Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Friday inspected Swami Atmanand English School at Jagdalpur in Bastar district. During his visit, a kid named Rashmi Dahriya asked Chief Minister to tell them more about Swami Atmanand Ji, after whom their school has been named. In his affectionate response to the curiosity of little Rashmi, Chief Minister Baghel stood in front of the Black Board and explained the children in detail about the life of Swami Atmanand.

Baghel told the children that Swami Atmanand was born in Raipur, his father’s name was Shri Dhaniram Verma. He was a freedom fighter and teacher. Swami Atmanand ji had joined the Quit India Movement on Mahatma Gandhi’s call. After which he had lost his job and was even arrested. He stayed with Gandhiji at Wardha Ashram. When Swami Atmanand was 4 years old, he used to sing the favorite bhajan of Mahatma Gandhi - Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram on Harmonium in Wardha Ashram. He was very intelligent and was a gold medalist in MSc Mathematics. During his stay in Vivekananda Ashram in Nagpur, he felt inspired to follow the path shown by Swami Vivekananda. He had secured his position in the top ten scorers in the ICS exam. But he did not become a Collector; instead he joined Swami Vivekananda Ashram. Vivekananda also lived in Raipur in his childhood. After Calcutta, he spent most of his life in Raipur.

Swami Atmanand ji worked hard and opened an ashram in Raipur. But at that time, famine had struck the region. Swamiji spent all the money deposited for the ashram in the service of the famine victims. Because Vivekananda used to say that service to the poor is the service of God. He opened ashrams in various places including Indore, Bhilai and Amarkantak.

When he met Indira Gandhi, she told him that people of Abujhmad are deprived for government schemes. She requested him to open an ashram in Abujhmad. In the same sequence, Swami Ji opened an ashram and a school in Narayanpur. For the first time, seven children of Abujhmad had made it to the merit list of Bastar Division. All seven of the children who were studying under his guidance had successfully made it to the merit list. Swami Atmanand Ji had made major contribution to the field of education. His discourses used to be inspirational. He was a great reformer, and a great thinker. This is the reason why their school was named after Swami Atmanand Ji. Glad to learn about the life of Swami Ji, children applauded at the end of Chief Minister’s narration.