Ramkamal Sen

Infobox Person
name = Ramkamal Sen


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birth_date = 15 March 1783
birth_place = Garifa
death_date = 2 August 1844
death_place = Kolkata
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Ramkamal Sen ( _bn. রামকমল সেন)(1783 - 1844) was "the grandfather of Baboo Keshab Chandra Sen"cite book| last=Sastri | first=Sivanath | authorlink=Sivanath Sastri | others=translated by Sharat Kumar Lahiri | title=Ramtanu Lahiri: Brahman and Reformer | year=1907 | pages=180– | url=http://books.google.com/books?id=mnS-KQgZg38C&printsec=frontcover]

Born at Gariffa village on the banks of the Hooghly River, he proceeded to Kolkata for his education in 1791 (at the age of seven)A self-made man, starting as a petty compositor earning eight rupees a month,cite book| last=Mitra | first=Peary Chand | authorlink=Peary Chand Mitra | title=Life of Dewan Ramkamal Sen | year=1880] "He worked for several years in a Hindustani press after which he was appointed as a clerk in the Asiatic Society".Shibnath Shastri writes, "by dint of his capabilities, hard work and diligence, he rose to be its indigenous secretary. He was subsequently nominated a member of its committee."cite book| last=Sastri | first=S. | title=Ramtanu Lahiri O Tatkalin Bangasamaj | pages=48– | year=1903 bn icon]

In 1812, he secured a job in Fort William College.Finally, he rose to be a Dewani of the Treasury, and treasurer of the Bengal Bank.

He was connected with many of the social activities of his time. When the Hindu College was established in 1817, he was a member of its committee. After a failed first attempt to remove Derozio from the school for preaching Christianity, he also became principal of the newly established Sanskrit College for sometime.

:"Babu Ramkamal Sen, grandfather of the late Keshub Chandra Sen, acting as their mouthpeice, called a Committee meeting, and moved that Mr Derozios's manners and conduct was such as to injure the morals of the boys in touch with him and he should be removed from the staff of masters."

He was a member of the Medical Commission set up by Lord William Bentinck.

Ramkamal Sen was well known as being a staunch pro-sati Hindu and lifelong opponent of Ram Mohan Roy the Brahmo reformer and for publicly opposing (with Radhakant Deb) Roy's agitation against Sati (the cruel practice of forcing Hindu widows to be burnt on their husbands funeral pyre).cite book| last=Sharma | first=Hari Dev | title=Raja Rammohun Roy: The Renaissance Man | year=2002 | pages=26–] He was also President of the "Gaudiya Sabha", (a prominent association of Bengali Hindu "bigots").

Along with Radhakanta Deb, he was appointed the Indian member of the "Tea Committee" in 1834.cite journal| last=Mukherjee | first=S. | title=Emergence of Bengalee entrepreneurship in tea plantation in a Bengal district, 1879–1933 | journal=Indian Economic & Social History Review | year=1976 | volume=13 | issue=4 | pages=487–505] In the same year he finally published an English - Bengalee dictionary in 2 volumes with 58,000 words at Calcutta commissioned by the Serampore Baptist Mission (1817-1834).Another famous book he co-wrote was "Hitopadesha" in 1820, a collection of fables modelled on Aesop's.

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