Seth Seth,; el, Σήθ ''Sḗth''; ; "placed", "appointed") in Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Mandaeism, and Sethianism, was the third son of Adam and Eve and brother of Cain and Abel, their only other child mentioned by name in the Hebrew Bible. A ...

Sir Chhaju Ram Lamba (1861–1943) was a

Jat The Jat people ((), ()) are a traditionally agricultural community in Northern India and Pakistan. Originally pastoralists in the lower Indus river-valley of Sindh, Jats migrated north into the Punjab region in late medieval times, and su ...

tycoon from

Bhiwani Bhiwani is a city and a municipal council in Bhiwani district in the state of Haryana, Bhiwani was also known as "Gate of Rajputana". Besides being a seat of spiritual learning, the city is at the centre of regional politics and hometown of t ...

district of then

Punjab (British India) Punjab was a province of British India. Most of the Punjab region was annexed by the East India Company in 2 April 1849, and declared a province of British Rule, it was one of the last areas of the Indian subcontinent to fall under British co ...

(now

Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ar ...

state) and made a fortune in

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

during the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

period. A

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

, he undertook many social improvement projects. He financed the higher studies of Sir

Chhotu Ram Sir Chhotu Ram (born Ram Richpal; 24 November 1881 – 9 January 1945) was a prominent politician in British India's Punjab Province, an ideologue of the pre-Independent India, who belonged to the Jat community and championed the interest of op ...

Early life

He was born in a

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

family in 1861 at Alakhpura in

Bawani Khera Bawani Khera is a town and municipal committee in the Bhiwani district of the Indian state of Haryana. History Medieval India#Early medieval period, Early medieval period History of town dates back to at least the 1st century, as evidenced by ...

tehsil,

district of then

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

(current

state). His father was

Chaudhary Chaudhary (or Choudhary ; also: Chaudhuri, Choudhuary, Chowdhury) is a hereditary title mainly in South Asia, mainly used by Jats, Gurjar and Bhumihars. Chowdhury (Hindi: चौधरी/चौधुरी/चौधारी; Urdu: چودھر� ...

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

Jhunjhunu Jhunjhunu is a city and capital of Jhunjhunu district in the state of Rajasthan. This city is in the northern state of Rajasthan, India and the administrative headquarters of Jhunjhunu District. History Jhunjhunu is a very old and historical ...

district,

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...

. He was married twice. His first wife was from the village Dohaka who died from

cholera Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...

. He had no son from his first wife. Then he married Lakshmi Devi of the village Vilawal in Bhiwani district and had children with her.

Career

When in his early 20s, Lamba met

Arya Samaj Arya Samaj ( hi, आर्य समाज, lit=Noble Society, ) is a monotheistic Indian Hindu reform movement that promotes values and practices based on the belief in the infallible authority of the Vedas. The samaj was founded by the sanny ...

ist engineer Raisaheb Shivnath Rai, who very much impressed him. Rai took Lamba to Kolkata and for some 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.

Philanthropic work

He adopted two siblings named Neera Arya and her brother Basant. He started many hostels, libraries, Dharamshalas 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 (1547–1600) was a noted general, minister and close aide of Maharana Pratap. The financial support provided by him allowed Maharana Pratap to restore his army and reclaim much of his lost territory. Biography Bhamashah was born on ...

'' of the Jat race. 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. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages Ac ...

title of ‘Sir.’He was great follower of Arya Samaj.

Why is he important?

He, was one of the people who actually acted under the British eyes but had a fire for freedom in his breath. He set up secret associations to collectively oppose the rule : without ruining his

reputation The reputation of a social entity (a person, a social group, an organization, or a place) is an opinion about that entity typically as a result of social evaluation on a set of criteria, such as behavior or performance. Reputation is a ubiquitous ...

between the Englishmen.

Death

He died on 7April 1943.

Legacy

Several prominent jat institutes are named after him, including the following:C.R. Public School societ
/ref> *

CRM JAT College Chhaju Ram Memorial Jat College, Hisar or CRM JAT College, Hisar is a college located near Hisar Junction railway station in Hisar in the Indian state of Haryana History This privately funded and not-for-profit trust run institute has its ori ...

* Chhaju Ram Law College, Hisar * Chhaju Ram College of Education, Hisar *

Chhaju Ram Jat Senior Secondary School, Hisar Chhaju Ram Jat Senior Secondary School, Hisar is a college located on Delhi road in Hisar in the Indian state of Haryana. History In 1928, the privately funded Jat High school was founded by the Seth Chhaju Ram (1881-1945) who made fortune in ...

* Chhaju Ram Public School, Hisar * Numerous Dharamshalas across the length and breadth of Punjab-Haryana-Rajasthan, often near railway stations. Many now in dilapidated condition and being encroached over

References

People from Bhiwani district 1861 births 1943 deaths Businesspeople from Kolkata Businesspeople from Haryana Indian Knights Bachelor Knights Bachelor {{India-bio-stub