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Development & Impact of Jainism in India & Abroad
Mahasabha four presidents. The first among the four was Bhanwarlalji Bakliwal in the year 1964 when the Mahasabha was going through a rough patch and enormous financial difficulty. Bakliwal took upon himself to resurrect the fortune of the Mahasabha and succeeded in turning its wheel of fortune. He was among those who also offered financial contribution to the Mahasabha besides promoting Jain Gazettee. However, his sudden demise stopped him from achieving something monumental, but that was enough to inspire Danbir Rai Sahab Chandmal Pandya to assume the mantle of the next president of the Mahasabha. He carried on the good work of the late Bakliwal and the Mahasabha could tide over the crisis it was in. It was his effort which made Indumati Mataji step foot in the Northeast for the first time ever. The visit brought about an unprecedented prosperity among the Jains of the region. That resulted in widespread contribution by the Jains of the region in all major social and religious aspects of the society. Temples and chatalayas came up in all major towns and districts besides Panchkalyan and Bedi Pratistha Mahostavs. Rai Sahab also met with a sudden demise which brought in Lohpurush of Northeast Laxmichand Ji Chhabra at the helm of the Mahasabha at the Ajmer convention in May 1976. Indumatai Mataji and Suparshmati Mataji had their chaturmas in the Northeast during his tenure. In 1980, industrialist Nirmal Kumar Ji Sethi took charge as the president of the Mahasabha. His continuous tenure of 33 years has broken new grounds for Jainism and the cause of Jains across the world.
Besides these four, individuals like Hukum Chand Ji Sarawgi, Chainrup Ji Bakliwal, Rajkumar Ji Sethi and Pannalal Ji Sethi of Dimapur, Mangilal Ji Chhabra and Kesrimal ji Chhabra of Imphal have also contributed in all spheres to the cause of the Jains. Jain educational institutions in the region have added a new dimension to the way the community has taken to educate the masses.
WAY FORWARD
However, what is indeed a matter of concern is that there has been just one Jain, Dharamchandji Patni of Imphal, who has been awarded Padmashree by the Government of India. I feel that more and more Jains must come up with subjects and areas that would uplift not only the Jains but also other communities at large. Also, very few Jains have ventured beyond the world of trade, commerce and industry. While the new generation is taking up services, both in the government and private sectors, and professional careers, but the number is far from satisfactory. There have been few Jain litterateurs and artists of significance. The third aspect on this is the near absence of Jains in politics. I am convinced that when Jains start to contribute more to politics, the world would become a better place. The Assam Government has recently decided that there would be a upper tier in the Assam Legislative Assembly. I feel that measure must begin now to ensure that the Jains get a proper and acceptable candidate to represent the community in the legislative council. With more than 25,000 Jains in the Northeast, surely a lot could be and should have been done by us.
List of Jain Education & Social Institution/organisation in Assam and other States in North-East such as Nagaland, Meghalaya, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Tripura.
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