Willingdon College, Sangli, is a college named after the former Governor of Bombay, The 1st Baron Willingdon (who has later created The 1st

Marquess of Willingdon Marquess of Willingdon was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 26 May 1936 for the Liberal politician and colonial governor Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Earl of Willingdon. He was Governor-General of Canada from 1926 ...

). Lord Willingdon later served as

Viceroy of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 19 ...

, from 1931 until 1936. The college was started on the morning of 22 June 1919 in the

Sangli Sangli () is a city and the district headquarters of Sangli District in the state of Maharashtra, in western India. It is known as the Turmeric City of Maharashtra due to its production and trade of the spice. Sangli is situated on the banks ...

City. During this period, Centers of higher education and colleges were rare. With the establishment of the Willingdon College, the students in Southern Maharashtra and from the districts of Belgaum,

Dharwad Dharwad (), also known as Dharwar, is a city located in the north western part of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of the Dharwad district of Karnataka and forms a contiguous urban area with the city of Hubballi. It was merge ...

Karwar Karwar is a seaside city, ''taluka'', and administrative headquarters of Uttara Kannada district lying at the mouth of the Kali river on the Kanara coast of Karnataka state, India. Karwar is a popular tourist destination and with a city urba ...

and Bijapur were greatly benefited. The institute is situated in the Vishrambag area of Sangli-Miraj-Kupwad Municipal Corporation, roughly midway between the twin cities of

Miraj Miraj (Pronunciation: iɾəd͡z ) is a city in Sangli District and also in Maharashtra, India, that was founded in the early 10th century. It was an important jagir of the Adil Shahi court of Bijapur. Shivaji Maharaj stayed in Miraj for ...

and

Establishment

1919 Great national leaders and patriots like

Vishnushastri Chiplunkar Vishnushastri Chiplunkar (20 May 1850 – 17 March 1882) ( Marathi : विष्णुशास्त्री कृष्णाशास्त्री चिपळूणकर) was a Marathi writer, whose writings have had a decisive influ ...

Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak Bal Gangadhar Tilak (; born Keshav Gangadhar Tilak (pronunciation: eʃəʋ ɡəŋɡaːd̪ʱəɾ ʈiɭək; 23 July 1856 – 1 August 1920), endeared as Lokmanya ( IAST: ''Lokmānya''), was an Indian nationalist, teacher, and an independence ...

Gopal Ganesh Agarkar ''Gopal Ganesh Agarkar'' (14 July 1856 – 17 June 1895) was an Indian social reformer, educationist, and thinker from Maharashtra, India. At one time a close associate of Bal Gangadhar Tilak, he was co-founder of multiple educational in ...

and Madhavrao Namjoshi, inspired by the spirit of a nation-building ideal of education, laid the foundations in Pune, of the New English School in 1880 and the

Deccan Education Society The Deccan Education Society is an organisation that runs 43 education establishments in Maharashtra, India. Its main branch is situated in Pune. History In 1880 Vishnushastri Chiplunkar, Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Gopal Ganesh Agarka ...

in 1884. The

Fergusson college Fergusson College is an autonomous public-private college offering various courses in the streams of arts and science in the city of Pune, India. It was founded in 1885 by the Deccan Education Society. Professor Vaman Shivram Apte was its fir ...

was started in 1885. In response to a demand that a College is started in Southern Maharashtra and in response to the sincere desire of the Ruler of the Sangli State, the Society founded the Willingdon College at Sangli in 1919. The President of the Society, Shrimant Chh.Shahu Maharaj,

Kolhapur Kolhapur () is a city on the banks of the Panchganga River in the southern part of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarter of the Kolhapur district. In, around 2 C.E. Kolapur's name was 'Kuntal'. Kolhapur is ...

and the Vice-Presidents, Shrimant Patwardhan, Rulers of the Sangli and Miraj States and the generous wealthy citizens around came forth with great help for the cause. The College was started on the morning of 22 June 1919 in the Sangli City in the building where Rani Saraswati Kanya Shala stands today. The college was named after Major The 1st Baron Willingdon, then the Governor of Bombay. Lord Willingdon later served, when he was Earl of Willingdon, as

. He was later, in 1936, further advanced in the peerage as The 1st

. In the beginning, only the Arts wing was started with an enrollment of 220 students. Later on Wrangler R.P.Paranjapye and the founder Principal of the College Shri.C.G.Bhatye with great effort, secured an area of at Vishrambag for the college and the work of construction was immediately taken up.

Silver jubilee

1944 During this period, Centers of higher education and colleges were rare. With the establishment of the Willingdon College the students in Southern Maharashtra and from the Districts of Belgaum,

and

Vijapur Vijapur is a city and a municipality in the Mehsana district in the Indian state of Gujarat. Notables 1.Vijapur is the birthplace of Jain monk Buddhisagar Suri. Buddhisagarsuri (1874–1925) was an ascetic, philosopher and author of the ear ...

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

were greatly benefited. The college rendered useful service for these two provinces. Wherever we move in this area we are found to meet the past Willingdonians. In fact, to be a past Willingdonian has remained a bond of affection for many educated persons in the past. The College moved in the present buildings on 8 August 1924. At that time only the 'L' shaped wing to the East and the South were completed. the square block building of the Boys Hostel came up in 1925 and the two storied Shahu Block in 1927. In 1932–33 the Science wing was started. The name of the College by then was known for its sterling merits of education, attracting students from faraway places. The Progress of the college was rapid. During the period in 1935–44 the buildings of the Gymkhana, Quarters for Professors on either side of the approach road, the Girls Hostel, the Guest House ( Karve Sadan) and the Laboratory were set up. In 1944 the college celebrated its Silver Jubilee in an impressive manner.

Golden jubilee

1969 After the celebrations of the Silver Jubilee image of the college shone with greater brightness. During the period 1945–1957 more buildings came up, one more Hostel for the Girls, two more Hostel buildings for the Boys, Velankar Assembly Hall, Recreation Hall and an addition to the main building at the West. Today the hostel accommodates 110 Boys and 85 Girls. In the next 15 years, the Biology Laboratory, the three-storied building of the Library, Post Office, building, one more Hostel for the girls, Canteen and NCC buildings and the Open Air Theatre were completed. On the Science side subjects like Biology, Physics, Mathematics and Statistics were started. In 1969, Golden Jubilee of the College was celebrated in a splendid manner. Some past students from foreign countries attended the celebrations with deep reverence. Other past students and well-wishers of the college gave generous donations, considerably and swelling the funds of the college.

Diamond jubilee

1979 Out of the funds collected at the time of the Golden Jubilee, more constructive work was taken up. 11 new Classrooms, Teachers Hostel, (Out of the UGC funds to the extent of 2/3 of the entire expenditure), tube-well for water supply, an extension of the Gymkhana Building, Badminton Hall were completed. The College was recognized as a permanent Post Graduate Centre by the Shivaji University. On the Science side, Microbiology and Electronics and on the art side Psychology, Logic and Philosophy were added. Diamond Jubilee was celebrated with the same enthusiasm as the Golden Jubilee and received spontaneous support from all quarters.

Platinum jubilee

1994 Many projects were launched as a part of platinum jubilee celebrations such as – Pre-primary, primary and secondary ( English and Marathi Medium ) School at Willingdon Campus, Health Club, Overhead Water Tank etc. and were completed successfully. 2011

Infrastructure

Main building

A palatial quadrangular structure built in stone attracts everyone. It contains an open-air theatre with a large open space. Building comprises Basement – There are 4 medium-sized rooms (one room is used as a control room for University Exams.) and a storeroom. Ground floor – It houses Principal and Vice-Principal's offices, Administrative Office, Geography Department, Staff Common Room, Ladies Common Room, Library, Departments of Botany, Mathematics, N.C.C. Office with a separate entrance, 3 big classrooms, 1 small classroom and a Strong-room for University's Central Assessment Programme. Also, an open-air theatre is located on this floor, where the Annual Prize Distribution ceremony takes place. First floor – There are 7 big-sized rooms and my medium-sized room. Department of History, Statistics, Hindi, English, Marathi, Economics, Physics and Zoology are located on this floor. Terrace – There is a tower on the frontal side of the main building, on which the National Flag is hoisted on 15 August, 26 January and 1 May every year. Zoology store room, Animal House is lodged on the north-west side terrace. There are 24 classrooms in total.

Auditorium and departments

Applied Sciences Building (presently housing Microbiology, Biotechnology, Computer Science and BCS Departments) Velankar Auditorium * Science Departments Department of Microbiology Department of Biotecnology Department of Mathematics Department of Physics Department of Chemistry Department of Statistics Department of Zoology Department of Botany Department of Electronics *

Arts Departments The arts are a very wide range of human practices of creative expression, storytelling and cultural participation. They encompass multiple diverse and plural modes of thinking, doing and being, in an extremely broad range of media. Both ...

Department of English Department of Marathi Department of Hindi Department of History Department of Economics Department of Sanskrit Gymkhana and a Pavilion Building Chemistry Laboratory No.1, Chemistry Laboratory No.2, Chemistry Laboratory No.3 Other Buildings N.C.C. Armoury Bungalow No.1 (Principal's Residence), Bungalow No.2 (Life-member Teacher) Bungalow No.3 (Life-member Teacher), Bungalow No.4 (Life-member Teacher) Bungalow No.5 (Life-member Teacher), Bungalow No.6 (Life-member Teacher) Bungalow No.7 (Life-member Teacher), U.G.C. Teachers' Hostel (4 flats) Ladies Hostel Boys Hostel (Shahu Block), Boys Hostel (Square Block) Boys Hostel (Chavan Block), Boys Hostel (Kabbur Block) Cycle stand, Hobby Workshop, Non-residential students centre

Willsoft

In 2010, the Computer Science department started conducting the competition event Willsoft. Willsoft includes Paper Presentation, Poster Presentation, Gaming,'C' Programming,(competition events) and many others. The event enjoyed a good response in the last three years.

Year and No. of events occurred

Current principal

Dr. Bhaskar Vinayak Tamhankar (From 4 July 2014 – present)

Current vice- principals

# Dr. Suresh R Kumbhar(Electronics Department)(July 2019 onwards) # Dr. Ravindra A KulkarniEnglish Department)(July 2019 onwards) # Dr. Rajendra S Ponde (English Department)(July 2019 onwards)

Former principals

* Govind Chimanaji Bhate * K.G.Pandit * Devdatta Dabholkar *

V. K. Gokak Vinayaka Krishna Gokak (9 August 1909 – 28 April 1992), abbreviated in Kannada as Vi. Kru. Gokak, was an Indian historian and writer in the Kannada language and a scholar of English and Kannada literatures. He was the fifth writer to be hono ...

R. S. Mugali Ram Shri Mugali (Ranganatha Srinivasa Mugali) (15 July 1906 – 20 February 1993) was a Kannada language writer. He was awarded the central Sahitya Akademi in 1956 for his work "Kannada Sahitya Charitre". He was the president of the 44th Kannad ...

* N. B. TARE * M.D.Hatkanaglekar * K.M.Agashe * Dr. B.A.Patil * S.S.Bodas * Dr.Harishchandra Sidram Nirmale * Dr.Pramila Lohoti * Dr.Bhaskar V Tamhankar

Notable students

S. R. Ekkundi Subbanna R. Ekkundi (1923–1995) was a recipient of Sahitya Akademi Award, National Aaward for Teacher and Soviet Land Award. Ekkundi was born in Ranebennur of Haveri district in the year 1923. His father was Ranganath and mother was Rajakka. ...

P. L. Deshpande Purushottam Laxman Deshpande (alternatively written as Pu La Deshpande; 8 November 1919 – 12 June 2000), popularly known by his initials ("Pu. La.") or as P. L. Deshpande, was a Marathi writer and humorist from Maharashtra. He was also an a ...

External links

* ''Willingdon College

References

* http://www.willingdoncollege.in/ {{Coord missing, Maharashtra Colleges in India Universities and colleges in Maharashtra Education in Sangli district Deccan Education Society Shivaji University Sangli Educational institutions established in 1919 1919 establishments in India