Shri Balasaheb R. Pawar

Balasaheb Pawar was a visionary politician from the Marathwada region of Maharashtra. He was instrumental in introducing the co-operative movement in Marathwada that led to the overall development of the region.

He entered politics in 1950 through the Indian National Congress to strengthen Marathwada. He did not have a godfather but was deeply influenced by his family’s urge to help anybody in need.

Under his leadership, educational institutions, hostels, dams and co-operative sugar factories were established. This led to a steady economic and social development of the people who were otherwise ignored in the grand scheme of things at the time.

He participated in protests and movements for social welfare, equality and issues that concerned the development of the region. His participation was always a threat to his political ascension but he did not let it bother him. His fearless and outspoken nature was not received well by his peers and contemporaries. However, Balasaheb was beyond such standards of politics.

He was an unstoppable, feisty leader who did not conform to the political norms of his time. He risked his political career time and again for the welfare of Marathwada. He was dedicated to bringing the region up to speed with the development of the rest of the state.

Balasaheb followed Mahatma Gandhi’s principle of inclusivity and did not discriminate on any account while serving his constituency. At times, he would even oppose his party to make sure that Marathwada wasn’t left behind on the growth graph.

He was spiritually inclined and believed in the concept of supreme sacrifice for the good of the world. He was an avid reader and there was hardly any Marathi literary work he wasn’t aware of. He was proud of the Marathi culture and made sure to assert his pride at cultural meetings. He worked very hard to conserve the culture of Marathwada.

Throughout his political career, he worked passionately towards uplifting the underprivileged and creating awareness about Marathwada and its untapped potential.

Brought up in a loving but principled household of an affluent Maratha family, Balasaheb had a way of life like no other politician of his time. He worked passionately towards social reformation from an early age. He was committed, righteous, and dedicated to his work. He never let his political ambitions shadow developmental work in Marathwada and Maharashtra.

As a person, Balasaheb was temperamental, principled, spiritual, honest, straightforward and ruthless in his approach to bringing about positive change in society. Though he was religious, he never let it affect his logical thinking.

What sets Balasaheb apart from other politicians is that he was ever prepared to sacrifice his seat to make the government take heed of Marathwada’s issues. This was why he was called a Lokneta.

As a politician, he believed in the freedom of the press and always supported reporters in expressing their true opinions. He was an avid reader and attended literary meetings and gatherings often. His open-mindedness came from sharing his thoughts with experts and journalists who had a broad perspective on things.

The target of one too many political conspiracies by his contemporaries and his party, Balasaheb was a leader who prioritized serving people despite false vilification and snatched opportunities.

Despite giving his best to the many roles and positions he was in, he remained humble and approachable, righteous and kind which was very uncommon for a politician. He was an inspiration to many youngsters and continues to be a great example of exemplary leadership. Marathwada was graced by this fearless, dignified man’s presence and reaped rewards in the form of holistic development that benefits Maharashtra even today.

Establishment of Four Co-operative Sugar factories in Marathwada

In the early 1960s, the co-operative movement was taking hold in West Maharashtra. It was the reason behind the founding of co-operative banks, agricultural produce societies and sugar factories that made the lives of farmers easy. Balasaheb noticed this and wanted to replicate this effect in Marathwada.

Introducing co-operation in the region wasn’t an easy task, but a great opportunity presented itself in the form of the privately-owned sugar factory at Gangapur constituency from where Balasaheb was contesting his MLA election. The factory was plagued with mismanagement, loss and lack of vision. During an election campaign held at this very location, he made a promise to convert the factory into a co-operative unit.

Gangapur was new to him. It was a communist stronghold, but he managed to strike a chord with the people and witnessed a landslide win. Once elected, all eyes turned to whether Balasaheb will keep his promise or not, many thinking he would not just like any other politician. But he always took his promises seriously. He conducted many meetings about the sugar factory in Mumbai and Delhi. The government officials tried to tire him out of his ambition, but Balasaheb tired them out instead and, finally, got the sanction for the conversion of the privately owned factory to a co-operative one.

To raise funding for the factory, Balasaheb started a large scale campaign for share collection. It was his dream that the farmers should be the owners of this factory, but for that the farmers needed to buy the shares. It wasn’t achieved in a day but it was achieved, systematically enough to revive the factory for the welfare of the farmers and workers.

Had this endeavor failed, Balasaheb would have had to face widespread criticism and mockery at the hands of his contemporaries. His entire political standing was at risk when he took up the task of running a co-operative factory. Yet, he took up the challenge for the betterment of farmers and saw it through successfully.

On 24 November 1968, the factory started functioning. The smooth transition of the privately owned factory to a co-operative unit won him the love and confidence of the people of Gangapur. His success made a statement about his management skills and will to bring about change.

Balasaheb further was instrumental in establishing three more cooperative sugar factories one after the other: Paithan Sugar Factory at Kannad, Vinayak Sugar Factory at Vaijapur,and Siddheshwar Sugar Factory at Sillod. For these factories, he raised capital, procured land and ensured that the management was good enough to make a profit as soon as possible.

He himself was promoter of three Cooperative sugar factories and established the Jalna Sugar Factory (1985) and made it debt-free in a small amount of time. Kannad Cooperative Sugar factory( 1972) and Gangapur Cooperative sugar factory (1968).

Thanks to these factories which were economically profitable in a short amount of time, farmers and workers in these drought-prone areas started a new chapter of prosperity.

Introduction of the Co-operative Movement in Marathwada

He was the President of the District Co-operative Bank (1965 to 1976), Chairman of the Aurangabad District Central Co-operative Bank, Chairman of Maharashtra State Co-operative Marketing Federation Limited (1968 & 1976-1985). As Chairman Maharashtra State Cooperative Marketing Federation, he started co- operative oil initiative at MIDC in Jalna. In Aurangabad, he facilitated the production and installation of the Bhagirath Fertilizer Project in MIDC Chikalthana. He was instrumental in administering a monopoly cotton procurement scheme for the Government of Maharashtra.
He established godowns in rural Maharashtra which facilitated food grain storage and helped farmers. Cattle feed factories in Ahmednagar & Dhulia were another example of his vision for Maharashtra. All his work in the co- operative sector increased the rate of employment and assisted economic development in not just Marathwada but entire Maharashtra.

Promoted Education to Empower all Classes of the Society
Balasaheb placed great importance on education as a tool for progress and economic development in Marathwada. Under his management, educational institutions thrived and provided youngsters with opportunities to equip themselves with knowledge and seek government employment or jobs in co- operatives. Apart from managing and expanding educational institutes, he also helped those in need of jobs directly. He referred deserving candidates to relevant organizations so that they could start earning immediately. At times, he also guided candidates seeking employment. He never discriminated while offering a helping hand to those in need.
He was the President of:

• Shri Chatrapati Shikshan Prasarak Mandal, Kannad
• Industrial Education Organization, Jalna
• Janata Shikshan Prasarak Mandal, Jalna

Apart from this, he was the General Secretary of the Marathwada Shikshan Prasarak Mandal, Aurangabad through which 18 colleges, 55 schools and 10 hostels were established to promote education in Aurangabad, Parbhani and Beed districts. The establishment of these educational institutions had far- reaching impact on the development of society and educational awareness in all classes of society.

He supported the movement for renaming the Marathwada University to Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University. In this movement, he was shoulder-to-shoulder with the underprivileged youth who had faced caste-based discrimination all their lives.

Guided the Marathwada Vikas Andolan (Marathwada Development Movement)
Marathwada Vikas Andolan was a movement of the Marathwada University Students’ Association (MUSA). It highlighted Marathwada’s demand for Chief Minister’s post among many other crucial demands. Balasaheb headed this movement, much to the dislike of his party. During 1972-74, the Marathwada Vikas Andolan took a fierce turn. Initially, the agitators peacefully presented their demands before the government. But when there was no response, the agitation turned violent. Balasaheb guided the students about when to stop the agitation. As it was not restricted to a single party, the agitation got support from all sections of society.

This movement was a political highlight in Balasaheb’s career even though his participation wasn’t politically motivated. As a result of this movement, the following demands were met by the government:

Success for the Movement:

• For the first time, Marathwada got its Chief Minister in the form of Shree Shankarrao Chavan (1975)
• Establishment of Ambajogai Medical College
• The Jaikwadi Dam project was resumed with haste
• Jaikwadi (Majalgaon) second phase was approved
• Five cotton mills started in Marathwada
• Maharashtra government’s consented to the railway widening proposal and promised to follow up with the Central Government
• The government permitted recovering the backlog of backward areas
• Establishment of Devgiri textile, Texcom, Fansicol, HMT factories
• Creation of the Institute of Science
• The decision to set up an Aakashvani Center in Aurangabad was taken
• Veterinary College started in Udgir
• Decision to set up MIDC in each Taluka
• Nanded was sanctioned by the then Sub-Center of Marathwada University and the same was later changed to Swami Ramanand Tirtha Marathwada University
• Government Engineering College started at Nanded
• The grand CIDCO scheme was launched in Aurangabad

Revived a Ram Temple at Aurangabad With the Help of Muslims at the Height of the Babri Masjid Demolition Controversy
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad and BJP announced that a Ram Mandir would be built on the Babri Masjid spot in December 1992. When Babri was demolished, there were riots. People’s sensitivities were challenged.

During such a delicate time, who would have thought of reviving an old, dilapidated Ram temple in a packed Muslim locality of Kiradpura? Balasaheb did. Kiradpura was infamous for criminal activity and riots. However, Balasaheb had a great rapport with the Muslim community of Aurangabad, so he decided to go ahead with his plan of renovating the temple. He prepared Hindus and also gave responsibility to Muslims. By putting in his trust in both communities to not clash, he created a feeling of cooperation between them. As a result, a beautiful Ram temple was raised in Kiradpura. It was a symbol of religious and national harmony, a witness to the solidarity between two communities. Balasaheb was able to achieve this feat because of his faith in humanity and his ability to bring people together. This temple was looked at as an example of the power of secularism while the country was burning in the fumes of hatred. Balasaheb was able to return hope in the hearts of the people.

Supported the Formation of the Jalna District
Balasaheb Pawar was an MP of Jalna Lok Sabha when Jalna and Aurangabad district were united. He had an influence on the co-operative areas of Aurangabad district and overall politics in a united Aurangabad district. Despite knowing that his political influence would diminish if a separate Jalna district was formed, he was at the forefront of demanding the separation of Jalna from Aurangabad. He was assertive despite his party not liking it. He lost political support because of it but chose to put the interests of the people before his political career.

Balasaheb was born on March 15, 1932 to Anusayabai and Ramrao Pawar in Kannad district, Aurangabad. He lost his mother at a tender age and his father in adulthood. He was supported by his uncles as their own. They inspired him to join politics to contribute to social change.

He was married to Ratnaprabhabai from Waghadi’s Jahagirdar family. They had four daughters ─ Vijaya, Sanjaya, Anita and Jyoti and two sons ─ Mansingh and Mangalsingh. Though his work kept him busy on most days, he always made time for his family and focused on getting his children educated. He honored the women in his family and always took into account their opinions, thoughts and ideas. He was a family man with a tender heart.

Balasaheb inculcated a love for reading books in his children. Apart from his family, he had a large friend circle in Kannad and other parts of Marathwada. He cherished all his relationships throughout his lifetime. He never discriminated between family members or friends. He was secular in his friendships and did his utmost best to help those in need.

His house would always be open to the common people who had problems and worries. Though practical and pragmatic, Balasaheb was spiritually inclined and believed in social service. He was proud of his roots and believed in the power of the Almighty. The feeling of sacrifice that was generated after performing a yadnya was important for social development according to him.

With the blessings of Shri Gotiram Baba, he carried out the following religious yadnyas:

• Sahastrachandi Panchadevata Yaag, Mukteshwar, Kaygaon (December 1970)
• Navakundatmak Shri Vishnu Yaag, Shri Kshetra Paithan
• Navakundatmak Shri Vishnu Yaag, Shri Kshetra Pandharpur (1979)
• Shri Vishnu Yaag, Shri Kshetra Alandi (February 1981)
• Shri Vishnu Mahayaag, Shri Kshetra Pandharpur (March 1983)
• Shri Gayatri Mahayadnya, Vaijapur (1986)
• Shri Vishnu Mahayaag, Shri Kshetra Shirdi (1989)
• Panchakundatmak Mahayaag, Nashik (1990)
• Shri Vishnu Mahayaag, Shri Kshetra Alandi (February 1992)
• Shri Atirudra Mahayadnya, Shri Kshetra Trimbakeshwar (January 1993)

He established temples dedicated to Shiv, Shri Ram and Shri Balaji in the Aurangabad district.