Ganga Ram
Kesha Ram |
---|
Early life
Ganga Ram Khatri
Career
Engineer
In 1873, after a brief Service in Punjab P.W.D devoted himself to practical farming. He obtained, on lease from the government, 50,000 acres (20,000 ha) of barren, unirrigated land in Montgomery District, and within three years converted that vast desert into smiling fields, irrigated by water lifted by a hydroelectric plant and running through a thousand miles of irrigation channels, all constructed at his own cost. This was the biggest private enterprise of the kind, unknown and unthought-of in the country before. Sir Ganga Ram earned millions most of which he gave to charity.
In 1900, Ganga Ram was selected by
He received the title of
He designed and built
After the partition of India and Pakistan, another hospital Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi was built in 1951 in his memory.[10]
Service in Patiala State
He became Superintending Engineer in Patiala State for the capital's reconstruction project after his retirement. Amongst his works were Moti Bagh Palace, Secretariat Building, New Delhi, Victoria Girls School, the law courts and police station.
In Tehsil Jaranwala of district
The same was resumed in 2010 by the Faisalabad District Authorities giving it a status of cultural heritage. [citation needed]
Agriculturalist
He took more than 20,000 acres of land on lease from the Government near
Death
He died in London on 10 July 1927. His body was cremated and his ashes were brought back to India. A portion of the ashes were consigned to
Ram in literature
A marble statue of Sir Ganga Ram once stood in a public square on Mall Road in Lahore. In Urdu writer Saadat Hasan Manto's satirical story, "The Garland," set during the religious riots of 1947, an inflamed mob in Lahore, after attacking a residential area, attacks the statue of Ram. The police arrive and opened fire. As one of those shot by the police falls, the mob shouts: "Let us rush him to Sir Ganga Ram Hospital."[12][13][14]
Legacy
A student hostel, Ganga Bhawan was established at IIT Roorkee (erstwhile University of Roorkee and Thomason college of civil engineering) on 26 November 1957 in his honour. [15] The Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in Lahore, Pakistan was partially damaged in the blasts that destroyed a nearby Police Station on 27 May 2009.[16]
His great-grandson Dr.
Works
-
Hailey College of Banking & Finance
Named after Ram
Institutes
Places
- Gangapur, Punjab, Pakistan
References
- ^ "The once glorified Sir Ganga Ram House now in shambles".
- ^ "The once glorified Sir Ganga Ram House now in shambles".
- ISBN 978-969-402-353-3.
- ^ "The once glorified Sir Ganga Ram House now in shambles".
- ^ Bureau, Medical Dialogues (15 April 2019). "Sir Ganga Ram Hospital celebrates 64th founders day". medicaldialogues.in.
- ^ The London Gazette, 26 June 1903
- ^ The London Gazette, 12 December 1911
- ^ The London Gazette, 3 June 1922
- ^ The London Gazette, 18 July 1922
- ^ "Sir Ganga Ram Hospital New Delhi Official Website". SGRH. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
- ^ Panjab District Gazetteer - Montgomery District Part A (1933 ed.). Punjab Govt Record Office. p. 102. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
- ^ "Pakistan down India in volleyball quarterfinal". Archived from the original on 13 July 2012. Retrieved 30 December 2012.
- ^ The Public Sculptures of Historic Lahore, Raza Rumi, Posted on April 17, 2007
- ^ "The legacy of Sir Ganga Ram". 16 April 2014.
- ^ Ganga Bhawan Official Website of Ganga Bhawan, IIT Roorkee
- CNN.com
Further reading
- Bedi, Baba Pyare Lal, Harvest from the desert. The life and work of Sir Ganga Ram, NCA, Lahore 2003 ISBD 969-8623-07-8 (reprint version)