Born on 10 September 1887, Govind Ballabh Pant was a freedom fighter and the first Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. He was one of the important leaders who fought for the independence of India. Govind Ballabh Pant suffered a heart attack in 1960 and soon his health began to deteriorate; He died on 7 March 1961 at the age of 73. Today many hospitals, educational institutions and foundations in India are named after him. He received the Bharat Ratna in 1957.
After India’s independence in 1947, Govind, along with Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, was instrumental in shaping the Indian government. He was born in a Brahmin family in Almora, Uttarakhand. He completed his education at Allahabad University and worked as a lawyer in Kashipur. In 1914, he started working against the British Raj and entered politics in 1921.
He was a competent lawyer and was thus appointed by the Congress party to fight for the Kakori case in the 1920s. He soon joined the revolutionaries and stood by them in every difficulty, fighting for the freedom of our country. During his political career, he was the head of the United Provinces from 1937–1939, the first Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh from 1946–1954, and the Union Home Minister from 1955–1961.
During his tenure as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Pant worked for the upliftment of farmers and removal of untouchability. He also tried to improve the zamindari system, permanent land revenue settlement. He urged the government to reduce agricultural taxes for the benefit of farmers. While serving as the Union Home Minister, he achieved the reorganization of states on linguistic lines. He was also responsible for establishing Hindi as an official language in some states and the central government.