Happy Gandhi Jayanti 2024: Did you know that over 100 countries have statues of Mahatma Gandhi?
In 2019, the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) of the central government had said in an RTI response that 102 countries around the world had Gandhi statues. Out of this, 82 countries had full-length statues while 20 others had half-size statues.
People across India are paying tribute to Mahatma Gandhi, arguably the most famous Indian ever, on his birth anniversary. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, who was popularly called Mahatma and Bapuji, not only led India's freedom struggle against the British but also inspired many others, including Martin Luther King Jr, through his philosophy of non-violence.
CREDIT: BCCL
'India - the land of Gandhi'
To this day, many world leaders refer to India as the 'land of Gandhi' and Albert Einstein even said, ¡°Generations to come will scarce believe that such a one as this ever in flesh and blood walked upon this earth.¡±
How world has honoured Gandhi
Given the impact Gandhi has had on the world, it should not come as a surprise that over a hundred countries have at least one statue of the Mahatma.
In 2019, the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) of the central government had said in an RTI response that 102 countries around the world had Gandhi statues. Out of this, 82 countries had full-length statues while 20 others had half-size statues.
CREDIT: BCCL
Gandhi statues around the world
While the exact number of Gandhi statues around the world is unknown, some reports say that India's father of the nation could be the person with the most statues globally.
Interestingly, outside India, the US has the most Gandhi statues. As of 2019, there were more than two dozen Gandhi statues in the US, including the tallest outside India.
CREDIT: WIKIMEDIA
Countries with stamps of Gandhi
The US was also the first country other than India to issue a postage stamp in honour of the Mahatma. The US issued a stamp featuring Mahatma in January 1961. According to the Gandhi Peace Foundation, more than 100 countries have issued postage stamps honouring Gandhi.
Revering the Mahatma
¡ª Indian Diplomacy (@IndianDiplomacy) April 6, 2017
Many roads are named after Gandhiji in Netherlands, Germany, USA, France,Turkey, Iran, Canada & several other countries pic.twitter.com/4k0ZZmZBBX
Roads named after Gandhi
More than 40 countries around the world also have at least one road or street named after Mahatma Gandhi. The US, Germany, and the Netherlands have the most roads or streets named after Gandhi outside India.
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Bobins Abraham is the Assistant News Editor at Indiatimes. He has more than twelve years of experience in TV and digital journalism. An avid student of history and geopolitics, he is a conservationist and environmentalist at heart. He writes on environment, sustainability, human-animal conflict and more.
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