Today, we celebrate the 187th birth anniversary of a visionary, social reformer, poet and India’s first female teacher Savitribai Phule. Savitribai was born on the 3rd of January 1831, to a family of farmers in Naigaon, Maharashtra.
At the age of 9, Savitribai married Jyotiba Phule who was only 12 years old. They did not have any kids but adopted Yashavantrao, a son of a widowed Brahmin. Adoption during the 19th century was considered taboo. The objections from family and the community did not deter the couple from fighting for what is right.
Savitribai started teaching at the age of 17. She established her first school in 1848, for women in Bhide Wada, Pune. She became the first woman teacher in the Country. She kept her school open for women from all castes. During her lifetime, she built 18 such schools in that region.
The couple’s vision of social equality included fighting against the slavery of women. They also stood for the Adivasis and Muslims. Savitribai organized a campaign against shaving the heads of Hindu widows. She also fought for widow remarriage. As a campaigner for women’s rights, she waged battles against social evils like child marriage, sati (burning the widow on her husband’s pyre) and patriarchy.
Savitribai’s husband Jyotiba Phule educated her at home. He also took part in her campaigns. The couple at their house started a home for the prevention of infanticide in 1863. It was a refuge for widows and survivors of various casualties.
Savitribai passed away due to an infection while taking care of patients during the Bubonic plague in 1897. Bubonic plague first started in China and spread around Asia via transport, rats and cargoes harboring fleas. This plague claimed the lives of millions and in India alone, it claimed around 10 million lives.
The Maharashtra Government initiated an award in her name to honor women social reformers. In 1998, a stamp was also released in her honor. In 2014, the University of Pune was renamed as Savitribai Phule Pune University.
