And for the first time in our country, the one who started the education of women and Shudras. “Manusmriti Ke, Nasti Sreenam Kriya Matreh Iti Dharme Vyavasthi (9-18)” means that for women, the marriage ceremony itself is their Vedic or Upanayan ceremony. Women do not need to study with a Guru. Serving their husband is their Gurukul residence. And doing household chores in the kitchen is their ‘Homahavan’. Because this order has been issued by Manusmriti for thousands of years, the doors of education for women are in a state of being closed forever. Mahatma Jyotiba Phule and his life partner Savitribai Phule together have actively revolted against Manusmriti through their works 180 years ago. That too in the stronghold of Peshwai’s Sanatanis like Pune. This is a tremendous social revolution within the entire Hindu religion. Which was done almost two hundred and fifty years ago!
And that is why on behalf of the Sanatanis, Savitribai Phule was seen walking through showers of mud, dung and pebbles on her every day. After going to her school, she changed her clothes smeared with mud and dung and started teaching. This means that what kind of a person Savitribai was made of? This is revealed. Today, there are examples of people leaving schools just because of a small taunt. And two hundred and fifty years ago, on a woman walking on the road, some mischievous people were throwing pebbles, mud and dung on her every day. Only an extraordinary person can do the sadhana of going to school and teaching after tolerating it calmly. We have been hearing the story of a Savitri in the Puranas since childhood, who even brought her husband back to life. This is the Savitri of the modern age. For women, Shudras and the downtrodden. The work done with such devotion by Savitribai, who started education, could only be done by Savitribai Phule of the modern era!
Today, the President of our country is a tribal woman! To reach that position! If the ruling party thinks that! This is the work of their political wisdom! Then they are mistaken! Because even today their parent organization Sangh, Dr. Baba Saheb Ambedkar had announced the constitution for the first time in the Constituent Assembly! Immediately after that, the then Sangh Pramukh Shri. Madhavrao Sadashivrao Golwalkar said that the current constitution does not include anything of Indianness! This constitution is a rag after copying the constitutions of foreign countries, what is the need for this when we have a constitution written by our thousands of years old sage Manu? And some officials of their party are also trying to glorify Manusmriti! In which women have been asked to do only household chores inside the four walls of the house!
Which was violated two hundred years ago by Savitribai Phule by starting schools for women and Shudras. And she endured the rhetoric and physical torture of the then Hindutvaites. Due to the uninterrupted work of educating women and Shudras, today in our country, women are getting the opportunity to work shoulder to shoulder with men in every field of life, from the post of President to every other field. Hence, humble greetings on the 194th birth anniversary of Savitribai Phule, the liberator of women and Shudras.
And with all due respect to our country’s second President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, we would say that the true Teachers’ Day should be on January 3rd because Savitribai Phule started schools for women and Shudras for the first time in the history of India. And under what circumstances did she do it? Therefore, Teachers’ Day should be celebrated on the occasion of Savitribai Phule’s birthday. The only program of the current ruling party is to change the names of many schemes and cities of our country. And naturally, the current President being a tribal woman, she would know very well how she has reached this position. So we request her that Teachers’ Day should be celebrated on January 3rd. Even today, not all people of India are aware of the works of Phule husband and wife. From caste eradication to fighting against our wrong customs and most importantly, establishing schools for the education of women and Shudras. It was started two hundred and fifty years ago. Before 1882, Mahatma Phule had given a detailed proposal for education to the Hunter Commission set up for education.
Today is the 193rd birth anniversary of Savitribai Phule. The bicentenary will be celebrated in the year 2031. Savitribai was born on 3 January 1831 in a village named Naigaon in Khandala tehsil of Satara district. That means two years and nine months and fifteen days before the death of Raja Ram Mohan Roy. She got married to Jyotiba Phule in the ninth year of her age. And immediately after completing her teacher training in Normal School during 1845-47, on 1 January 1848, 99 years before the independence of India, she started the first girls’ school in Budhwar Peth, Pune, at a place named Bhide Wada. And she herself started working as a teacher. And among her first students were 4 Brahmins, 1 Dhangar (from the sheep-goat herding community!) and 1 Maratha. There were a total of six students namely (1) Annapurna Joshi (2) Sumati Mokashi (3) Durga Deshmukh (4) Madhavi Thatte (5) Sonu Pawar (6) Jani Kardale. These six girls were the first students of Savitribai Phule.
After five months, Jyotiba Phule established a second school on 15 May 1848 in Maharwada (a Dalit colony is called Maharwada in Marathi). And in the same year, the Phule couple and their colleagues established an education institution for women and Shudras in Pune named ‘Native Female Schools’. Seeing all these activities, Govindrao Phule, who was Jyotiba Phule’s father, threw Jyotiba and Savitribai Phule out of the house in 1849 due to pressure from the orthodox people. And Savitribai’s parents also had the same attitude.
So Jyotiba’s Muslim friend named Usman Sheikh, after giving them shelter in his house, allowed them to open a school for adults in his house. And his sister Fatima Sheikh started helping Savitribai in the education work going on in Pune. During 1849-50, after opening schools in three districts of Pune, Satara and Ahmednagar, Savitribai Phule worked as a teacher here too. In 1851, she established an independent school for the girls of Maharwada. And on 3 July 1851, she started a girls’ school in Rasta Peth, Pune.
In 1852, a felicitation ceremony was organized by the British government for her educational work under the chairmanship of Major Candy. In which, after inspecting her schools, Savitribai Phule was declared an ideal teacher. In a newspaper named Pune Observer dated 29 May 1852, it was written that “The number of girls in Savitribai Phule’s schools is ten times more than in government schools. And the main reason for this is that the system of education for girls there is of a better standard than in government schools.”
Savitribai lived a total of 66 years and two months, but devoted every moment to public works. Jyotiba’s life journey ended on 28 November 1890, at the age of 63 years and six months. And after his death, his adopted son Yashwant passed his matriculation examination in 1893 and joined the army as a doctor. And the plague epidemic began, in which Yashwant’s wife died on 6 March 1895. And Savitribai was doing tremendous service during the plague epidemic. She carried a Dalit youth suffering from plague on her back for treatment and herself became a victim of the plague. She ended her life on 10 March 1897.
In true sense, a thousand salutations to the memory of D-class, D-caste and D-woman Yugashree Savitribai Phule! She kept trying especially to complete every work started by Jyotiba later! On Jyotiba’s first remembrance day! Otur herself was present near Ahmednagar! And in the same program, Mahatma Phule’s first biography ‘Amarjivan’ was published! On 7 November 1892, his second poetry collection ‘Baavannakashi Subodh Ratnakar’ was published!
And in 1893, she was the President of Satyashodhak Parishad near Saswad, Pune. At a time when women were forbidden to step out of their homes. This was probably the first time that Savitribai presided over a public function. This was started by her after Mahatma Phule’s departure. The event of her being conferred the position of President in the convention of Satyashodhak Samaj took place 131 years ago. Savitribai is the highest example of Phule’s independent personality. In the true sense, it is the best example of women’s liberation.
On the other hand, in Bengal too, Pandit Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar started women’s education eight to ten years later! During 1856-57! Therefore, Savitribai Phule was the first female teacher and the one who started education for women! Therefore, today on the occasion of Savitribai Phule’s 194th birthday, we are making a humble request to the President of our country, Mrs. Draupadi Murmuji, to declare Teachers’ Day in India on January 3 instead of September 5!
Dr. Suresh Khairnar, January 3, 2025, Nagpur.
