Seth Seth, in the Abrahamic religions, was the third son of Adam and Eve. The Hebrew Bible names two of his siblings (although it also states that he had others): his brothers Cain and Abel. According to , Seth was born after Abel's murder by Cain, ...

Sir Chhaju Ram Lamba (1861–7 April 1943) was a tycoon from Punjab Province. He made a fortune in

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

during the period of the

British Raj The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...

. He was a

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

, and undertook many social improvement projects. He financed the higher studies of future politician, Sir

Chhotu Ram Ram Richpal Ohlyan (born 24 November 1881 – 9 January 1945), better known as Sir Chhotu Ram, was a prominent Indian politician, agrarian reformer, and ideologue in Presidencies and provinces of British India, British India's Punjab Province ( ...

Early life and career

Chhaju Ram was born in a

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

Jat The Jat people (, ), also spelt Jaat and Jatt, are a traditionally agricultural community in Northern India and Pakistan. Originally pastoralists in the lower Indus river-valley of Sindh, many Jats migrated north into the Punjab region in l ...

family in 1861 at Alakhpura in Bawani Khera tehsil,

Bhiwani Bhiwani is a city and a municipal council in Bhiwani district in the state of Haryana. Besides being a seat of spiritual learning, the city is at the centre of regional politics and hometown of three former Haryana chief ministers: Bansi Lal ...

district of then

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

(presently in

Haryana Haryana () is a States and union territories of India, state located in the northern part of India. It was carved out after the linguistic reorganisation of Punjab, India, Punjab on 1 November 1966. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with les ...

state). His father was

Chaudhary Chowdhury (also: Choudhuri, Chaudhuri, Choudhury, Chaudhri, Chaudhary) is a title of honour, usually hereditary, originating from the Indian subcontinent. It is an adaption from Sanskrit. During the Mughal rule, it was a title awarded to eminen ...

Salig Ram Lamba who had migrated from the village of Gothra in

Jhunjhunu Jhunjhunu is a city and municipal council in the state of Rajasthan in India. It is the administrative headquarters of the Jhunjhunu district. It is also the largest city of the Shekhawati region, which includes Jhunjhunu, Churu and Sikar ...

district,

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...

. He was married twice. His first wife was from the village Dohaka. She died from cholera, and they had no children from the marriage. He married Lakshmi Devi Rangi of the village Bilawal in Bhiwani district and had children with her. When in his early 20s, Lamba met

Arya Samaj Arya Samaj () is a monotheistic Indian Hindu reform movement that promotes values and practices based on the belief in the infallible authority of the Vedas. Dayananda Saraswati founded the samaj in the 1870s. Arya Samaj was the first Hindu ...

ist engineer Raisaheb Shivnath Rai, who very much impressed him. Rai took Lamba to

, and for a time Lamba coached Rai’s children and also those of a businessman from Rajgarh. During this work he picked up knowledge of their operations and in particular of the '' dalali'' (brokerage business or commission agency). He began to trade in old bags, and later shifted to the new bags trade. He set up secret associations to collectively oppose British rule without ruining his reputation among the Englishmen.

Philanthropy

He adopted siblings named Neera Arya and her brother Basant. He started many hostels, libraries,

dharamshalas A dharamshala, also written as dharmashala, is a public resthouse or shelter in the Indian subcontinent. It also refers to Sikhism, Sikh places of worship before the introduction of Gurdwaras. Just as Caravanserai, sarai are for travellers and ...

and schools, such as Jat School, Hisar (founded 1924). He financed higher studies of Sir 'Chhotu' Ram Richpal. He was known as ''Danveer

Bhamashah Bhama Shah (28 June 1547 – 1600) was a noted general, minister and close aide of Maharana Pratap Singh of the Mewar. The financial support provided by him allowed Pratap to restore his army and reclaim much of his lost territory. Biography ...

'' of the Jats. The British government awarded him the

life peerage In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

title of "Sir". He was prominent follower of Arya Samaj.

Legacy

Several prominent jat institutes are named after him, including the following:C.R. Public School society
/ref> * CRM JAT College * Chhaju Ram Law College, Hisar * Chhaju Ram College of Education, Hisar * Chhaju Ram Jat Senior Secondary School, Hisar * Chhaju Ram Public School, Hisar * Numerous Dharamshalas across Punjab-Haryana-Rajasthan, often near railway stations.

References

People from Bhiwani district 1861 births 1943 deaths Businesspeople from Kolkata Businesspeople from British India Indian Knights Bachelor People from the Bengal Presidency People from Punjab Province (British India) {{India-business-bio-stub