Alamohan Das

Alamohan Dass
Born
Surendra Mohan Das

March 1895
Khila-Dey Para, Howrah, Bengal, British India[1] (now Howrah District, West Bengal, India)
Died30 December , 1969
Occupation(s)Industrialist, Politician
Known forIndia Machinery Company
Bharat Jute Mill
Arati Cotton Mill
Dass Bank
TitleKaram Vir

Alamohan Das was an industrialist in pre-independence and post-independence Bengal. He ventured into various industries like jute, cotton, heavy  machinery, drug, banking etc. He is known for his role in the India Machinery Company, one of the earliest indigenous machine making industries of India.[2]

Statue of Alamohan Das at Dasnagar

Early life

Alamohan Das was born in a middle-class Mahishya family in Khila-Baruipur, Howrah district[3] of West Bengal, India. He had little formal education as a child, except attending a village pathshala and a middle primary school. But as he hailed from a business minded Mahishya family, he came to Kolkata at the age of 15 and started his business career by selling parched rice, small things, but gradually switched over to industrial items.[2] He started to read avidly to acquire knowledge for his betterment and fulfilling his ambitions. He was very much influenced by Bankim Chandra's Anandamath and Tagore's 'Banglar Mati Banglar Jwal'. He took the spirit of Swadeshi movement in his heart.[4]

India Machinery Co.

In 1930, he founded the India Machinery Co., which, according to Government reports, was one of the few companies that produced machines of grade 1 category. Amongst the products of the company were lathes, weighing machines, textile manufacturing machines, and printing machines.[5] In 1937 he started Bharat Jute Mill.[6]

Political career

In independent India's first election in 1951, he won Amta North Vidansabha seat in the West Bengal state assembly, contesting as an independent candidate.[7]

Works

  • Howrah Chemical Works
  • Bengal Weighing Scales Co.(1921)
  • Paul Engineering Works (1934)
  • Bharat Jute Mills (1937), inaugurated by Acharya Prafulla Chandra Ray
  • Dasnagar (1937), Dass's namesake industrial town
  • India Machinery Co. (1940)
  • Dass Bank Ltd. (1940)
  • Howrah Insurance Co. Ltd. (1941)
  • Asia Drug Co. Ltd. (1942)
  • Dass Sugar Corporation (1942)
  • The Great India Steam Navigation Co. Ltd. (1945)
  • Arati Cotton Mills (1948)
  • Karmavir Alamohan Dass with Acharya Prafulla Chandra Ray and management of India Machinery Co.
    Karmavir Alamohan Dass with Acharya Prafulla Chandra Ray and management of India Machinery Co.
  • Alamohan Dass founded Dass founded Dass Bank Ltd. Despite initial success he was forced to close it due to unfavourable political condition before Partition of India
    Alamohan Dass founded Dass founded Dass Bank Ltd. Despite initial success he was forced to close it due to unfavourable political condition before Partition of India
  • Karmavir Alamohan Dass with Lady and Lord Mountbatten, last Viceroy of India
    Karmavir Alamohan Dass with Lady and Lord Mountbatten, last Viceroy of India
  • Alamohan Dass with then West Bengal Governor Kailash Nath Katju and Dr. Syama Prasad Mukherjee, then Union Minister of Commerce and Industry. Dr. Mukherjee inaugurated Dass's Arati Cotton Mills in 1948
    Alamohan Dass with then West Bengal Governor Kailash Nath Katju and Dr. Syama Prasad Mukherjee, then Union Minister of Commerce and Industry. Dr. Mukherjee inaugurated Dass's Arati Cotton Mills in 1948
  • Alamohan Dass with Dr. Meghnad Saha, when he visited Dass in Dassnagar
    Alamohan Dass with Dr. Meghnad Saha, when he visited Dass in Dassnagar
  • Alamohan Dass sharing stage with then Chief Minister Prafulla Chandra Sen
    Alamohan Dass sharing stage with then Chief Minister Prafulla Chandra Sen

See also

References

  1. ^ Sengupta, Subodh Chandra and Bose, Anjali (editors), (1976), Samsad Bangali Charitabhidhan (Biographical dictionary), (in Bengali), p 46
  2. ^ a b Ghosh, Sampa (2010). "A Swadeshi Enterpreneur [sic] of Bengal: Karmavir Ala Mohan Dass". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 71: 517–524. ISSN 2249-1937. JSTOR 44147518.
  3. ^ "A Nagar Named After Him".
  4. ^ Ghosh, Sampa (2010). "A Swadeshi Enterpreneur [sic] of Bengal: Karmavir Ala Mohan Dass". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 71: 518. ISSN 2249-1937. JSTOR 44147518.
  5. ^ Chittabrata Palit, Pranjal Kumar Bhattacharyya. Business History of India. p. 244.
  6. ^ "A nagar named after him". The Telegraph, 16 May 2014. Archived from the original on 1 August 2018. Retrieved 29 July 2018.
  7. ^ "Statistical Reports of Elections". General Election Results and Statistics. Election Commission of India. Archived from the original on 5 October 2010. Retrieved 25 November 2010.