Kira Banasińska (1899-2002) was the wife of , the first Polish Consul-General of Poland in Bombay. She was a representative of the Polish Red Cross in India. Kira cared for and helped in rehabilitating the lives of several thousand Polish children, women and old people who were refugees from Russia, who were accommodated during World War II with local help in India.

Role in the Resettlement of Polish Refugees

While fleeing persecution in the erstwhile Soviet Union, thousands of malnourished Polish refugees had gathered on foot. She led the movement in India to source relief and aid for the refugees. She immediately initiated awareness campaigns and fundraisers in support of the refugees. Banasińska facilitated their entry into India on supply trucks. She then worked with government officials in Maharashtra and Gujarat to develop dedicated settlements for the refugees. In 1942, she convinced Jam Sahib

Digvijaysinhji Ranjitsinhji Sir Digvijaysinhji Ranjitsinhji Jadeja (18 September 1895 – 3 February 1966) was the Maharaja Jam Sahib of Nawanagar from 1933 to 1966, succeeding his uncle, the famed cricketer Ranjitsinhji. Early life and military career Ranjitsinhji, ...

Jadeja of Nawanagar to shelter and school 1000 refugee Polish children at his winter home in Jamnagar-Balachadi. By 1943, she worked with the Jam Sahib to start construction for a family camp at a stretch of his land in Valivade, a quarter city of Kolhapur. She helped move resources to build a large number of barracks to house over 6500 Poles. In 1945, the camp at Balachadi was closed and the children were transferred to the family camp in Valivade. The city, situated 9 km away from Kolhapur, was home to 10,000 Polish refugees during 1943–1947.

Personal life

In 1944, Kira Banasińska and her husband left their jobs in India, and moved to London after the war. Two years later, Kira - reluctant to reside in communist Poland - returned to India. In 1958, the couple applied for Indian citizenship.

Role in Montessori Education Movement in India

Banasińska pioneered Montessori Education in India with help from industrialist

JRD Tata Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata (29 July 1904 – 29 November 1993) was a French-Indian aviator, industrialist, entrepreneur and chairman of Tata Group. Born into the Tata family of India, he was the son of noted businessman Ratanji Dadabhoy ...

Death

Kira lived to the age of 102 and died in Hyderabad in 2002. She was buried beside her husband in St Peter's cemetery at Mahalakshmi.

Awards and recognition

in 1991, Banasińska was awarded the

Order of Polonia Restituta The Order of Polonia Restituta ( pl, Order Odrodzenia Polski, en, Order of Restored Poland) is a Polish state decoration, state Order (decoration), order established 4 February 1921. It is conferred on both military and civilians as well as on al ...

, Poland's highest civilian order for her work on behalf of the children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Banasinska, Kira 2002 deaths 1899 births Polish centenarians Polish emigrants to India Women centenarians