Poornima Arvind Pakvasa (5 October 1913 – 25 April 2016), known as the Didi of Dangs, was an Indian independence activist and social worker from

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

Early life

Pakvasa was born in Ranpur near Limbdi State,

Saurashtra Saurashtra, Sourashtra, or variants may refer to: ** Kathiawar, also called Saurashtra Peninsula, a peninsula in western India ** Saurashtra (state), alias United State of Kathiawar, a former Indian state, merged into Bombay State and since its d ...

(now in Gujarat). She was also a Manipuri dancer and classical vocal singer.

Political and social activism

Pakvasa first met Mahatma Gandhi at Ranpur when she was eight. She participated in the independence movement in Limbdi. At the age of 18, she participated in the Dandi March during which she was arrested. Her inmate in jail was

Kasturba Gandhi Kasturba Mohandas Gandhi (, born Kasturba Gokuldas Kapadia; 11 April 1869 – 22 February 1944) was an Indian political activist who was involved in the Indian independence movement during British Raj, British India. She was married to Mohandas ...

. Pakvasa taught her how to read and write English.

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethics, political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful Indian ...

was appreciative of this act and gave her his blessings to continue on the path of education. She participated in the 51st session of the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

Haripura Haripura is a village located near Kadod town in the Surat district of Gujarat, India. It is around 13 kilometres north east of Bardoli. During the Indian independence movement, it was the venue of annual session of the Indian National Congr ...

in 1938. In 1954, she started Shaktidal, an institution for the cultural, physical and spiritual education of women in

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

(now Mumbai). She headed the Bhosla Military School,

Nashik Nashik, formerly Nasik, is a city in the northern region of the Indian state of Maharashtra situated on the banks of the river Godavari, about northeast of the state capital Mumbai. Nashik is one of the Hindu pilgrimage sites of the Kumbh ...

for 25 years. Later in 1974, she established Ritambhara Vishwa Vidyapeeth and extended its activities to become a residential school and college at

Saputara Saputara town in the Dang district of Gujarat, India, is a hill station A hill station is a touristic town located at a higher elevation than the nearby plain or valley. The English term was originally used mostly in Western imperialism i ...

. The school chiefly served tribal girls of Dang. She turned 100 in October 2013 and died on 25 April 2016 at the age of 102 in Surat. Her last rites were performed in

by her children.

Awards

In 2004 she was awarded the

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan (IAST: ''Padma Bhūṣaṇa'', lit. 'Lotus Decoration') is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 Januar ...

award for her services to society. She was awarded Santokbaa Award in 2013.

Personal life

She married Arvind Pakvasa and was a daughter-in-law of Mangaldas Pakvasa. She had two daughters - Aarti and Sonal Mansingh - and a son Anuj.

Sonal Mansingh Sonal Mansingh (born 30 April 1944) is an Indian classical dancer and Guru in Bharatanatyam and Odissi dancing style. She has been nominated by the President of India to become a Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha. She is the recipient of Padm ...

is an Indian classical dancer.

References

External links

Profile of Poornima Arvind Pakvasa
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pakvasa, Poornima Arvind 1913 births 2016 deaths Indian women centenarians Social workers from Gujarat Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in social work Women educators from Gujarat Educators from Gujarat 20th-century Indian educators 20th-century Indian women People from Botad district Gandhians Indian independence activists from Gujarat 20th-century Indian women educators