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Question 61 of 84 · Socio-Religious Reform Movements
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One of the founders of the Deccan Education Society (1884) in Pune, along with Bal Gangadhar Tilak and others, was:

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Answer: Option D — Gopal Ganesh Agarkar

Detailed Solution

The Deccan Education Society was founded in Pune on 24 October 1884 by Gopal Ganesh Agarkar, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Mahadev Ballal Namjoshi and others, with the support of leading citizens.

About the Deccan Education Society:

  • It grew out of the efforts of young nationalists who had started the New English School in Pune in 1880.
  • Its aim was to spread modern education among the people at low cost, through Indian institutions run by Indians, in a spirit of patriotism and self-sacrifice.
  • The founders took a vow to serve as teachers for many years at a small salary.
  • It founded the Fergusson College in Pune in 1885, named after Sir James Fergusson, the Governor of Bombay, who supported it.
  • Later, Gopal Krishna Gokhale joined the society as a life member and taught at the Fergusson College.
  • Today, it runs many schools and colleges in Maharashtra.

About Gopal Ganesh Agarkar:

  • He was born on 14 July 1856 at Tembhu, in the Satara district of Maharashtra.
  • He was a social reformer, educationist, journalist and thinker.
  • He was the first editor of the Marathi newspaper "Kesari" (1881).
  • He was a strong supporter of social reform, rationalism and individual freedom.
  • He believed that social reform should come before political freedom, which led to differences with Tilak, who held the opposite view.
  • He left "Kesari" and started his own weekly, "Sudharak" ("Reformer"), in 1888, to promote social reform.
  • He supported women's education, widow remarriage, the raising of the age of marriage, and the removal of untouchability and caste distinctions.
  • He became the principal of the Fergusson College (1892).
  • He died on 17 June 1895, at the age of 39.

Why not the other options?

  • ✗Gokhale joined the society later; Ranade supported it but was not a founder in this sense; Phule was a reformer of a different kind.

Quick tip

Remember: Deccan Education Society (Pune, 1884) = Agarkar, Tilak, Namjoshi and others; Fergusson College (1885); Agarkar's "Sudharak" (1888).

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Socio-Religious Reform Movements — Preparation

This question tests your understanding of Socio-Religious Reform Movements, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.

In the 19th century, reformers worked to remove social evils and revive Indian society. This topic covers organisations such as the Brahmo Samaj, Arya Samaj, Prarthana Samaj, Ramakrishna Mission, Theosophical Society, Satyashodhak Samaj and the Aligarh Movement, along with their founders and the social reforms they achieved. Questions usually ask who founded an organisation and when, or which reformer is linked to a reform. For example, Raja Ram Mohan Roy founded the Brahmo Samaj and campaigned against sati, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar championed widow remarriage, and Jyotiba Phule founded the Satyashodhak Samaj. A table of organisation, founder, year and place covers most questions. Practise the socio-religious reform movements questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.

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