Rajkumar College, Rajkot
The Rajkumar College (or RKC) in Rajkot, Gujarat is one of the oldest K-12 institutions in India. RKC has a 26-acre (105,000 m²) campus in Rajkot.
| Rajkumar College | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | |
 | |
Gymkhana Road Rajkot 360001 India | |
| Coordinates | 22.2932°N 70.7974°E |
| Information | |
| Type | Public (1938) |
| Motto | "Knowledge is Power" |
| Established | 1868 |
| Founder | Richard Harte Keatinge & The Princely Order of Western India |
| School district | Rajkot |
| Principal | Mr. Shankar Singh Adhikari |
| Grades | K-12 |
| Number of students | 1500 |
| Houses | Jhalawar, Halar, Sorath, Gohilwar |
| Athletics | Track and field, and athletics meet annually |
| Athletics conference | Boys and Girls Assemble |
| Sports | Cricket, football, hockey, swimming, basketball, tennis, table tennis, horse riding, volleyball |
| Nickname | RKC |
| Affiliation | CBSE |
| Alumni website | http://www.rkcalumni.com/ |
| Website | www.rkcrajkot.com/ |
History
The foundation stone of Rajkumar College was laid in 1868. The institution was designed by Colonel Keatinge and was formally opened by the Governor of Bombay, H. B. Sir Seymour Fitzgerald, in 1870. The college was founded for the education of the princely order by the princes and chiefs of Kathiawad for their sons and relations.[1]
In 1938, on the initiative of its founding members, the college became a public school (private school in American terms). The college is a founding member of the Indian Public Schools Conference and a member of the Round Square conference of schools, a worldwide association of more than 60 schools that allows students to travel between schools and tour the country or do community service.
In 2001 the college opened its doors to girls, in what has been a boys' bastion for over a century. The school has around 50 girls, with boarding facilities.
Another endeavor of the Rajkumar College Administration has been Priyalok Villas, a pre-school program for the kids; originally housed in a 1909 Hyde sanatorium but now housed in a different building. Whilst having its own domain, it has access to all the facilities of the Rajkumar College.
The school is expanding. The Rajkumar College for Girls, a secondary school was inaugurated on 24 March 2011; before this, the fully functional elementary co-ed school had flourished for a decade.
Inauguration of the Rajkumar College for Girls, Rajkot
The Rajkumar College for Girls was inaugurated on 24 March 2011, by Kamla Beniwal, governor of Gujarat. The principal, Mr. Thakkar, said that it was a special day for the Rajkumar family. Almost 140 years ago on 16 December 1870 the college was inaugurated by the governor of the Bombay Presidency, Sir Seymour Fitzgerald.
Student life
Sport teams from the college travel around the country to participate in inter public school competitions and district/state/national level events.
Co-curricular activities include public speaking/recitation/debates, bio-enrichment camps, and other cultural activities.
The college motto is Yasya Bhuddhi, Balam Tasya ("Power is where there is knowledge").
Notable people
Alumni
- Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj of Kolhapur: ruler of the erstwhile Kolhapur State
- Yashwantrao Martandrao Mukne, Maharaja of Jawhar State, the first Member of Parliament from Thane (Lok Sabha constituency)
- Krishnakumarsingh Bhavasingh, Maharaja of Bhavnagar State, the first Governor of Madras state
- Nawab Muhammad Mahabat Khan III, the last Nawab of Junagadh State
- Ghulam Moinuddin Khanji Babi of Manavadar State
- Sahibzada Omeir Ahmed Khanji Babi of Devgam Junagadh State
- Raol Shri Dharmakumarsinhji, prince, ornithologist and environmentalist
- Madansinhji – Maharaja of Kutch
- Natwarsinhji Bhavsinhji of Porbandar, Maharaja of Porbandar
- K.S. Digvijaysinhji, Maharaja Jam Sahib of Nawanagar
- Kumar Shri Duleepsinhji, cricketer
- Bhagvatsingh of Gondal, Maharaja, physician and architect
- Kumar Indrajitsinhji, test cricketer
- Rajendrasinhji Jadeja, commander-in-chief of the Indian armed forces
- Kavi Kalapi, poet
- Ruswa Majhalumi, poet
- Manoharsinhji Pradyumansinhji, 15th Thakore Saheb of Rajkot, cricketer and politician
- Ashok Kamte, Mumbai Police, additional commissioner for the East Region, martyr of 26.11.2008 Mumbai attacks
- Ranjitsinhji, test cricketer and later Maharaja Jam Sahib of Nawanagar
- Takhtsinhji, Maharaja of Bhavnagar[2]
- Sujan R. Chinoy, diplomat and China expert; Ambassador of India to Japan
- Maharaja Bhavsinhji II of Bhavnagar State[2]
- Himmatsinhji Vijayaraji, noted ornithologist and a prince of Kutch State
- Bhavsinhji Madhavsinhji, the Maharana of Porbandar.
- Amarsinhji Banesinhji, the Maharana Raj Sahib of Wankaner
- Meghrajji III of Dhrangadhra-Halvad – past President of the College Council
- Lavkumar Khachar, ornithologist
Principals
- Chester Macnaghten, M.A., first principal of the school in 1870
- C. Mayne, M.A., second principal 1903-1923
- Herbert Barritt, principal in the early 1940s
- Mark Alexander Wynter-Blyth, M.A., principal 1948-1963
- Peter Rogerson, M.A., principal from the 1963 to 1991
- Rati Cooper, M.A., warden principal 1991-2000, principal emeritus 2000
- Ayaaz Khan Babi, director 2000-2008
- Vinodkumar Thakkar, principal 2008-2013
- Shankar Singh Adhikari, principal 2013-2022
- Yash Saxena, present principal since 2022
Council presidents
- Darbar Saheb Shri Mahipal Vala of Jetpur
- Thakor Saheb Chaitanyadev of Wadhwan – past
- Meghrajji III of Dhrangadhra-Halvad – past
See also
References
- A. S. Bhalla (30 March 2015). Monuments, Power and Poverty in India: From Ashoka to the Raj. I.B.Tauris. p. 151. ISBN 978-1-78453-087-7.
- Forty Years (1870–1910) of the Rajkumar College by Chester Macnaghten. First principal of the college and other sources. Compiled by Sir H.H. Bhavsinhji, Maharaja of Bhavnagar.