Model Question and Answers for APSC | Write a critical note on the evolution and significance of the slogan “Jai Jawana Jai Kisan”.

Ans: Jai Jawan Jai Kisan ("English: Hail the Soldier, Hail the Farmer") was a slogan of Lal Bahadur Shastri, the second Prime Minister of India spoken in 1965 at a public gathering in Uruwa, Prayagraj.

The evolution

• Soon after Shastri took over the prime ministership of India after Nehru's death, India was attacked by Pakistan. At the same time, there was a scarcity of food grains in the country.
• Shastri gave the slogan Jai Jawan Jai Kisan to enthuse the soldiers to defend India and simultaneously cheer farmers to do their best to increase the production of food grains to reduce dependence on It became a very popular slogan.

Significance of the slogan “Jai Jawana Jai Kisan”:

• Under his leadership, India faced and repulsed the Pakistani invasion of 1965. It is not only a matter of pride for the Indian Army but also for every citizen of the country.
• The war of 1965 was fought and won for our self-respect and our national For using our Defence Forces with such admirable skill, the nation remains beholden to Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri.

• Shastri was deeply concerned for the agriculture of India and was critical of the lack of contact between the peasants and the elites, as per Gilbert Etienne's book Indian Villages.
• He also promoted the Green Revolution with the aim of farmers' prosperity and making India self-reliant in foodgrain Green Revolution remains the model operation in India that benefited the states of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
• He played a key role in the White Revolution to make India self-reliant in milk production. Lal Bahadur Shastri created the National Dairy Development Board and backed the Amul milk co-operative in Gujarat's Anand.
• Such was its power that by 1968 it had transformed India from a ship-to-mouth shortage economy to a country that shut down schools and cinema theatres to store surplus food.

Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri's slogan Jai Jawan Jai Kisan reverberates even today through the length and breadth of the country. Underlying this are the inner-most sentiments of' Jai Hindustan'. He will be remembered for all times to come for his large-heartedness and public service.