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The Statue for Social Justice in Vijayawada (AP)

The Statue of Social Justice, also known as the Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Smriti Vanam (English: Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Memorial), is a 206-ft tall statue located in Vijayawada in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It stands on an 81 feet (25m) tall base building. It is the fourth tallest statue in India.

Dr Ambedkar’s Life Story and Achievements

The reliefs are around 6ft+ tall, and vary in width, with most being around 9ft wide. The titles and descriptions are based on those provided at the monument, but expanded to contain more information.

Bhim Janmashtalam, seen in the background here, is a memorial dedicated at B R Ambedkar’s birthplace. He was born into a Dalit Mahar family, previously known as untouchables.

Ambedkar’s passion for education was supported by his father and a progressive teacher who helped with his learning, and his willingness to put in long hours to improve his knowledge.

As part of the family tradition his father taught him dohas (short poems) written by the 15th century saint Kabir and focusing on social service.

Despite poverty and discimination in being segregated from other children because of his caste, and not being allowed into the classroom he continued his education, and later his family moved to Mumbai.

In 1907, after his matriculation Dada Keluskar, an author and family friend arranged for his scholarship from the Baroda king to pursue his higher education. Keluskar also gave him a book about the Buddha.

With Ambedkar’s academic brilliance and diligence, he secured both Masters and Doctrate degrees and starting publishing socially relevant and path-breaking research papers.

Following his successful doctoral thesis at Colombia on economics, he moved to London where he both studied law at Gray’s Inn and continued his education at the London School of Economics.

While in London he completed a second Master’s Degree, and also a D.Sc in Economics, and in the same year his prodigious talent saw him raised to the Bar by Gray’s Inn

“I am a man of character... it is my solemn vow to die in the service and cause of those down-trodden people among whom I was born... I would not budge an inch from my righteous cause.”

In 1927 Dr Ambedkar led the satyagraha (holding to the truth) in Mahad by demanding that untouchables be allowed to draw water from the public tank, along with other castes.

The pylon of bravery was erected by Dr Ambedkar at Koregoan to commemorate the victory of 500 Mahar soldiers over the Peshwar army of 18,000 in 1818. Dr Ambedkar himself belonged to the Mahar caste.

Dr Ambedkar regarded education as an all-important step to righting the wrongs in society and he fought for the rights of lower castes and women to receive a proper education.

Dr Ambedkar’s many journals, writings and speeches helped to create a atmosphere where centuries long tradition were challenged and the dynamics of oppression could be understood.

Dr Ambedkar understood the need for people to organise effectively so they could put together concerted action to regain their rights, and he established a number of organisations for this end.

In 1925 Dr Ambedkar was appointed by the Bombay Presidency Committee to work with the British Parlimentary Simon Commission exploring a future Constitution for India.

The Simon ommission was followed by a series of three Round Table Conferences discussing constitutional reform organised by the British Parliment and and prominent Indians including Dr Ambedkar.

“Education is what makes a person fearless, teaches him the lesson of unity, makes him aware of his rights and inspires him to struggle for his rights.”

Dr Ambedkar urged everyone who gained an education to take up their primary repsonsibility to serve their poor brothers and sisters, and to see to their uplift.

Dr Ambedkar fought for everyone’s civil rights, and for the right to education, for freedom of religious choice and for the right for representation at all levels of society.

“Nationalism is a desire for national existence by those bound up by the ties of kinship,” but it extended beyond what is normally meant by that term to include the upliftment of the downtrodden and marginalised sections of society.

It was thanks to Dr Ambedkar that the Ashokan Dharmacakra sign was included on the national flag of India to indicate the propagation of truth and Dharma in the country.

Dr Ambedkar had written his D.Sc thesis on the “Problem of the Rupee – Its Origin and Its Solution” in 1923, and his discussions in this thesis led to the establishment of the Reserve Bank of India in 1935.

Dr Ambedkar was instrumental in evolving a new water and power policy during 1942-1945 to utilise water resources to secure irrigation on the one hand and power generation on the other.

When he was a member of the Indian Parliament Dr Ambedkar served on the Defence Advisory Committee, seeing to the modernisation and indianisation of the Defence Sector.

Dr Ambedkar proposed reorganising the states of India along cultural and linguistic lines, with national unity as a desired outcome. But he insisted that the new states should be able to develop equitably and protect minorities.

Dr Ambedkar was a member of the Viceroy Council and while there he helped establish the First Employment Exhange, which was based around equal opportunities and addressed the scourge of unemplyoment.

Dr Ambedkar had many ideas about agriculutural development, and the difficulties faced by small land owners, and he encouraged cooperatives to work together for the uplift of farmers.

Dr Ambedkar was the Minister of Labour for the Viceroy’s Executive Council in which capacity he introduced ideas such as the eight-hour working day, labour insurance, and the Trade Union Act.

Dr Ambedkar was appointed as Law Minister in Nerhu’s government, and introduced the Hindu Code Bill which sought to secularise the law, especially in regard to women.

Dr Ambedkar formed the Samata Sainik Dal (SSD) in 1924 to fight against social in equality and caste-based discrimination. It was influential in disseminating his ideas and fighting for rights.

Despite all his studies, social work and employment in governmental positions, Dr Ambedkar still found time to listen to music, play the violin and had time for his pets also.

Dr Ambedkar founded numerous journals, and wrote extensively during his long career. Always his writings reflected his preoccupation with the causes of inequality and the uplift of the people.

Dr Ambedkar thought that true democracy would be key to lifting people out of ignorance and poverty, and he was a staunch defender of the system, but he said it will only work if it has social democracy at its base.

In 1956 Dr Ambedkar led around 400,000 of his followers in converting to Buddhism in a public ceremony in Nagpur, at a place now known as the Dikṣabhūmi (place of conversion/initiation).

Just 40 days after his conversion he passed away peacefully at his home in Delhi. This was just three days after completing his last work The Buddha and His Dhamma. The house is now a museum.

The Statue of Social Justice at Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh is a focal point for the remembrance of this great Indian, who spent his entire life fighting for the rights of all Indians.

Dr Ambedkar in Hyderabad (Telangana)

The newly built State Secetariat, or State Government building in Hyderabad is a magnificent new construction in the heart of the city. It is named as the Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Telangana State Secetariat in honour of the great man. It covers 28 acres and is built in the Indo-Saracenic style.

On the edge of the Hussein Sagar, a large lake in the centre of Hyderabad is this 128ft tall bronze statue of Dr Amebedkar. I managed to get photos of it at night. It is the fifth tallest statue in India.

Statue at the Dr Ambedkar Bhavan in Visakhapatnam (AP)

In many places there are Ambedkar Bhavans, or guest houses, where visitors can stay while visiting the cities. We stayed in one at Visakhapatnam, and I photographed some of the statues there.