ADARSH SCHOOL

The following is a short biography of a man who had a vision in mind, a vision to secure the future of the children of this noble country by doing his bit. His contribution to the society cannot be measured but can be only felt by the thousands who had the privilege to be in touch with him and or the millions who have benefitted from his works to this very day. One of his many endeavours was the establishment of the Adarsh banner in the education sector of the country.

Dr Bhagat Ram Sahgal was born on 1st January 1900, in a family of humble origin, which ran a local cloth shop in Lahore, now in Pakistan, and sold clothes, imported from England. His father Lala Bal Mukand could not persuade Bhagat after he had completed his matriculation, to stay in the family business as he had interest in pursuing further education and become a doctor by profession. His passion to address public gatherings and a desire to do his bit for the nation, at a time when the whole country was fighting to break the shackles of the British Raj was much appreciated by the then, leaders of the freedom struggle. He was sent to countries like South Africa, and even England to spread the message of universal brotherhood and peace to the Indians living abroad.

It was at this juncture that the role of Raja Ram Mohan Roy emerged in the history of India, along with the evolution of the Arya Samaj. Dr Bhagat Ram Sahgal with the support of the local Indians founded the Arya Samaj in East London, U.K., Durban in South Africa and Singapore. So much so, that his statue still remains in the main hall of the office of the Arya Samaj in Singapore and their timely periodicals have his name on the front pages.

He tied the knot in 1923 with Smt Gyan Devi Sahgal with whom he travelled around the world by ship preaching the spirit of nationality and the award for a free nation. It was then that in 1936, Lahore, the foundation of the first Adarsh School was laid, meaning ‘ideal’ and went up to the college level as an Adarsh Mahila Mahavidyalaya. The family moved to Amritsar in Punjab in 1947 after independence. Later in 1950, they moved to New Delhi, the capital of independent India. Continuing the burning desire to propagate education, he started with a small institution called Adarsh Montessori School in Ramesh Nagar in Delhi. His enduring efforts were rewarded with growth and recognition, as the school grew from a mere strength of 5 to thousands of students today in its 3 separate branches. On 16^th December 1968, the great leader left us for the heavenly abode to leave a void in the hearts of thousands of his loved ones.

The Adarsh School has since then come a long way with a noticeable presence among the schools in New Delhi today. The students have been actively participating in inter and intra school activities and bringing laurels to the school, truly justifying the motto of the school.

His reminiscence though still enthrals the school every single day, and we at Adarsh only hope to follow his guidelines in an attempt to become noble citizens of this nation one day.