and livelihood improvement. Karuna Trust runs 25 Primary Health Care (PHC) Centres in all the districts of the state of Karnataka and 9 PHC's in Arunachal Pradesh. The organization promotes Public Private Partnership with NGOs on a non-profit basis to achieve primary health care
.
, the Task Force on Public Private Partnership organised by National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) of Government of India
and Institute of Health management & Research (IHMR), Bangalore. He was also associated as a member of Working Group 6 on Macro-economics & Health organised by the World Health Organization
and was also a Steering Group member of the Planning Commission on the Empowerment of Scheduled Tribes in India's 11th Five Year Plan
. He has also been the Vigilance Director for the Karnataka Lokayukta, an ombudsman
organization. During his tenure, he adopted a method of regular visits and raids to several Government departments and earned critical acclaim for this.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n social worker and tribal rights activist. He is well known for his contributions to the upliftment of the forest dwelling tribes (mainly Soliga
Soliga
A Soliga is a member of a tribe in India that inhabits the Biligirirangan and associated hill ranges in Southern Karnataka, mostly in Chamarajanagar District, bordering the Erode district of Tamil Nadu . Most of them are concentrated in and around the BR Hills in Yelandur and Kollegal Taluks of...
s) in the Chamarajanagar district
Chamarajanagar district
Chamarajanagara is the southern-most district in the state of Karnataka, India. It was carved out of the original larger Mysore District in the year 1998...
of Karnataka. He is also a recipient of the Right Livelihood Award
Right Livelihood Award
The Right Livelihood Award, also referred to as the "Alternative Nobel Prize", is a prestigious international award to honour those "working on practical and exemplary solutions to the most urgent challenges facing the world today". The prize was established in 1980 by Jakob von Uexkull, and is...
and the Padma Shri
Padma Shri
Padma Shri is the fourth highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan...
.
Early life and education
Dr. Sudarshan was born in YemalurYemalur
Yemalur is a village, about 14 km from Bangalore city in Southern India. It is situated between the HAL Airport of Bangalore and the Bellandur lake. The village has about 4000 inhabitants. Most of the local people have been living here much before Bangalore became a major city.The village was the...
on the outskirts of Bangalore
Bangalore
Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
. He graduated from Bangalore Medical College
Bangalore Medical College
Bangalore Medical College , now renamed Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute , popularly known as BMC, is a medical college run by the Government of Karnataka. It is located on K.R. Road, near City Market...
and became a medical doctor in the year 1973. He is also an Adjunct Professor at IGNOU.
Career
Dr. Sudarshan, after graduation, he joined the charitable health institutions of Ramakrishna MissionRamakrishna Mission
Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission are twin organizations which form the core of a worldwide spiritual movement known as Ramakrishna Movement or Vedanta Movement. The Ramakrishna Mission is a philanthropic, volunteer organization founded by Ramakrishna's chief disciple Swami Vivekananda on...
which took him to the Himalayas
Himalayas
The Himalaya Range or Himalaya Mountains Sanskrit: Devanagari: हिमालय, literally "abode of snow"), usually called the Himalayas or Himalaya for short, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau...
of Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
, Belur Math
Belur Math
' or Belur Mutt is the headquarters of the Ramakrishna Math and Mission, founded by Swami Vivekananda, a chief disciple of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. It is located on the west bank of Hooghly River, Belur, West Bengal, India and is one of the significant institutions in Calcutta...
in West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...
and Ponnampet in Karnataka as part of the job. Instead of pursuing a medical practice in the cities, he decided to work with tribal communities and in 1980, he started the Vivekananda Girijana Kalyana Kendra for the integrated development of the tribals in the Chamarajanagar district of Karnataka. He is also the founder and Honorary Secretary of the Karuna Trust, which is dedicated to rural development in the states of Karnataka and Arunachal Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh is a state of India, located in the far northeast. It borders the states of Assam and Nagaland to the south, and shares international borders with Burma in the east, Bhutan in the west, and the People's Republic of China in the north. The majority of the territory is claimed by...
. He claims inspiration from the man-making and nation-building ideals of Swami Vivekananda
Swami Vivekananda
Swami Vivekananda , born Narendranath Dutta , was the chief disciple of the 19th century mystic Ramakrishna Paramahansa and the founder of the Ramakrishna Math and the Ramakrishna Mission...
. He advocates Gandhian ideals for rural development.
Vivekananda Girijana Kalyana Kendra (VGKK)
Mysore district
Mysore District is an administrative district located in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. The district is bounded by Mandya district to the northeast, Chamrajanagar district to the southeast, Kerala state to the south, Kodagu district to the west, and Hassan district to the north...
of Karnataka and also with tribals in the states of Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
, Arunachal Pradesh and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and has interacted with about 20,000 people. The organization has always had a tribal youth as its President. Presently, Jadeya Gowda one of the first few children who was taught by Dr. Sudarshan is the President. He went on to do a graduation and post-graduation in agriculture and is presently doing his PhD at the University of Agricultural Sciences
University of Agricultural Sciences
University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, ', imparts Education, Research and Extension activities in field of agriculture, forestry and home science. The university was started on 1 October 1986. It is located on Dharwad-Belgaum road on a campus with space for growing trees and fields for...
, Bangalore.
VGKK runs a 450 pupil school for the tribes of B R Hills where the students are provided education equivalent to that provided in the urban areas. Subjects related to the tribal welfare such as environmental issues, tribal values and culture are also a part of the curriculum. VGKK also has a vocational training institute where 16 crafts are taught. As a result of the efforts of VGKK, about 60% of the Soliga tribe now get a minimum of 300 days of employment per year from the Forest Department of Karnataka and other agencies. VGKK also has a system of co-operatives which employ the tribals directly and it has also made an effort towards sustainable extraction of non-timber products and creation of tribal enterprises to process them.
VGKK is an established voluntary agency recognized by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
Karuna Trust
Karuna Trust (India)
Karuna Trust is an organization involved with integrated rural development and is affiliated to Vivekananda Girijana Kalyana Kendra. Both charities were founded by Hanumappa Sudarshan. The motivation to start this trust was was he prevalence of leprosy in Yelandur Taluk of Chamarajanagar district...
is an organization involved with integrated rural development and is affiliated to VGKK. The prevalence of leprosy
Leprosy
Leprosy or Hansen's disease is a chronic disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. Named after physician Gerhard Armauer Hansen, leprosy is primarily a granulomatous disease of the peripheral nerves and mucosa of the upper respiratory tract; skin lesions...
in Yelandur
Yelandur
Yalandur is a small taluka town in Chamarajanagar district in the Indian state of Karnataka.It has historic and cultural importance in this region- Geography :Yelandur is located at . It has an average elevation of 555 metres ....
Taluk of Chamarajanagar district was the motivation to start this trust. Another focus area for this trust is education and livelihood improvement. Karuna Trust runs 25 Primary Health Care (PHC) Centres in all the districts of the state of Karnataka and 9 PHC's in Arunachal Pradesh. The organization promotes Public Private Partnership with NGOs on a non-profit basis to achieve primary health care
Primary health care
Primary health care, often abbreviated as “PHC”, has been defined as "essential health care based on practical, scientifically sound and socially acceptable methods and technology made universally accessible to individuals and families in the community through their full participation and at a cost...
.
Positions held
Dr. Sudarshan has held many positions in his career, prominent among which are the chairmanship of the Task Force on Health and Family Welfare organised by Government of KarnatakaGovernment of Karnataka
The Government of Karnataka is a democratically elected body with the Governor as the constitutional head. The Governor who is appointed for a period of five years appoints the Chief Minister and his council of ministers...
, the Task Force on Public Private Partnership organised by National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) of Government of India
Government of India
The Government of India, officially known as the Union Government, and also known as the Central Government, was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 28 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India...
and Institute of Health management & Research (IHMR), Bangalore. He was also associated as a member of Working Group 6 on Macro-economics & Health organised by the World Health Organization
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...
and was also a Steering Group member of the Planning Commission on the Empowerment of Scheduled Tribes in India's 11th Five Year Plan
Five-Year Plans of India
The economy of India is based in part on planning through its five-year plans, which are developed, executed and monitored by the Planning Commission. The tenth plan completed its term in March 2007 and the eleventh plan is currently underway...
. He has also been the Vigilance Director for the Karnataka Lokayukta, an ombudsman
Ombudsman
An ombudsman is a person who acts as a trusted intermediary between an organization and some internal or external constituency while representing not only but mostly the broad scope of constituent interests...
organization. During his tenure, he adopted a method of regular visits and raids to several Government departments and earned critical acclaim for this.
Awards
- Right Livelihood AwardRight Livelihood AwardThe Right Livelihood Award, also referred to as the "Alternative Nobel Prize", is a prestigious international award to honour those "working on practical and exemplary solutions to the most urgent challenges facing the world today". The prize was established in 1980 by Jakob von Uexkull, and is...
(1994), for showing how tribal culture can contribute to a process that secures the basic rights and fundamental needs of indigenous people and conserves their environment. - Padma ShriPadma ShriPadma Shri is the fourth highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan...
Award (2000) - Rajyotsava State Award for social work (1984) - Government of Karnataka.
- Ashoka Fellow.
Quotes
- To eliminate disease you have to remove poverty. The only way to do that, I have realised, is to organise the people for their rights.
- The so-called civilized society has a lot to learn from the tribals.
- Corruption is at various levels: In medical education, starting from joining the medical college — you can buy a seat, you can buy the examiner, the examination system, you can buy the question papers. This is much less now with the University trying to bring in some reforms, but still, in the viva-voce and practical, many people continue to pay and pass; we are not sure if we have plugged that.
- There are no pills for poverty.
See also
- Right Livelihood AwardRight Livelihood AwardThe Right Livelihood Award, also referred to as the "Alternative Nobel Prize", is a prestigious international award to honour those "working on practical and exemplary solutions to the most urgent challenges facing the world today". The prize was established in 1980 by Jakob von Uexkull, and is...
- Albert SchweitzerAlbert SchweitzerAlbert Schweitzer OM was a German theologian, organist, philosopher, physician, and medical missionary. He was born in Kaysersberg in the province of Alsace-Lorraine, at that time part of the German Empire...
- Prakash AmtePrakash AmtePrakash Amte is a medical doctor and social worker from Maharashtra, India. Son of Magsaysay awardee and legend Baba Amte, he and his wife, Dr...
- Swami VivekanandaSwami VivekanandaSwami Vivekananda , born Narendranath Dutta , was the chief disciple of the 19th century mystic Ramakrishna Paramahansa and the founder of the Ramakrishna Math and the Ramakrishna Mission...