A Tribute toMr. R. D. Gadkari
(22-06-1921 - 21-08-2008)
Rambhau Gadkari also known as Gandhi of Karjat passed away on 21st August 2008.
Mr. R. D. Gadkari was the Trustee and Vice President of Indian Development Foundation for nearly two decades.
Mr. R. D. Gadkari, popularly known as Rambhau Gadkari, was an ardent social worker right from his younger days. His social work had a marked difference in the sense that he targeted his energies to alleviate the sufferings of the poor, the marginalised and the afflicted with absolute unselfishness. He had been an inspiration to the young and the old alike.
Rambhau was a man of rare vision, simple living and high thinking. Hailing from Karjat, in Raigad Dist. of Maharashtra, he had his early education in a tribal village from where he moved to Ramnarain Ruia College in Mumbai and then to Nagpur University to take his LL.B. degree.
During his employment with the Railways in the earlier years, Mr. Gadkari was moved by the plight of the lower level rail workers and took up their cause in right earnest which resulted in a better deal for them. He also took up the cause of rail passengers and helped to get their grievances redressed and had been the President of the Mumbai Suburban Rail Passengers Association.
The other areas of social work which received Mr. Gadkari’s unstinted attention were education, housing and leprosy control. Being convinced that education is a must for the upliftment of children especially in the neglected tribal areas, he helped in establishing several schools under the umbrella organisation Abhinav Jnyan Mandir of Raigad District. To alleviate the sufferings of the middle class, a co-operative Housing Society was formed in Ambernath under his able guidance which incidentally is reported to be the largest co-operative housing society in Maharashtra. With the help and support of Emmaus Swiss of Switzerland, he establisbed a project - Rural Integrated Health Scheme and undertook leprosy control work in the tribal areas of Raigad Dist. which resulted in curing over 6000 leprosy patients followed by their rehabilitation. His ambition was to see a leprosy-free Raigad much in advance of other districts. His close association with Indian Development Foundation (Formerly Indian Leprosy Foundation) gave him a wider access to the world of leprosy.
The Board of Trustees, members, friends and well-wishers of Indian Development Foundation condole the passing away of Mr. R. D. Gadkari. May his soul rest in peace.
10 comments:
Mr. Gadkari was a great personality and a social reformer. He was an affable person radiating happiness and joy with a smiling face. His work for the uplift of downtrodden and poor leprosy patients need to be written in the letters of gold. His passing away is a great loss to the society. We express our sincere condolences and pray for the eternal rest of the soul.
Message received from Mr. N. R. Parasharuman and Mr. R. Girish.
Mr. N. R. Parashuraman says......."I am sad to learn that Shri R.D. Gadkari ,Trustee and Vice-President of Indian Development Foundation passed away on 21st August, 2008. I have known him for more than a decade and always enjoyed his presence in each and every meeting of IDF Managing Committee. He was a true Gandhian and led a very simple life. At the same time he was responsible to undertake the herculean task of making Raigad district free of leprosy. I was fortunate to visit his house quite a number of times while attending some of the IDF's programmes in Raigad region. Through his help I could fulfill my dream of supplying fresh water to needy students in Abhinav Jnyan Mandir. We at IDF would be missing his invaluable contribution. May his soul in rest in peace.
Kindly pass on this message to Dr. Pillai too. "
Mr. R. Girish says......."We are sorry to hear the sad demise of Gadkari saab. He has contributed immensely to the betterment of the mankind. We all cherish his energy levels and the wonderful enthusiasm he displayed for everything. His contribution is IDF is noteworthy and as one of the trustees I would like to place on record his invaluable contribution and support. We pray that his soul rests in peace"
I have known Sri Rambhau Gadkari for over 3 decades and worked closely with him in Karjat and surrounding tribal villages. His able leadership in Rural Health Scheme could eliminate leprosy in Karjat area. His contributions in the field of health, education and trade unionism are worth mentioning. Always prompt for meetings with his charming smile, he earned respect from everyone. He was an elder brother to me, sharing responsibilities in social work. I feel so sad that Shri Rambhau Gadkari is no more with us.
May his sould rest in peace!
Dr.A.R.K.Pillai
Dear Dr Pillai/Mr Prakash,
I am sad that Mr Gadkari passed away. Very rarely do we see a self-effacing social worker so deeply concerned about the deprived segment of rural population living in remote tribal areas. Innumerable beneficiaries in Karjat taluka will feel this irreparable loss. IDF derived inspiration from Mr Gadkari and the best way to pay tribute to the departed soul is to continue his unfulfilled mission to serve the poorin Karjat.
R Ganapati
May his soul rest in peace. He has truly lived a divine life.
Sarala Gavane
CAS Coordinator
Podar International School
Dear Dr. Narayan :
Having worked with Dr. R. Gadkari in Karjat we all regret the demise of Dr. Gadkari. I request you to kindly pass our condolences to his family. He was a great person and till the end wanted to help the Emmaus cause. I cordially salute his efforts and enthusiasm to keep guiding us till the end in Karjat.
Dr. Dinesh Jain
Medical Co-ordinator (Western Region)
GLRA-ALES
With great sadness we received this news about the demise of Shri R.G. Gadkari. I still remember that he was the oldest project leaders among ALES supported projects and always he was very prompt in attending the ALES project leaders meet. In spite of his age and seniority he always gave respect and importance to GLRA/ALES functionaries. On top of everything, he was very humanitarian. In his death, we lost one of the stalwarts in Leprosy field. Please pass on my personal and our official condolences to the members of his family and to the team of IDF.
J. Ravichandran
Dy. Director (Finance & Admn.)
GLRA-ALES India
Chennai
Dear Dr. Pillai & narayan,
Please accept my deepest condolence. Its a loss for all of us.
Metta,
Kavita Kowshik,
Maitreya CSR Systems
Pune.
Dear Dr. Pillai and Dr. Narayanan,
I read the news of passing away of Sri Rambhau, the Gandhi of Karjat.In his demise, the world is poorer by one great Narayan Sevak.
I had always felt, seeing those who have sacrificed for the welfare of others are the living God.
I pay my respectful obeisance to the departed soul and its peaceful rest at the feet of the Lord.
Regards,
p.n.sridharan@gmail.com
I had the privilege of seeing the good work of Sri Gadkari Saab at Karjat and interacting closely with him on a few occasions. His mere presence was source of inspiration, instilling hope, courage and confidence in many. His demise is surely a great loss.
Dr.S. Franklin,
Bangalore
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