Aruna Roy at 80: A life dedicated to justice, democracy, and social change

By Bharat Dogra 

Aruna Roy, the renowned activist and author, has said that she would prefer to observe her 80th birthday this month quietly at home. However, her colleagues and companions from her highly eventful journeys in the pursuit of social change, justice, and democracy would certainly like to use this occasion to reflect on her many-sided contributions and the lessons they offer.

Aruna Roy began her public life in a very different way—as an IAS officer. However, the call of social activism proved stronger, and she became one of the very few officers to leave this prestigious government service at an early stage of her career. She then went to work in the villages of Ajmer district in Rajasthan, where, along with her husband Bunker Roy, other colleagues, and local villagers, she helped launch several pioneering initiatives at the Barefoot College (Social Work and Research Centre, SWRC) in Tilonia.

Among her most significant contributions during this period was her work with the Mahila Sangathan (women’s organization). The women’s movement that emerged in Tilonia gained widespread appreciation for its many achievements. One aspect that I found particularly heartening was the commitment shown by several elderly women who actively participated in its initiatives and could be seen at various solidarity gatherings and protest sites.

While Aruna’s contribution to the women’s movement is widely recognized, her quieter but equally significant contributions to other aspects of Barefoot College are less well known. These included her support for the institution’s remarkable work in crafts and rural livelihoods. To the children growing up in Tilonia, Aruna became an inspiring figure. During my frequent visits, I found many of them affectionately calling her naani (maternal grandmother). As these children grew older, many went on to take responsible positions, assisting Aruna in her office work and mobilization efforts.

The work at Tilonia and Barefoot College was both meaningful and innovative. Beyond its various development projects, it was also linked to the broader goal of creating a non-discriminatory society based on constitutional principles of social equality. However, after some years, Aruna felt the need for a wider role in social transformation—one rooted more directly in people’s movements and less constrained by the limitations of a formally structured NGO.

It was around this time that, along with Shankar Singh, a gifted communicator associated with Barefoot College, and Nikhil Dey, a young activist whose reflections often seemed far beyond his years, Aruna Roy moved towards establishing the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS), an organization dedicated to the empowerment of workers and farmers.

Thus, at an age when many activists might have been thinking of consolidating their previous work or seeking a less demanding life, Aruna chose instead to embrace new and more difficult challenges. Together with her colleagues, she moved into a simple hut in a village and began building a movement from the ground up. With no institutional support, the team struggled even to meet essential expenses. I remember one occasion when they were discussing which seasonal vegetable was the cheapest. Since the consensus was that ghiya (bottle gourd) cost the least, they resigned themselves to living on it for many days.

The new organization was soon engaged in a struggle that brought it into conflict with one of the region’s most powerful feudal interests, for whom the use of violence against challengers would not have been unusual. Yet the MKSS team and its rural supporters not only survived this confrontation but also secured an important early victory.

Soon afterward, they became involved in another struggle concerning minimum wages for drought-relief and rural employment works. During this campaign, Nikhil Dey and several MKSS members undertook a protest fast.

This struggle, in turn, exposed the misuse of rural development funds, leading to a broader demand for transparency and, eventually, to the historic movement for the Right to Information. Through a series of public hearings and protest sit-ins (dharnas), the message spread across Rajasthan. The campaign demanded immense hard work and personal sacrifice. During one such dharna, Aruna fainted due to exhaustion and extreme heat.

The next stage was to take the movement to the national level by forming a nationwide campaign for the Right to Information. The manner in which local struggles were connected to a larger national movement provided a valuable lesson in democratic mobilization.

While my own involvement had initially been limited to that of an independent journalist covering these initiatives and movements, it later deepened when I was selected as the first convener of the National Campaign for People’s Right to Information and also as chairperson of a trust established with the support of Aruna Roy to assist social activists. I carried out both responsibilities in an honorary capacity for several years. During this period, I had many opportunities to interact closely with Aruna, Nikhil, and Shankar.

One aspect that particularly impressed me was that, alongside their ongoing struggles for transparency, accountability, and workers’ rights, the MKSS consistently promoted interfaith harmony and national integration. Their efforts to assist silicosis victims also yielded significant results.

Aruna Roy and her colleagues took another important initiative by establishing the School for Democracy. Through its diverse educational and training programmes, as well as its fellowship initiatives, the School has made important contributions to nurturing democratic values and grassroots leadership.

In addition, Aruna has contributed significantly through her writings in newspapers and as the author of several books, especially her widely acclaimed memoir, The Personal Is Political. Her writings combine personal experience with broader reflections on democracy, social justice, and public life.

As friends, colleagues, well-wishers, and countless others inspired by her work celebrate her 80th year, they hope that Aruna Roy will continue contributing her wisdom, courage, and commitment to the cause of a better and more just world for many years to come.

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Bharat Dogra is Honorary Convener of the Campaign to Save Earth Now. His recent books include A Day in 2071, Planet in Peril, and Man over Machine. His website is bharatdogra.in