Acharya Vinoba Bhave received the first donation of land under the Bhoodan Movement at
- (a)Ramgarh
- (b)Garhwa
- (c)Hyderabad
- (d)Pochampally
Correct — D, Pochampally. While walking through Pochampalli village (then in Hyderabad State, now Telangana) on 18 April 1951, Vinoba Bhave was approached by landless families seeking land; in response to his appeal, the local landlord V. Ramachandra Reddy donated 100 acres. That first gift of land launched the Bhoodan (land-gift) movement, so Pochampalli is where the first donation was received.
- (a)Ramgarh — Ramgarh is associated with the 1940 Congress session (presided over by Maulana Azad), not with the Bhoodan movement; no Bhoodan donation began there.
- (b)Garhwa — Garhwa (in present-day Jharkhand) has no connection with the start of the Bhoodan movement.
- (c)Hyderabad — This is the tempting near-miss: the first donation was in Pochampalli, a village in the then Hyderabad State, not in the city of Hyderabad itself.
The Bhoodan (land-gift) movement, launched by Acharya Vinoba Bhave in 1951, was a Gandhian, voluntary approach to land reform: instead of legislation, landowners were persuaded to gift a share of their land to the landless. It began at Pochampalli and later broadened into Gramdan, the donation of whole villages.
The trap is scale: 'Hyderabad' names the princely-state capital near which Pochampalli lies, so a hasty reader picks the famous city. But the donation happened in the village of Pochampalli. Remembering that the movement's origin is tied to a specific village — later renamed Bhoodan Pochampally — fixes the answer.
- Bhoodan movement launched by Acharya Vinoba Bhave; first donation on 18 April 1951 at Pochampalli (then Hyderabad State, now Telangana).
- Landlord V. Ramachandra Reddy donated 100 acres for landless families.
- Vinoba Bhave had been Gandhi's chosen first individual satyagrahi (1940).
- The movement later extended into Gramdan — the donation of entire villages.
- Pochampalli is also renowned for its Ikat 'Pochampally' silk weaving.
- Choosing 'Hyderabad' (the city) instead of Pochampalli (the village).
- Confusing the voluntary Bhoodan movement with state-led land-reform legislation.
Where and by whom the Bhoodan movement began.
Which one of the following was associated with Acharya Vinoba Bhave's Bhoodan Movement at the beginning of the movement?
- (a) Udayagiri
- (b) Rapur
- (c) Pochampalli
- (d) Venkatagiri
Answer(c) Pochampalli
Almost the same question — UPSC also asked where the Bhoodan movement began, with Pochampalli as the answer.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Who launched the Bhoodan (land-gift) movement in 1951?
- (a)Jayaprakash Narayan
- (b)Acharya Vinoba Bhave
- (c)Mahatma Gandhi
- (d)Jamnalal Bajaj
Answer(b) Acharya Vinoba Bhave.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The extension of the Bhoodan movement that called for the donation of entire villages was known as
- (a)Gramdan
- (b)Sampattidan
- (c)Shramdan
- (d)Jeevandan
Answer(a) Gramdan.