Question

Who started the Bhoodan Movement?
a. Mahatma Gandhi
b. Vinoba Bhave
c. Sardar Patel
d. G.B. Pant

Answer 1

Hint: Bhoodan movement was a movement started in 1950 with an aim of land system reformation. This was also known as the Bloodless movement.

Complete Answer:
The Bhoodan movement aimed to persuade rich people having a significant amount of land to give up part of their land voluntarily to landless people.
After gaining independence, India had a lot of poor and landless people. Mahatma Gandhi had influenced a lot of people while leading the Indian freedom struggle. One of such people who looked up to Gandhi for guidance was Vinoba Bhave. He was a humble spiritual leader and one of the first reformers of Independent India. He led the Bhoodan movement and wanted to provide land to everyone.
Through padayatra or journey on foot, Bhave went village to village asking wealthy landowners to voluntarily give a portion of land to poor and needy people and creating a change in the land system of India.
Now, let’s look at the options given:
Option (a) Mahatma Gandhi led the movement for India’s fight against British rule. He was assassinated in 1948 whereas the Bhoodan movement started in 1950. So, it’s an incorrect answer.
Option (b) Vinoba Bhave was one the spiritual leaders who followed Mahatma Gandhi and later on became the leader of the Bhoodan movement after independence. This is the correct answer.
Option (c) Sardar Patel was the first Deputy Prime Minister of India. Thus, this option is also not right.
Option (d) G.B. Pant was one of the leading architects of modern India and a key freedom fighter. Hence, an incorrect option.
Hence, option ‘b. Vinoba Bhave’ is correct.

Note: Bhoodan Movement helped raise 4.5 million acres of land by 1957 after which it slowly faded. Women mostly led this movement and it was hugely popular in Northern India.