Mahadev Govind Ranade

Professional career

Ranade was born in a small town in Nasik district named Niphad. Ranade began studies at the Elphinstone College in Mumbai, at the age of fourteen. He belonged to Bombay University, one of the three new British universities, and was part of the first batches for both the B.A. (1862) and the LL.B. (Government Law School, 1866) where he graduated at the top of his class. Great scholar and founder of BORI mr. Bhandarkar was his classmate.
He was appointed Presidency magistrate, fourth judge of the Bombay Small Causes Court in 1871, first-class sub-judge at Pune in 1873, judge of the Poona Small Causes Court in 1884, and finally to the Bombay High Court in 1893. From 1885 until he joined the High Court, he belonged to the Bombay legislative council. He was a well known public figure, who’s personality as a calm and patient optimist would influence his attitude towards dealings with Britain, as well as with reform in India. During his life he helped establish the Poona Sarvajanik Sabha, the Prarthana Samaj, and would edit a Bombay Anglo-Marathi daily paper, the Induprakask, founding all on his ideology of social and religious reform.
In 1897, Ranade served on a committee charged with the task of enumerating imperial and provincial expenditure and making recommendations for financial retrenchment. This service won him the decoration of Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire. Ranade also served as a special judge under the Deccan Agriculturists’ Relief Act from 1887.
In addition, Ranade held the offices of syndic and dean in arts at Bombay University, where he displayed much organizing power and great intimacy with the needs of the student class. Himself a thorough Marathi scholar, he encouraged the translation of standard English works, and tried, with some success, to introduce vernacular languages into the university curriculum. He published books on Indian economics and on Maratha history. He stated the requirement of heavy industries such as Steel as necessity for economic progress. He believed in Western education as a vital element to the foundation of an Indian nation. He felt that by understanding the mutual problems of India and Britain, both reform and independence could be achieved to the benefit of all. He insisted that an independent India could only be stable after such reforms were made. Reform of Indian culture and use of an adaptation of Western culture, in Ranade’s view, would bring about “common interest… and fusion of thoughts” amongst all men.”

Activism

Religious
With his friends Dr Atmaram Pandurang, Bal Mangesh Wagle and Vaman Abaji Modak, Ranade founded the Prarthana Samaj, a Hindu movement inspired by the Brahmo Samaj, espousing principles of enlightened theism based on the ancient Vedas. Prarthan samaj was started by Keshav Chandra Sen, a staunch Brahma Samajist, with the objective of carrying out religious reforms in Maharashtra.