Pandurang Sadashiv Sane

Pandurang Sadashiv Sane (Marathi pronunciation:  pronunciation) ; 24 December 1899 – 11 June 1950), also known as Sane Guruji (Guruji meaning "respected teacher") by his students and followers, was a Marathi author, teacher, social activist and freedom fighter from Maharashtra, India. He is referred to as the National Teacher of India. Sane was born on 24 December 1899 to Sadashivrao and Yashodabai Sane in Palgad village near Dapoli town, Bombay State in British India (in present-day Ratnagiri district of the Konkan region of Maharashtra state). He was their third child and second son. His father, Sadashivrao, was a revenue collector traditionally referred to as a khot, who evaluated and collected village crops on behalf of the government, and was allowed to keep twenty-five percent of his collections as his own share. The family was relatively well off during Sane's early childhood, but their financial condition later deteriorated, leading to their house being confiscated by government authorities. Unable to face the trauma and hardship, Sane's mother Yashodabai died in 1917. His mother's death due to a lack of medical facilities as well as his inability to meet her at her deathbed would haunt Sane Guruji for the rest of his life.