Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel - Sterling Of Indian History

"Manpower without unity is not a strength unless it is harmonized and united properly, then it becomes a spiritual power." -Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel

Recently, we all witnessed the inauguration of something, we, as a nation, can boast about at international levels. Yes. We have the largest statue in the whole world – the Statue of Unity, a statue dedicated to our first Deputy Prime Minister. The Statue of Unity is, located in the Indian state of Gujarat, facing the Narmada Dam, 3.2 km away from Sadhu Bet near Vadodara. The Iron man of India, Deputy Prime Minister, all these titles too fall short when measured against the fact that how amazingly great personality he held in him. Everyone, especially us, the youth, of the fastest growing nation, must be aware and acknowledge his life principles and his contributions to our nation.

Born on October 31, 1875, at Nadiad, Vallabhbhai Patel grew into an indomitable personality during and after the freedom movement of India.

Though a barrister by profession, Gandhiji inspired him tremendously and this gave him a new mission in his life, kicking off his political career in 1918 while playing a pivotal role in redressing peasants' grievances in Gujarat.

He took over as India's nascent Home Minister at a very crucial juncture and devoted himself passionately towards his vision of united India.

A man of absolute fearlessness, Patel integrated 565 odd state territories into united India by rekindling the sense of patriotism in states' respective princes' minds. His dauntless nature resulted in merging controversial areas of Junagarh and Hyderabad into India. Almost within a year, he redrew the map of all these states joining the Indian Union endowed with cultural unity and harmony.

Patel also played an instrumental role in the framing of the Constitution of India. Apart from usual politics, he built the nation in different ways like forming the base of White Revolution headed by Dr.Kurien, among many other pivotal works.

Being a staunch Hindu, Patel had a keen appreciation of the syncretic culture of India and also presented safeguards to minorities. The love and respect for our Iron Man do not see any boundaries irrespective of the politics being played currently for and against him by various political parties for their interests and personal goals.

Although the triumvirate - Gandhiji, Nehru, and Sardar were responsible for giving shape to Indian destiny at a very crucial stage when India just got freedom, Patel was passionate, focused and never hesitated to take a strong stand against Nehru on various issues. Also, he warned Nehru of the Chinese invasion. He eas alson geatured on the cover of the Time magazine. Amazing feat!Ain't it?

Acknowledging his priceless contribution in weaving unity over the fabric of nationalism and other contributions directed towards the country, Sardar Patel was awarded Bharat Ratna posthumously in 1991.

He was such a gem whose brightness has dimmed which is needed to be reinvented in thoughts of every Indian for the reincarnation of India. The Statue of Unity, though, has brought him and his works and his ideas for the progress of the nation into discussion and debate. Still, we all need to study his theory for the betterment of the nation and learn from his life and adopt his leadership and other qualities as much as we can to contribute significantly to our country's growth and all-round development.