Chandi Prasad Bhatt was born on the day of ‘Nirjala
Ekadashi’ (A religious festival of Hindus) on 23rd June of 1934 in an
underprivileged family of Gopeshwar village Chamoli, Uttarakhand. Shri Chandi
Prasad Bhatt came in contact with Sarvodayi Ideology in the early seventies. He
became a fan of the ideologies of Jaiprakash Narayan and Vinoba Bhave and
started working upon them in his village.
He engaged himself in advancing the prestige of labor
class people, creating social harmony, prohibition, and empowerment of women
and Dalits. He also worked to stop the destruction of forests by creating
awareness among the villagers. His efforts helped unite them to initiate the
Chipko movement in 1973 and stop deforestation to an extent.
Chandi Prasad Bhatt is a Gandhian environmentalist and
social activist of Uttarakhand. In 1964, he founded the ‘Dasholi Gram Swarajya
Sangh’ in Gopeshwar, which later became the mother body of the Chipko Movement.
For this work, he was awarded the ‘Ramon Magsaysay Award’ in 1982. Further, in
the year 2005, he was awarded ‘Padma Bhushan’ by the Government of India. The
The government of India awarded him the ‘Gandhi Peace Prize’ in 2013 for his
contribution to society.
Chandi Prasad Bhatt, with his incredible dedication and spirit, emerged as a mass leader. He succeeded in putting forth Gandhi’s ideas to the society and executing them in the form of the ‘Chipko Movement.’ The motive of the ‘Chipko Movement’ was to emphasize the interrelationship of the environment and people through gentle, non-violent resistance. It was an innovative experiment to make the whole world environmentally conscious while successfully using the mildest method of retribution. Chandi Prasad Bhatt and Sunderlal Bahuguna both has done tremendous efforts together for upliftment of Uttarakhand.
His contributions are depicted in ‘ParvatParvat, Basti
Basti.’ It is a collection of the best travel tales of Chandi Prasad Bhatt.
Chandi Prasad Bhatt has visited many countries like
Russia, the USA, Germany, Japan, Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh, France, Mexico,
Thailand, Spain, and China. Besides, he has also represented India in hundreds
of National and International Conferences.
Mr. Bhatt has been associated with many national-level
committees and commissions for his practical work. He has been providing his fellow mates and students with the benefits of his knowledge and experience.