Death Anniversary of Bharat Ratna Karpuri Thakur

• 24 Feb 2025

Why in News? 

Bihar Chief Minister paid floral tribute to the statue of Bharat Ratna Karpuri Thakur on the occasion of his death anniversary in Patna .  

 

Key Points  

• On the occasion: 
  • The Department of Art, Culture and Youth organized an inter-faith prayer, and presented songs, bhajans, kirtans and Nirgun songs based on the life and works of Bharat Ratna Jananayak Karpuri Thakur. 
  • The Chief Minister described Karpuri Thakur as the people's leader of Indian politics. 
• About Karpoori Thakur: 
  • Karpuri Thakur, popularly known as "Jan Nayak" , was a prominent Indian politician who served as the 11^th Chief Minister of Bihar twice from 1970–71 and 1977–79
  • He was a freedom fighter and a staunch socialist who worked under the guidance of stalwarts like Jayaprakash Narayan , Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia and Ramanandan Mishra . 
  • He represented the Nai community, listed as Extremely Backward Class (EBC) among OBCs . 
  • He implemented wide-ranging policies, including promoting Hindi and Urdu as second official languages, waiving school fees, and strengthening panchayati raj. 
  • He died in February 1988. 
  • He was awarded the Bharat Ratna posthumously in the year 2024 . 

Bharat Ratna

• Bharat Ratna is the highest civilian award of the country. It is awarded in recognition of exceptional service/highest performance in any field of human endeavour . 
• It is announced at a different level from the Padma Awards. Recommendations for Bharat Ratna are made by the Prime Minister to the President of India. 
• The number of Bharat Ratna awards can be up to three in a particular year. </li