Ekta Diwas: Renewing the spirit of India’s unity

Every October 31, India pauses to remember one of its greatest nation-builders, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, through Rashtriya Ekta Diwas, or National Unity Day. Yet this day is not just a tribute to a towering statesman; it is a living reminder of the moral and political imagination that built modern India. In celebrating Patel’s birth anniversary, we celebrate the very idea of India as One, a federation held together by faith, dialogue, and an unwavering belief in collective destiny.

The Iron Man Who Forged a Nation

When India attained independence in 1947, it was a subcontinent of over 560 princely states, each with its own ruler and uncertain allegiance. Few could have imagined stitching together such a fractured map into a coherent republic. But Patel, India’s first Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister did exactly that.

With unmatched diplomacy and steely resolve, he convinced, cajoled, and, where necessary, compelled princely rulers to accede to the Indian Union. Hyderabad, Junagadh, and Jammu & Kashmir were among the most difficult integrations, yet Patel’s combination of persuasion and pragmatism ensured that India’s territorial and emotional integrity was preserved. It is little wonder he is called the Iron Man of India, not for his rigidity, but for his unbending will to keep the nation together.

Patel once observed, “Manpower without unity is not a strength unless it is harmonized and united properly; then it becomes a spiritual power.” That spiritual dimension of unity, binding people of diverse tongues, faiths, and identities into one moral community, became the bedrock of the Indian state.

Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat

Recognizing this legacy, the Government of India in 2014 declared Patel’s birth anniversary as Rashtriya Ekta Diwas. The idea was not to add another ceremonial holiday to the calendar but to revive a living ideal: Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat - One India, Great India.

Across the country, citizens take part in Run for Unity events, school debates, essay contests, and cultural programs reaffirming the pledge to preserve India’s oneness. The centerpiece of the celebration is the Statue of Unity in Ekta Nagar, Gujarat, the world’s tallest statue at 182 meters, towering over the Narmada as a monumental metaphor for national solidarity.

But Ekta Diwas is not about monuments alone; it is about mindset. It is a call to remember that India’s greatness has always rested on its ability to harmonize difference, not erase it.

A Message for Our Times

In an age of polarization and fragmentation, both online and on the ground, Patel’s vision acquires renewed relevance. He believed that unity was not uniformity but cooperation, a federation of hearts as much as of territories. His insistence on fairness, truth, and justice remains a moral compass for a nation negotiating modern challenges of inequality, identity, and ideology.

As regional aspirations, social fissures, and political differences occasionally test the fabric of our republic, Ekta Diwas reminds us that diversity is not India’s weakness but its genius. It urges every citizen to think beyond binaries of region or religion and to participate in the larger project of nation-building with empathy and responsibility.

The Living Legacy

Patel’s nationalism was not exclusionary; it was rooted in service. His dream was simple yet profound: “My only desire is that India should be a good producer and no one should be hungry, shedding tears for food in the country.” That compassion should guide every government policy, every act of citizenship.

Each year, when schoolchildren, soldiers, and civil servants take the unity pledge, they renew a social contract written not in ink but in shared sacrifice. From Kashmir to Kanyakumari, from the Northeast to the Andaman Islands, the celebrations echo a single sentiment, that the idea of India endures because her people choose unity over division.

Beyond Commemoration

Ultimately, Rashtriya Ekta Diwas is not just remembrance; it is renewal. It calls on today’s generation to translate unity into action, through inclusive growth, social harmony, and civic participation. Patel’s guiding philosophy, “Work is worship, and labor is divine,” reminds us that nation-building is not the task of leaders alone but of every citizen who contributes with honesty and diligence.

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s legacy is carved not merely in stone at Ekta Nagar but in the soul of a billion Indians. As we celebrate Ekta Diwas each October 31, may we remember that the strength of India lies not in its size or might, but in the steadfast belief that, despite our differences, we rise as one.