our presidents—sir datar singh - Indian Dairy Association

Starting from this issue "Indian Dairyman" brings to you the Living History of IDA'sPast Presidents ‐the legends who have shaped and nurtured the Association since itsinception in 1947. In the first of the series we salute the 1st President of IDA, Sir DatarSingh. The norms and mores sown by this doyen of the Association have beenintegrated into its bricks and mortar and continue to live with us till date.J.D. Birla and other leading industrialists from India. In1945, he led the Indian Industrial Delegation to Australiaand New Zealand along with Shri Neville Wadia, ShriS.P. Jain and Shri Adamjee. They were warmly receivedby the then Governor General, the Duke of Gloucesterand the Prime Minister, Mr. John Curtin.In 1947, the Govt. of India appointed a CattlePreservation and Development Committee under theChairmanship of Sir Datar Singh. During his tenure, heled the Indian delegation to the FAO LivestockConference held in 1950. In 1953, he led the Indiandelegation to the International Dairy Congress at Hague.His familySir Datar Singh was born in a village in Montgomerydistrict of Punjab. His father, Sardar Hukum Singh wasone of the largest land owners of the district .His mother Smt. Sadabai, was a saintly lady whoused her vast wealth in distributing free medicines tothe poor and needy and in offerings to religious centres.From childhood Sir Datar Singh was very generousheartedwith a deep concern for others. He always hada compassion for animals anda deep respect for all humanbeings – rich or poor, high orlow.In 1914, he married BibiSatwant Kaur, daughter of therenowned Punjabi scholar andAyurvedic Specialist ofAmritsar, Bhai Mohan Singhji.When a famous saint asked himwhat he desired most, heunhesitatingly replied, ‘I wantthe whole world to be myfriend.’Award & AccoladeHe was honoured with the titleSardar Bahadur in 1937.APRIL 2011For his successful attempts to improve cattle breeding,the British Government conferred Knighthood on DatarSingh.In his publication entitled “Reorganisation ofGaushalas and Pinjrapoles in India,” Sir Singh stresseson the need for Gaushalas and Pinjrapoles to adoptmodern methods of breeding and management for thedevelopment of cattle.His immortal memoriesSir Datar Singh passed away peacefully on May 17,1973 leaving behind his widow, two sons MahinderSingh and Mahendrapal Singh and two daughters, KirpalKaur and Amiteshwar Anand and a large number offriends and admirers to mourn his loss. Today his granddaughter,Mrs. Maneka Gandhi carries forth his legacy.Maneka Gandhi, the former minister of environmentand forests is a highly visible face of environment.In conclusion, our editorial team would like tothank late Smt. Amiteshwar Anand for her unstintingcooperation in framing together the life-sketch of thispioneering dairyman of India.INDIAN DAIRYMAN19