Jogesh Chandra Ghosh ( bn, যোগেশচন্দ্র ঘোষ; 18874 April 1971) was a scholar, Ayurveda practitioner, entrepreneur and philanthropist. He pioneered the use of Ayurveda in

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

and founded the Ayurvedic drugstore

Sadhana Aushadhalaya Sadhana Aushadhalaya Ltd. is an ayurvedic pharmaceutical company in Bangladesh. Founded in 1914 by Jogesh Chandra Ghosh, it was the first laboratory for the manufacture of ayurvedic medicine in Bangladesh. The headquarters of the company is lo ...

. In the genocide during the

Bangladesh Liberation War The Bangladesh Liberation War ( bn, মুক্তিযুদ্ধ, , also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, or simply the Liberation War in Bangladesh) was a revolution and War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Benga ...

, he was shot to death by the

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ) is the Army, land service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The roots of its modern existence trace back to the British Indian Army that ceased to exist following the partition of India, Partition of British India, wh ...

Early life

Ghosh was born in 1887, in Jalchhatra village in erstwhile greater Faridpur district of

Bengal Presidency The Bengal Presidency, officially the Presidency of Fort William and later Bengal Province, was a subdivision of the British Empire in India. At the height of its territorial jurisdiction, it covered large parts of what is now South Asia and ...

. His birthplace is now in

Gosairhat Upazila Gosairhat ( bn, গোসাইরহাট) is an upazila of Shariatpur District in the Division of Dhaka, in south central Bangladesh. Geography Gosairhat Upazila has a total area of . It is the southernmost upazila of Shariatpur District. Locat ...

of Shariatpur District in

Dhaka Division Dhaka Division ( bn, ঢাকা বিভাগ, ''Ḑhaka Bibhag'') is an administrative division within Bangladesh. Dhaka serves as the capital city of the Dhaka Division, the Dhaka District and Bangladesh. The division remains a populati ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

. In his childhood he attended the K. L. Jubilee School in

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city ...

and appeared for the entrance examination in 1902. In 1904, he passed F.A. from

Jagannath College Jagannath University (JnU) ( bn, জগন্নাথ বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় ''Jagannātha biśbabidyālaẏa'', University Acrostic : জবি or JnU) is a state-funded public university at 9–10, Chittaranjan Avenue in Sa ...

in Dhaka. In 1906, he passed BA in chemistry from Cooch Behar College in

Cooch Behar Cooch Behar (), or Koch Bihar, is a city and a municipality in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the headquarters of the Cooch Behar district. It is in the foothills of the Eastern Himalayas at . Cooch Behar is the only planned city in the ...

. In 1908, he passed MA in chemistry from the

University of Calcutta The University of Calcutta (informally known as Calcutta University; CU) is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate State university (India), state university in India, located in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Considered ...

. He was a student of Prafulla Chandra Ray.

Career

In 1908, he joined Bhagalpur College as a lecturer in chemistry. In 1911, he became a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Chemistry The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) is a learned society (professional association) in the United Kingdom with the goal of "advancing the chemistry, chemical sciences". It was formed in 1980 from the amalgamation of the Chemical Society, the Ro ...

. He was also a member of the

American Chemical Society The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 155,000 members at all d ...

. In 1912, he left

Bhagalpur Bhagalpur is a city in the Indian state of Bihar, situated on the southern banks of the river Ganges. It is the 2nd largest city of Bihar by population and also the headquarters of Bhagalpur district and Bhagalpur division. Known as the Silk ...

and joined

as a lecturer in chemistry. He was the principal of Jagannath College during 1947–48. In 1948, he retired. While at

, Ghosh began to take interest in

Ayurveda Ayurveda () is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. The theory and practice of Ayurveda is pseudoscientific. Ayurveda is heavily practiced in India and Nepal, where around 80% of the population repo ...

. In 1914, he founded an Ayurvedic drugstore named Sadhana Aushadhalaya in Dhaka. The Ayurvedic medicine of Sadhana Aushadhalaya became popular and branches were opened in Bengal and other parts of British India. It also had distributing agencies in China, North America and Africa.

Later life

After retirement, Ghosh stayed in his Dhaka residence and oversaw the activities of Sadhana Aushadhalaya, located at 21 Dinanath Sen Road in Gandaria. During the 1964 East Pakistan genocide, he sheltered the Bengali Hindus from the neighborhood in the factory of Sadhana Aushadhalaya. In 1971, when the

launched Operation Searchlight and began killing the civilian population in Dhaka, Ghosh too was targeted. All the Hindu staff of Sadhana Aushadhalaya, fearing for life crossed the border and took refuge in India. At the age of 84 and invalid, Ghosh refused to move. He stayed at his establishment with two guards. On 4 April, the Pakistan Army led by a Peace Committee member entered the premises of Sadhana Aushadhalaya on look out for rebels. Ghosh was charged with providing shelter to the rebels. Four Pakistan Army soldiers forced Ghosh to move upstairs in his office, where he was shot dead. The soldiers ransacked the factory and office of Sadhana Aushadhalaya and looted more than 1 million rupees in cash. Ghosh was married to Kiranbala Ghosh. They had one son and two daughters. After the liberation of Bangladesh, his son Dr. Naresh Chandra Ghosh revived the Sadhana Aushadhalaya.

Books

English

* ''Whither Bound Are We'' * Home Treatment * Text Book of Organic Chemistry * Simple Geography * Simple Arithmetic

Bengali

* Angnimandhya o Kosthaboddhota (Indigestion and constipation) * Arogyaer Path (The path to healing) * Griho Chikitsha (Homeopathy) * Charmo O Sadaron Sasthya Bidhi (Skin and general health rules) * Chokkhu - Karno O Mukhrog Chikitsha (Treatment of eye-ear-nose and mouth diseases) * Amra Kon Pothe (Which way are we?) * Ayurved Itihas (History of Ayurveda)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ghosh, Jogesh Chandra 1887 births 1971 deaths Bengali Hindus Bangladeshi Hindus Ayurvedacharyas People from Shariatpur District People from Dhaka People killed in the Bangladesh Liberation War