Krishnammal Jagannathan
-
- She was born on June 16, 1926 in Pattiveeranpatti, Dindigul district, into a poor family.
- She studied in Madurai and graduated from The American College, Madurai, becoming the first woman graduate from Madurai.
- Krishnammal and her husband S. Jagannathan worked to secure land for landless farmers across villages.
- She was inspired by Vallalar Ramalinga Adigal and followed Gandhian ideals of compassion and social justice.
- Inspired by Mahatma Gandhi, she joined the Sarvodaya movement of Vinoba Bhave and participated in the Bhoodan Movement, distributing land to poor people in several regions including Bihar.
- They became active in Thanjavur district after the Keezhvenmani massacre of 1968, where 44 Dalits were burnt alive.
- She founded Land for Tillers’ Freedom (LAFTI) to secure land ownership for landless farmers.
-
- She helped register about 13,500 acres of land in the names of poor farmers.
- For her social service, she received many awards including the Padma Shri, Jamnalal Bajaj Award, Bhagwan Mahaveer Award, Right Livelihood Award (Alternative Nobel Prize), and the Opus Prize.
