Captain B P Tiwari (15 June 1911 - 2008) was an Indian military officer, politician and statesman. He was

Zamindar A zamindar (Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughals and later the British had begun using it as ...

from

Panagar Panagar is a town with municipality in Jabalpur district in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. Geography Panagar is located at . It has an average elevation of 377 metres (1,236 feet). History The town of Panagar has history dating ...

Jabalpur Jabalpur is a city situated on the banks of Narmada River in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. According to the 2011 census, it is the third-largest urban agglomeration in Madhya Pradesh and the country's 38th-largest urban agglomeration. J ...

district in the

Central Provinces The Central Provinces was a province of British India. It comprised British conquests from the Mughals and Marathas in central India, and covered parts of present-day Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra states. Its capital was Nagpu ...

of India.Changing political leadership in an Indian province: the Central Provinces and Berar, 1919-1939, David E. U. Baker, Oxford University Press, 1979 p. 130 During his service in the British India Army, Tiwari served as both a

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

and later as

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

and in 1947 leading to India’s independence, he left the army to join the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British ...

.London Gazette 29 August 1930, Issue: 33639 Page:5361 In 1956, for the first time since he had joined the Indian National Congress, he was appointed Chairman of the

District Development Council by the party. During the 1960s and 1970s, Captain Tiwari served as a member of the

Hitkarini Sabha Hitkarini Sabha ( hi, हितकारिणी सभा) is a historic, educational, non-profit organization located in the city of Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India. It is runs some of the oldest academic institutions in the region. It was ...

in Jabalpur, and contributed significantly to the growth of educational institutions in the city.

Early life and education

Tiwari was born and raised as a

in Singaud (

Jabalpur district Jabalpur district is a district of Madhya Pradesh state in central India. The city of Jabalpur is the administrative headquarters of the district. The area of the district is 5,198 km² with population of 2,463,289 (2011 census). As of 20 ...

), India. His formal education was completed at Robertson College Jabalpur, where he earned his Masters degree in Arts.

Career

Tiwari was commissioned a

for the

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four ...

in 1930. He spent a year attached to the

East Yorkshire Regiment The East Yorkshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, first raised in 1685 as Sir William Clifton's Regiment of Foot and later renamed the 15th Regiment of Foot. It saw service for three centuries, before eventually being ...

based in India before being sent to the British Indian Army and posted to the

16th Light Cavalry The 16th Light Cavalry is a regiment of the Armoured Corps, a primary combat arm of the Indian Army. Prior to India gaining independence from the British in 1947, it was a regular cavalry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was formed in 17 ...

in 1932. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

as a Captain, Tiwari served in

Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

in 1945 with the 16th Light Cavalry. After 1947, he left the army to join the

and served as Chairman of the

District Development Council in 1956. During his tenure as Chairman of the Jabalpur District Development Council, he was responsible for the development of educational projects and beautification of the towns and countryside of Singaud,

, and the city of

. He was also responsible for the construction of the Ravi Shankar Shukla Stadium in

city and a sports facility to cater to local sports. Due to the death of

Ravishankar Shukla Ravishankar Shukla (2 August 1877 — 31 December 1956) was a leader of the Indian National Congress, Indian independence movement activist, the Premier of the Central Provinces and Berar from 27 April 1946 to 25 January 1950, first Chief Minis ...

1956 Events January * January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan. * January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Jim Elliot and Pete Fleming, are kille ...

, Captain B P Tiwari, Shukla's close aide, decided to name the stadium and adjacent sports facilities after him. The Ravishankar Shukla stadium was established as a result of this. Tiwari was Chairman of the

District Planning Committee A district planning committee (DPC) is the committee created as per article 243ZD of the Constitution of India at the district level for planning at the district and below. The committee in each district should consolidate the plans prepared by th ...

in 1965. A member of the Indian National Congress committee in the 1960s, Tiwari is widely regarded as the "Kingmaker" in Indian politics during this time period. He also served as a member of District Rural Development Agency (DRDA).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tiwari, B P 1911 births 2008 deaths Indian Army officers Indian politicians People from Jabalpur Indian National Congress politicians from Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh politicians Educators from Madhya Pradesh

Early life and education

Career

See also

References