Maharshi Dhondo Keshav Karve
The reformer who worked all his life for the education of women and widows, and founded India's first university for women. Bharat Ratna, 1958.
Quick facts
- Born:
- 1858
- Pune link:
- Hingne, Karvenagar
- Known for:
- SNDT Women's University
- Award:
- Bharat Ratna, 1958
Life and work
Dhondo Keshav Karve taught mathematics at Fergusson College. At a time when widow remarriage was not accepted, he married a widow himself. He started a home for widows at Hingne, then a village outside Pune, and later a school for women.
A university for women
In 1916 he founded a women's university in Pune, the first in India. It later became the SNDT Women's University. He lived to be 104 and received the Bharat Ratna in 1958.
In Pune today
The Maharshi Karve Stree Shikshan Samstha still runs schools and colleges at Hingne. Karvenagar and Karve Road are named after him.
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Sources: Written by PuneDiary. Facts checked 10 October 2026.