Introduction
“Jai Jawan Jai Kisan” is one of the prominent political slogans raised by the second prime minister of India, Shri. Lal Bahadur Shastri at a gathering in Uruwa,Prayagraj, in 1965. At this point, India was being defended by the army and farmers against the issues with Pakistan and food scarcity.
'Jai Jawan’ praises the army who fought against Pakistan and guarded the country's borders. 'Jai Kisan' praised the farmers who defended India against food scarcity by cultivating and supplying crops. Both these issues were a matter of concern for the national heritage. Agriculture being the primary sector, was the backbone of the Indian economy and had a significant role in building the nation to survive famines, scarcity of resources, poverty, and so on.
The defence forces of India have defended this country and protected them from every potential threat. One of the key positives of this slogan is that it increased awareness about the contributions of these sectors and their role in building this country.
Evolution over the years
As time passed, this slogan had different variants, indicating India's changes in inclination towards other sectors. Another rendition of this slogan raised by Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, “Jai Jawaan, Jai Kisaan, Jai Vigyan”, signifies India's journey towards progress. India, by this time, had a significant investment of money and labour into the progress of science, which could be seen through the achievements that India has acquired in the field of science.
Later another rendition, “Jai Jawaan, Jai Kisaan, Jai Vigyan, Jai Anusandhan” was delivered by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, further expanding India's interest in research. The new rendition points to the requirement of recognising the other sectors and their contribution towards the progress of the country, which was not the earlier case. The inclusion of new renditions also signifies the impact of the original slogan upon the Indian population decades after its inception.
Other variants
Sunil Bharti Mittal gave an acceptance speech at Teen Murti Bhavan on December 15th, 2009, after receiving the 10th Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award from the President of India. The Director of the Lal Bahadur Shastri Institute of Management, Delhi, Dr Kailash Chandra Mishra, was also present at the event. Here, the Director coined a new variant of the popular phrase and said, "Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan, Jai Vigyan, Jai Vidwan". It is worth noting that "Jai Vidwan" translates to "hail the learned."
In 2021, MP Shashi Tharoor used the phrase "Na Jawan Na Kisan" to highlight his disappointment with the annual budget in Parliament. He said the budget did not allocate enough money to the defence and agriculture sectors, among others.
Impact on Indian Residents
The underlying nationalistic emotions signify the future of this slogan with new renditions and dreams. Shastri's slogan became so popular that even the biopic made out of Shastri's life was named after this slogan. The true power of a nation is its people, and even the Constitution of India starts with the 'We the People of India' to signify the importance of the people. These people are fed and protected by the farmers and defence forces of the country, respectively.