Subodh Chandra Mallik

Subodh Chandra Basu Mallik (9 February 1879 – 14 November 1920), commonly known as Raja Subodh Mallik, was a Bengali Indian Industrialist,Philanthropist and nationalist. Mallik is noted as a nationalist intellectual who was among the cofounders of the Bengal National College, of which he was the Principle finicial supporter. He was close to Aurobindo and financed the latters nationalist publications including Bande Mataram.[1]

Mallik was born in Pataldanga suburb of Calcutta to Prabodh Chandra Basu Mallik. He graduated from St. Xaviers College Calcutta and Presidency College Calcutta before enrolling in fine arts at Trinity College Cambridge in 1900. However he returned from England before completing this, delving immediately into the nationalist movement. His palatial house in what was then Wellington square in Calcutta became a major hub of political activity. In 1906, Mallik was among a group of leading luminaries of Bengal who founded the National Council for Education to promote indigenous and nationalist education in higher education. His financial donation of Rs 100,000 supported the founding of the Bengal National College. He also founded the Life of Asia Insurance Company. His political activities earned him the ire of the Raj, and he was deported in 1908. Mallik's nationalist work and generous support of the movement earned him the colloquial title of Raja from his grateful countrymen. In independent India, Wellington Square where his palatial residence stood, is called Raja Subodh Mallik Square, while the road housing Jadavpur University, which emerged from the Bengal National College, is called Raja Subodh Mallik Road.

References

Further reading

Raja Subodh Chandra Mallik and his times. By Amalendu De. National Council of Education, Bengal. 1996 http://www.aurobindo.ru/persons/00089_e.htm

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