Digamber Hansda | |
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.jpg) Hansda at the 2018Padma Shri ceremony | |
| Born | (1939-10-16)16 October 1939 Ghatshila,East Singhbhum district, British India |
| Died | 19 November 2020(2020-11-19) (aged 81) Jamshedpur, India |
| Occupation | Professor |
| Known for | Tribal activism |
| Awards | Padma Shri (2018) |
Digamber Hansda (16 October 1939 – 19 November 2020) was an Indian academic and tribal activist who worked for the social and economic advancement of the underprivileged communities inWest Bengal,Jharkhand, andOdisha. He was a founding member of theSanthalSahitya Akademi and was considered a pioneer ofSanthali language literature.
In 2018, Hansda was awarded thePadma Shri, India's fourth-highest civilian honour, by thePresident of India for his work in the field of tribal literature and education.[1][2]
Hansda was born in Dobhapani village inGhatshila,East Singhbhum district (now inJharkhand) on 16 October 1939. His parents were farmers; from a young age, Hansda helped his parents on the farm. He completed his schooling at Rajdoha Middle School and Manpur High School. He obtained a graduate degree inpolitical science from Bihar University (nowRanchi University) in 1963 and a postgraduate degree in political science from the same university in 1965.[3][4]
Hansda started his career by working as the secretary of theTISCO Adivasi Co-operative Society in the early 1960s. The organization focused on creating job opportunities for tribals in the region, and administered vocational courses to generate employment opportunities. He later worked with Bharat Sevashram Sangh. In his role with these organizations, he helped set up schools in the rural areas nearJamshedpur, including the RP Patel High School,Jugsalai.[3] He also helped introduce Santhali and other tribal languages as a medium of instruction in colleges in the region.[4]
Hansda was a pioneer of theSanthali language literature, and a founding member of SanthalSahitya Akademi. He developed intermediate, post-graduate and under-graduate courses in the Santhali language under the directive of the state government.[5][3] He regularly visited villages acrossPotka andGhatshila to collect folktales and folksongs from local artists and to compile them to spread awareness of literary works among the tribals.[3] As a member of the central government'sTribal Research Institute, he helped translate academic books fromDevanagari script to Santhali. In 1993, he took part in the successful initiative to have Santhali recognized as an official language inNepal.[3] He also translated theConstitution of India to Santhali language from theDevanagari script.[5]
Through his career, Hansda worked for the social and economic advancement of the underprivileged, with a focus on alleviating poverty, illiteracy, and social evils across tribal communities inJharkhand,Odisha, andWest Bengal.[1] He retired as the principal of theLal Bahadur Shastri Memorial College, Karandih.[4] As a retired professor, he continued to write columns for newspapers highlighting the plight of the tribal communities.[1]
Hansda held a variety of academic and administrative positions. For instance, he was a member of the management committee ofIIM Bodh Gaya,Jnanpith Award selection committee for Santhali language, Central Institute of Indian Languages, Mysore, and the Santhali Sahitya syllabus committee for theUnion Public Service Commission (UPSC) and Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC).[6]
In 2018, Hansda was awarded thePadma Shri, India's fourth-highest civilian honour, by thePresident of India,Ram Nath Kovind, for his work in the field of Santhali language literature and education.[7][1] This was followed by the Lifetime Achievement Award conferred by theAll India Santali Film Association (AISFA).[8]
He was married and had two sons and three daughters.[4]
He died on 19 November 2020, aged 81, after a long illness at his home in Karandih,Jamshedpur. His wife and one of his daughters had died before him. TheJharkhand State Government announced astate funeral for him.[4]
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