Daniel Hamilton (businessman)
Encyclopedia
Sir Daniel Mackinnon Hamilton (1860–1939) was a Scottish
businessman who made Bengal
his second home. He established a zamindari in Gosaba
, where he experimented with programmes of rural and social upliftment. He was a visionary and builder of rural reconstruction programmes at a time when the Indian national movement
was gaining momentum, and gave importance to rural upliftment and self help.
, off the west coast of Scotland. He was sent out to Bombay in 1880 to look after the branch of the mercantile firm Mackinnon Mackenzie.
He was married to Margaret Elizabeth Hamilton (later Lady).
system in Gosaba, and in all of Sunderbans, and thus educated the people to share responsibility. His championing of the cooperative society in the Sunderbans ran parallel with the growth of the cooperative movement in India. He also established the cooperative credit society with 15 members in Gosaba. He provided an initial capital of Rs
. 500 for the society, forming "...a nucleus of a group of rural credit societies...". In 1918 he started a Consumers' Cooperative Society
. In 1919 he set up a central model farm
to experiment with paddy
, vegetables and fruits. A Cooperative Paddy Sales Society was established in 1923. In 1924 he established the Gosaba Central Cooperative Bank, and in 1927 he established the Jamini Rice Mill. In 1934 he started the Rural Reconstruction Institute, and two years later he began the issue of one rupee notes in Gosaba.
He was a contemporary and close associate of the Nobel Laureate
poet, Rabindranath Tagore
, with whom he exchanged several letters on the need for village reconstruction and cooperative societies. He was also considered to be close to Mahatma Gandhi
.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
businessman who made Bengal
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
his second home. He established a zamindari in Gosaba
Gosaba
Gosaba is a village in the Canning subdivision of South 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the last inhabited area before the deep forests of the Sundarbans start. It has a police station, a community development block, and an assembly constituency...
, where he experimented with programmes of rural and social upliftment. He was a visionary and builder of rural reconstruction programmes at a time when the Indian national movement
Indian independence movement
The term Indian independence movement encompasses a wide area of political organisations, philosophies, and movements which had the common aim of ending first British East India Company rule, and then British imperial authority, in parts of South Asia...
was gaining momentum, and gave importance to rural upliftment and self help.
Early life
Hamilton was brought up in a business family on the Isle of ArranIsle of Arran
Arran or the Isle of Arran is the largest island in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland, and with an area of is the seventh largest Scottish island. It is in the unitary council area of North Ayrshire and the 2001 census had a resident population of 5,058...
, off the west coast of Scotland. He was sent out to Bombay in 1880 to look after the branch of the mercantile firm Mackinnon Mackenzie.
He was married to Margaret Elizabeth Hamilton (later Lady).
Career
He became the chief of Mackinnon Mackenzie in Calcutta in the early twentieth century. In 1903 he bought land of "... about 9000 acres in Gosaba and had it reclaimed by felling the woods and raising embankment on the riverside". His involvement with Gosaba was motivated by his desire to improve the living conditions of the poverty stricken people of British India. He introduced the cooperativeCooperative
A cooperative is a business organization owned and operated by a group of individuals for their mutual benefit...
system in Gosaba, and in all of Sunderbans, and thus educated the people to share responsibility. His championing of the cooperative society in the Sunderbans ran parallel with the growth of the cooperative movement in India. He also established the cooperative credit society with 15 members in Gosaba. He provided an initial capital of Rs
Indian rupee
The Indian rupee is the official currency of the Republic of India. The issuance of the currency is controlled by the Reserve Bank of India....
. 500 for the society, forming "...a nucleus of a group of rural credit societies...". In 1918 he started a Consumers' Cooperative Society
Consumers' cooperative
Consumer cooperatives are enterprises owned by consumers and managed democratically which aim at fulfilling the needs and aspirations of their members. They operate within the market system, independently of the state, as a form of mutual aid, oriented toward service rather than pecuniary profit...
. In 1919 he set up a central model farm
Model Farm
A model farm was an 18th–19th century experimental farm, which researched and demonstrated improvements in agricultural techniques, efficiency, and building layout. Education and commitment to improving welfare standards of workers were also aspects of the ideal farm movement...
to experiment with paddy
Paddy field
A paddy field is a flooded parcel of arable land used for growing rice and other semiaquatic crops. Paddy fields are a typical feature of rice farming in east, south and southeast Asia. Paddies can be built into steep hillsides as terraces and adjacent to depressed or steeply sloped features such...
, vegetables and fruits. A Cooperative Paddy Sales Society was established in 1923. In 1924 he established the Gosaba Central Cooperative Bank, and in 1927 he established the Jamini Rice Mill. In 1934 he started the Rural Reconstruction Institute, and two years later he began the issue of one rupee notes in Gosaba.
He was a contemporary and close associate of the Nobel Laureate
Nobel Prize in Literature
Since 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
poet, Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore , sobriquet Gurudev, was a Bengali polymath who reshaped his region's literature and music. Author of Gitanjali and its "profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse", he became the first non-European Nobel laureate by earning the 1913 Prize in Literature...
, with whom he exchanged several letters on the need for village reconstruction and cooperative societies. He was also considered to be close to Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...
.
External links
- Portrait of Sir Daniel Mackinnon Hamilton, ScranScranScran is a Scottish online resource for educational use by the public, schools, further education and higher education. It presents 360,000 images and sounds contributed by museums, galleries, archives and the media...