LAHORE: Panelists in a talk shared their views on the life and works of architect, civil engineer and philanthropist Sir Ganga Ram and how he worked for the welfare of the poor, women and widows regardless of their backgrounds, promoted inclusiveness and gender parity.

The talk, titled ‘Lahore’s Lost Legacy: The Life of Sir Ganga Ram’, was organised virtually by Afkar-i-Taza ThinkFest as part of their ThinkFest Conversations series with two of Sir Ganga Ram’s great-great grandchildren – Dr Paul Flather, an academic and fellow of Corpus Christi College, and Kesha Ram Hinsdale, Vermont state senator in the US – as well as author and biographer Tehmina Ayub (Poonam).

Initiating the discussion, Ayub, who’s working on a biography of Ganga Ram, said Lahore has been a battleground for centuries and had historians remembering important figures, but somehow after the British took over, the sons of soil who came forward, such as Ranjit Singh, weren’t documented. “Ganga Ram did a lot for Lahore and Punjab, but nobody wrote about it. Pyarelal Bedi wrote a biography in 1940 and then Dr Bhatti wrote something 20 years ago but that was more of a catalogue lacking the flavour or mood of the person, his projects and missions. So I thought there was a lacuna and wanted to present a complete picture.”

Senator Kesha talked about the legacy of Ganga Ram and her family’s connection to him. She said he didn’t care about religions or backgrounds and believed everyone deserved water and access to medicine and education, particularly women. “In politics, we have disagreements but he believed in leaving a legacy.”

Ms Ayub then mentioned that Ganga Ram’s samadhi was being opened to public soon after 15 years after renovation.

Dr Flather recalled his visit to the Ganga Ram Hospital in Lahore and how a taxi driver didn’t charge him after knowing he was a relative. He said all the doctors there wanted to find about Ganga Ram as they had forgotten about the hospital’s founder. “Zia’s Islamisation drive proposed renaming the hospital, but the people of Lahore refused. Ganga Ram was ahead of his time; he promoted inclusiveness, gender balance, importance of welfare. He was aware of the discrimination based on status, valued the poor, had interest in schools and wanted them to focus on a simple curriculum that allowed people to fill their bellies and get jobs easily.”

Ayub chipped in that Ganga Ram was much beyond the hospital, he was aware of the need for education, health, poverty alleviation having led a tough life himself. “In 1920s he had a lot of money from his agricultural ventures so he started a widow shelter in 1921 which flourished. He then opened up schools, industrial homes for women in his desire to stop tyranny towards them. In the last year of his life he also opened up a shelter for the handicapped where he wished his samadhi to be built. He touched so many lives that till 1947 there would be a sea of people every birth anniversary on April 13. He touched so many lives.”

Kesha shared that Ganga Ram was so ahead of his time that over a century ago he focused on women’s empowerment and their access to basic necessities. “His legacy should be a reminder that you don’t have to be in a certain country to fight for the oppressed.”

Dr Flather said among the many things to admire was that Ganga Ram was a problem solver, and talked about the time when the latter was working on the court of King George, reclaiming wasteland in Punjab and renovating the sewerage system of Lahore. “He was a modernist. He gave us lessons for today: of inclusiveness and problem solving. He made a huge difference to Lahore.”

The panelists also talked about how Ganga Ram was political but practical and rational, his disagreements with Gandhi’s approaches on several occasions, the disputes over his children and what they all inherited, how he didn’t believe in social status and carried on philanthropy when it wasn’t common.

“Many people around the world might be carrying out his legacy and serving people in their own ways, as I am while being in politics unlike him.”

Published in Dawn, September 3rd, 2021