Pandit Gopabandhu Das was born on 9 October 1877 in Suando village in the district of Puri to Daitari Dash and Swarnamayee Devi. He had his early education in his village school and in Rupdeipur Minor school. Thereafter he went to Puri Zila School where he passed the Entrance examination in 1899. Then he came to Cuttack and took admitted to Ravenshaw College and completed his graduation in 1904. Though he took admitted in both post-graduation and Law in Calcutta, he could not continue his post-graduation but completed the law degree only. He first joined as a headmaster in Nilagiri High School but thereafter came to Cuttack to start his law business there and in Puri. For some time he was also appointed as a pleader for the state of Mayurbhanj but quit the job to make himself available full time for political activities and social work. Considering education to be the potential instrument of national development he wanted to prepare the youths with sterling qualities of head, heart, and hand. He, therefore, started a school in Satyabadi in line with ancient Gurukul tradition which became a National School during the non-cooperation movement. Though his actual goal was a separate state of Odisha he merged that movement with congress’ non-cooperation program. Thus all the members of Satyabadi joined congress which became the hotbed of the non-cooperation movement in Odisha. In fact, the branches of Satyabadi National school were opened in Sambalpur, Chakradharpur, and Bahadagoda where its members Nilakantha Das, Godavarish Mishra, and Krupasindhu Mishra went to spread the message of non-cooperation with the objective of imparting such education which would make the student a complete human being inculcated with the true spirit of nationalism. He was the President of the Orissa Congress Committee from 1920 to 1928. After the suspension of the non-cooperation movement, he was arrested in 1922 and lodged in Hazaribagh jail for two years. But after his release in 1924, he started the campaign to spread the message of charkha and other constructive programs of Congress. At the request of Lala Lajpat Rai, he joined the Servant of Peoples Society and implemented its various programs. With the encouragement and sponsorship of Hindu Mahasabha, he also opened a widow rehabilitation center in Puri, besides campaigning against untouchability in the Hindu Society. Since spreading the message of independence and other constructive programs of Congress were the cardinal objectives of his activities he, therefore, chose the idea of educating the people through journals and newspapers for which he set up a press and introduced the weekly newspapers ‘The Samaj’ and ‘ Satyabadi’ to arouse the people through criticism to government. As a true Gandhian Gopabandhu not only dreamt of an India free from the yoke of the British government but also from the oppression of zamindars and Rajas. He seriously took up the cause of the peasant revolts in Kanika in the twenties against their king and extended his moral support to them for which he earned the wrath of the Raja of Kanika. Devoting his entire life and wealth to the service of the people and the cause of independence he fell ill and died at the age of 51 on 17 June 1928. Before his death, he is a will handed over his press and ‘ The Samaj’ to Servant of Peoples Society and wished its profit to be used for the welfare of the people.
