About 20 years before India gained its freedom, Christian missionaries from Yugoslavia came to India to render humanitarian services. They were extremely affected by the conditions of poverty spreading in India and so invited people from their country to serve here. Amongst these was a special girl called Agnes Goxa Bojaxiu, who is today know Mother Teresa.
Agnes Goxa Bojaxiu was born on August 27, 1910 and was just 19 years when she came to Calcutta on January 6, 1929. And she never left this country. Her aim in life was to serve the sick and the poor and she dedicated her full life towards this purpose. She would roam the dangerous dark and dirty streets of Calcutta at night, covering the cold and offering food and shelter to the por. When she first arrived in Calcutta, she had just Rs.5.00, and was helped by a priest. She lived in a small room for 9 years, where she nursed the ill back to health. Compassion, dignity and sympathy marked here every action.
Through her efforts she managed to open several institutions e.g. ‘Missionaries of Charity’, ‘Niraml Hariday’ and ‘Shishu Bhavan’ a house for the mentally and physically challenged children to help the downtrodden. Mother Teresa was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1979 and the Bharat Ratna in 1980. Besides these, she also received the Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International peace (1972), Ramon Magsaysay Award (1962) and the Templeton Foundation Award (1973). As the Mother- General of the Missionaries of Charity, Mother Teresa has a thousand Missionary institutions working under her.
Despite all the public acclaim, national and international honours, Mother Teresa remained humble, kind and generous till the end. The Florence Nightingale of India passed away in September 1997.
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