Bal Gangadhar Tilak Death Anniversary: Today is the death anniversary of Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak. Bal Gangadhar Tilak was a prominent leader, social reformer, freedom fighter and popular leader of India. ‘Lokmanya’ is prefixed to his name, this is the fame that Bal Gangadhar Tilak earned. Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak was the first to raise the demand for Purna Swaraj during the British Raj. That’s why he is called the father of Indian freedom struggle. The slogan ‘Swaraj is our birthright’ is also the hero of the Indian independence movement, Bal Gangadhar Tilak. Bal Gangadhar Tilak was not only a popular leader but also a scholar of subjects like Indian History, Sanskrit, Hinduism, Mathematics and Astronomy. By the way, his whole life is ideal. Symbol of the golden history of India, but the journey and steps of Bal Gangadhar Tilak to become Lokmanya was very interesting. On the occasion of death anniversary of Bal Gangadhar Tilak, know interesting things related to his life.
Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak was born on 13 July 1856 in Ratnagiri, Maharashtra. Tilak’s father’s name was Gangadhar Ramchandra Tilak. He was a Sanskrit scholar and eminent teacher. At the same time, his mother’s name was Parvati Bai Gangadhar. Tilak was married in 1871 to a girl named Tapibai, whose name became Satyabhama after marriage.
The father himself was a scholar of Sanskrit, so Bal Gangadhar was very adept and knowledgeable in Tilak’s studies. When his father was transferred from Ratnagiri to Pune, Tilak was also enrolled in the Anglo Vernacular School in Pune. After the death of his mother and then father at the age of 16, Tilak started his struggling career. In 1877, Tilak obtained a degree in Sanskrit and Mathematics from the Deccan College, Pune. After that he passed LLB from Government Law College, Mumbai. Tilak can be considered the first among the first generation of Indian youth to get modern education.
After completing his studies, Tilak became a teacher of Mathematics and English in a private school in Pune. However, he left teaching in 1880 after differences with other school teachers. Tilak was critical of the English education system. In schools, he was opposed to the misbehavior with the Indian students in comparison to the British students. Tilak also raised his voice against the prevailing untouchability in the society.
Later Tilak founded the Deccan Education Society, whose aim was to improve the standard of education in India. Apart from this, Tilak also started two newspapers in Marathi language named Maratha Darpan and Kesari, which became very popular during that period. Being a part of the freedom movement, Tilak opposed the British rule and demanded the British government to give full Swaraj to the Indians. Tilak went to jail several times because of the articles published in his newspaper Kesari. Due to his efforts, Tilak was awarded the title of ‘Lokmanya’. On August 1, 1920, Lokmanya Tilak closed his eyes.