Rajkumar College, Raipur
Rajkumar College (or RKC) in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, is one of the oldest K-12 foundations of India. It was founded by Sir Andrew Fraser in the year 1882 at Jabalpur. The School functioned at Jabalpur till 1892 and thereafter, shifted to its present site at Raipur in 1894, with boarding house facilities. Its estate is spread over 125 acres. It is a co-education, residential cum day boarding public school affiliated to the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations, New Delhi and prepares the students for Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) (Class X) and Indian School Certificate (ISC) (Class XII) examinations.
Rajkumar College | |
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Location | |
G.E. Road, Raipur, Chhattisgarh India | |
Information | |
Established | 1882 |
Campus size | 125 acre |
Affiliation | Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations |
Website | www |
History
The school was established in 1882 by the efforts of Sir Andrew Henderson Leith Fraser, KCSI and the British authorities as Rajkumar School at Jabalpur and was closed due poor facilities and location. A decision to shift it to Raipur in 1894[1] and rechristen as Rajkumar College and founded as a Chiefs' College. RKC was created for education of sons and relatives of rulers of Chhattisgarh Feudatory States and local zamindars, who donated funds.[1][2]
In 1921, it was declared as Chiefs' College. However, in 1939, on joining as a founding member of the Public School Conference, admission was opened to all boys other than from Princely States.[3]
In 1947 the Rajkumar College became the place where the short-lived Eastern States Union was established.[4]
Present day
From 1939 to 1989, RKC was a public boys school with hostel, swimming, playground, hospital, pavilion, library, billiard room, and temple. The medium of education is English with equal emphasis on Hindi.[5]
The institution provides curricular, co-curricular and extra-curricular activities. The campus is 170 acres and has separate sports grounds such as a cricket ground with stadium and several soccer and hockey grounds and individual arena for different sports.
The college has a day school and several boarding house and buildings. The Rajendra Das Boarding House and the Balram Das Boarding House are named after the donors of the State of Nandgaon and they constitute the main building. The Tagore House, named after Rabindranath Tagore, was opened by Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of India in 1963. The college has a big dining hall, which was inaugurated by Dr. Rajendra Prasad, the first president of India. The campus houses the Koriya Museum after the main donor of the museum building, the princely state of Koriya.[6]
The school is affiliated to Indian School Certificate Examination Board, New Delhi (ICSE) and prepares the students for ICSE (Class X) and ISC (Class XII) Examinations.[5]
Co-educational school
The RKC has become a Co-Educational school from 1996 Onwards.
Management
The school is managed by a board of trustees belonging to original founders, the descendants of feudatory states and zamindars, who have hired professionals for management and day-to-day affairs.[6]
Campus & Infrastructure
The College puts up with a 125 acres campus in the midst of the city.
The Auditorium – Jashpur Hall is fully air conditioned and can accommodate more than 1700 persons. Incidentally the first Vidhan Sabha of the newly formed Chhattisgarh State was held in this hall.
Mess & Catering
The College has a big Dining Hall namely Sarangarh Dining Hall which was inaugurated by Dr. Rajendra Prasad the then President of India where over 600 students can be served meals at a time.
Guest House
Utkal Bhawan the College Guest House has adequate rooms.
Notable alumni
- Raja Digvijai Das
- Raja Chakradhar Singh
- Kamakhya Narain Singh
- Lal Chintamani Sharan Nath Shahdeo
- Dharamraj Singh
- Pravir Chandra Bhanj Deo
- Nareshchandra Singh
- Ananga Kumar Patnaik
- Sanand Mitra
- Hemendra Chandra Singh
- Vishwaraj Pratap Singh
- Yogeshwar Raj Singh
- Vishal Singh
- Pratap Keshari Deb
- Lucky Ali
References
- Rajkumar College, Raipur Central Provinces, A Sketch by G. D. Oswell (1902)
- The RoutledgeFalmer reader in history of education By Gary McCulloch
- A handbook of the Indian public schools: Issued on the 25th anniversary of the founding of the Indian Public Schools (Headmasters') Conference.
- An essay on Mugalbandi vs Gadjat and Development vs Underdevelopment
- Rajkumar College, Raipur
- Rakjumar College Archived 2011-07-15 at the Wayback Machine