Ramchandra Sakharam Ruikar
A commemorative postage stamp on the Birth Centenary of R. S. Ruikar, a pioneer of Indian labour movement :
Issued by India
Issued on May 1, 1995
Issued for : The Department of Posts is privileged to issue a postage stamp in memory of R.S. Ruikar.
Credits :
Stamp : India Security Press, Nasik
FDC : Ruikar Birth Centenary Celebration Committee, Nagpur
Cancellation : Smt. Alka Sharma, Artist, Dept. of Posts.
Type : Stamp, Mint Condition
Colour : Single Colour
Denomination : 100 Paise
Overall Size : 3.91 x 2.90 cms.
Printing Size : 3.55 x 2.54 cms.
Perforation : 13 x 13
Paper : Indigenous Un W/M Adhesive Gravure Coated Stamp Paper in Sheets 50.8 x 47 cms.
Number of Stamps Printed : 0.6 Million
Number per issue sheet : 35
Printing Process : Photogravure
Printer : India Security Press
Name : Ramchandra Sakharam Ruikar
Born on Jan 8, 1895 at Rui, Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India
Died on
About :
- Ramchandra Sakharam Ruikar, one of the pioneers of the labour movement in India, was born on 8 January, 1895 in the village of Rui, District Kolhapur, Maharashtra.
- Having received the benefit of traditional instruction in his family during the early years of his childhood he completed school in Kolhapur and college from Pune and Nagpur, specializing in history and economics for his Masters degree. With an eye on the legal profession he took his LLB from Allahabad University in 1920. But the political ferment in the country against foreign rule had already begun to make a deep impression upon his mind. He chose Nagpur for his legal practice and political work.
- Although a nationalist, Ruikar found in the Trade Union movement not only ample scope for his legal acumen but also the fulfilment of his aspirations in the fight for the upliftment of the downtrodden workers. In 1927 he established the Nagpur Textile Union which was the first to be registered under the Trade Unions Act, 1926 in the then Central Provinces and Berar. He went on to form the textile workers federation and represent them in various committees formed by the Government, established the union of coal mine workers in Chhindwara and Chandrapur districts and the union of manganese mine workers in Mansar and Kandri in Ramtek Tehsil as well as organised many other bodies of workers who received their just rights owing to his perseverance and inspired leadership. He was twice elected the President of All India Trade Union Congress, the only central labour organisation at that time.
- In the course of long and dedicated struggle for emancipation of the workers and participation in the freedom struggle, Ruikar was imprisoned on several occasions, notably after his arrest in connection with the strike of GIP Railways employees in 1930, Model Mill workers strike at Nagpur in 1932, after the fiery speech delivered in the conference of All India Trade Union Congress at Calcutta in 1933 supporting the resolution on freedom for the country, and for his role in the Non-Cooperation and Quit India Movements.
- A powerful orator and a man of indomitable spirit, Ruikar also made his mark in the political field. With the Congress till 1938, he later joined the Forward Bloc under the leadership of Netaji and rose to be its President. In 1946 he was elected Member of the Legislative Assembly in the then Central Provinces and Berar, and was instrumental in the enactment of labour legislation of far reaching import.
- Text : Ruikar Birth Centenary Celebration Committee & Dictionary of National Biography.
