Jai Hind College

The Past The Present

The Future

Admission Information     Faculties

Campus Life

Speeches    Administration

AlumniGolden Jubilee Celebrations

Jai Hind College

Address :

"A" Road, Churchgate, Mumbai - 400 020 Maharashtra, India.

Tel: (91-22) 2041095

Fax:(91-22) 2886483

Email

 

 

The Past... : A Brief History  

D.J. Sind College

Home 
Principal T.M. Advani

Jai Hind College was not always big. It was very small indeed when it was born in the wake of the Partition of India in August 1947. The men who played a major role in its creation were professors of D.J. Sind College, Karachi, assisted by a few other educationalists who came together under the banner of Sind Educationists' Association headed by Principal T.M. Advani.

Initially, their tireless efforts to find accommodation for a college were to no avail. Mr. G.I. Patel, a powerful member of the Syndicate of the University of Mumbai, suggested that the premises of Elphinstone College be used during morning hours to begin with. The proposal was readily accepted and admission started for the Arts faculty in June 1948, with a formal inauguration in September 1948 at the Elphinstone College Library Hall.

In early 1949, Principal T.M. Advani arranged for a bungalow named "Goolshan" at Peddar Road to serve as a nucleus for a science college.

The college could hardly afford to pay rent for a bungalow, let alone equip the laboratories. At this stage, Mr. Bhagwansingh B. Advani, the sole trustee of the Basantsing Anil Dharmada Trust, stepped in with a generous donation of Rs. 1,25,000, a princely sum in those days. In response to his wishes, the college was named Jai Hind College and Basantsing Institute of Science. A small bungalow near Goolshan served as a hostel for the refugee students.

It was proving to be rather inconvenient that the Arts and Science faculties of the college were five miles apart. Mr. Morarji Desai who was then the Home and Revenue Minister of Bombay finally sanctioned, in a prime location a plot for the Jai Hind College building at "A" Road, Backbay Reclamation. Being close to the Churchgate Railway Station, students from the suburbs found the college easily accessible. Mr. Desai also kindly consented to lay the foundation stone of the building on September 14, 1950.

Much, however, still remained to be done. The building was estimated at over Rs. 10 Lacs. Where was the money to Inaugurationcome from? Colleagues and friends loaned their hard-earned savings. An intensive drive to raise funds in the form of donations was launched and cultural shows were put on to augment these funds. In 1951, the Union Rehabilitation Minister, Mr. Ajit Prasad Jain, sanctioned a grant of Rs. 4 Lacs. With these finances the construction started and the building was completed in time to start the B.Sc. Class of June 1952. The first batch of students numbered 250 of which nearly half were refugee students. The college building was formally declared open by the then Vice President Of India, Dr. Radhakrishnan.

Jai Hind, however, was still in the need of a hostel. The Revenue Department of the Government of Bombay released one plot of land behind the college at "B" Road. The foundation for the hostel was laid by the Honourable Minister of Education, Mr. Dinkerrao Desai on April 15, 1956.

A unique feature of the founding of Jai Hind College was the stellar role played by the former teachers of the D.J. Sind College, Karachi. It was their indomitable will at a time of historical crisis that saw the college in place. Regrettably all those who constituted this band of dedicated teachers cannot be named, but mention must be made of Principal T.M.Principal T.G. Khubchandani Advani, Prof. S.G. Khubchandani, Prof. Ram Panjwani, Prof. G.G. Kewalramani and Prof. T.G. Khubchandani. The college was to thrive because of the intellectual resources provided by them. Besides providing educational opportunities for the Sindhi community, the college also played a role in preserving the cultural resources of the community. The seminal work of writers like Prof. M.U. Malkani and Prof. K.B. Advani (who wrote the definitive edition of Shah-jo-Rassallo) was done while simultaneously enriching and inspiring their students in class. It was the efforts of these founders that formed the bedrock of the college's future glory.

Thus it was, that Jai Hind carved a place for itself in the life of cosmopolitan Bombay. Academically, it had moved to almost the top among educational institutions in Bombay. In the late 1970's came the sudden spurt for enrolment in the Commerce faculty. Realizing the increasing demand for the skills in Commerce and Management, the far-sighted Prof. T.G. Khubchandani, the then Principal of the college brought the induction of the Commerce faculty in the college in 1980 with very generous financial help from Mr. Taru Lalvani of the J.T. Lalvani Trust. Jai Hind thus became a multi-faculty college and was renamed Jai Hind College, Basantsing Institute of Science and J.T. Lalvani College of Commerce. As the demand for hostel accommodations was on the decline, the students hostel was converted into classrooms.

In 1994, Vocational Education at the First Year Degree Level was introduced, Jai Hind being one of the eight colleges in Mumbai selected for this privilege by the University Grants Commission (UGC), New Delhi, the apex body which monitors all the Universities of India.

In 1996, under the dynamic leadership of Mr. Ashok Advani, Managing Director of Business India and also the President of the Managing Board of Jai Hind College as well as the Hyderabad (Sind) National Collegiate Board (HSNC Board), was launched an International Education Programme. Through this joint venture (with HSNC Board), Jai Hind College has established academic links with a number of Universities in the United States of America and Australia for the benefit of both the students and the staff.

Home               To the top of the page