Anti Leprosy Day 30.1.2019
Mahatma Gandhi And Leprosy
-M.A.Aleem
Emeritus Professor of Neurology
The Tamilnadu Dr MGR Medical University
Gandhi was instrumental in liberating India from the clutches of the British by his powerful political tools of *Satyagraha and Non-violence.*
🔹In fact, his early life was quite ordinary and he became a great man during the course of his life.
🔹After completion of his law studies from the *University College, London,* he sailed to South Africa to work as a lawyer. He was actually *spent around 21 years in South Africa,* where he greatly developed his political views, ethics and politics
Role of Mahatma Gandhi ji in *Leprosy disease,*
During his Satyagraha campaign in South Africa, Gandhi ji was addressing a gathering on the occasion of the founding of *Indian Congress,* where, he had noticed few lepers standing at a distance listening to him intently. He further noticed that some of them had lost their fingers and some their toes. On inquiry, Gandhi was shocked to hear that they have no one to take care of them. Hence, *Gandhi came forward and cleaned their wounds,* gave them food to eat and medicines.
Then Gandhi returned to India in 1932 and started his Satyagraha campaign. While, he and other leaders got *arrested and locked up in Yerwada Jail in Pune.* In jail, Gandhi came to know about *Parchure Shastri* who was a great Sanskrit scholar was also arrested along with the others in satyagraha campaign. Since Parchure had leprosy, he was kept in separate section in the jail.
Sadly, Purchure was neglected and not treated properly in jail. When Gandhi heard about this, he wanted to meet Parchure but he was refused by the jail superintendent.
Therefore, Gandhi sent him a message that *“Our bodies fall ill, but you are not a body but a spirit, a consciousness, so awaken your consciousness!.”* This letter was really acted as a life-restoring medicine for Parchure and also he was greatly inspired by Gandhiji’s encouragement.
Subsequently, Gandhi had arranged cotton wool to clean his wounds and gave some books to read.
After being released from prison, Parchure Shashtri went to *Gandhiji’s Sevagram Ashram.* There he was taken care by Gandhi and he personally nursed his wounds and supervised his diet.
Likewise, there are many such incidents throughout Gandhi's life, which showed his *compassion and tenderness towards leprosy patients.*
Moreover, Gandhi wanted to eliminate leprosy. But regretfully said,
*"Eliminating leprosy is the only work I have not been able to complete in my lifetime."*
As Gandhi's dedication towards leprosy inspired the French humanitarian *Raoul Follereau,* he declared *Last Sunday of January* to be dedicated as a World Leprosy Day all over the world to create public awareness about leprosy. Whereas in India, he wanted to pay homage to the life of Mahatma Gandhi so Follereau had announced his death day of 30th January as *Anti Leprosy Day.*
Thus, The Martyrdom Day of Mahatma Gandhi is observed every year as the *Anti Leprosy Day* on 30th January in order to re-memorize his selfless efforts and care for the people affected by the disease leprosy.
