Rabindranath Tagore : The famous Indian poet, patriot, novelist and philosopher, in
Bengal. He was awarded Nobel Prize for his work Gitanjali in 1913. He is the first Asian to receive
this honour. He founded Vishwabharati which is a world university Shantiniketan in Bengal. He is
also called “Gurudev”. The National Anthem “Jana Gana Mana” was composed by him. Rabindranath
renounced his knighthood in protest against Jallianwala Bagh Massacre.
Radhakrishnan, Dr.S. : A great Indian Scholar, thinker and second President of the Indian Republic. He was also the first Vice- President of India. His great works include Bhagwat Gita., The Hindu View of Life, Indian Philosophy. He was awarded Templeton Award for1975 for special contribution to Hinduism. He was awarded Bharat Ratna posthumously
Rajagopalachari, C. : Popularly known as “Rajaji” and “CR” was the first and last Governor General of free India. C. Rajagopalachari is one of the ablest statesmen of India. In July 1948, the Kashmir
Commission arrived in India and at once set about its business in right earnest. The Razakars in Hyderabad were committing inhuman atrocities and the Nizam was asked to disband the Razakars. But he refused. So the police action was taken against him. Major General J.N.Chaudhuri was appointed Military Governor who restored law and order in the State. Rajagopalachari was the founder of Swatantra Party. As a Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu he introduced prohibition. He was also responsible for the Nuclear Test Ban. He also led the historical salt march from Tiruchi to Vedaranyam, a distance of 241 km. He was awarded the first Bharat Ratna Award in 1954.
Raja Rammohan Roy : A well known social reformer of India who dedicated his life for eradication of evils like Sati, Child marriage and Purdah. Founder of Brahmo Samaj. He is called “Father of Modern India”.
Rajendra Prasad, Dr. : He is the first unanimously elected President of the Republic of India. He was the Chairman of the Constituent Assembly while Dr. B.R. Ambedkar was the Chairman of the Indian Constitution Drafting Committee. He was the true apostle of Gandhism and a symbol of “Simple living and high thinking. He was the author of “India Divided”.
Rajiv Gandhi : son of Late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and former Prime Minister of India was
assassinated on May 21, 1991. He is also a recipient of Bharat Ratna award for the year 1991 posthumous.
Ramabai Ranade : Born in Satara district of Maharashtra. She wrote several books of which Reminiscences and Recollections written in Marathi, are considered classics. She established Poona Seva Sadan for education of women to make them economically independent. She also established Seva Sadan Nursing and Medical Associations.
Ramachandran, Dr. M.G. : The late Tamil Nadu Chief Minister was on Jan.25,1988 posthumously awarded Bharat Ratna the highest civilian honour by the nation. He was the founder leader of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam.
Ramakrishna Paramahamsa : A great Saint of India and guru of Swami Vivekananda. He hailed from
Bengal and the Ramakrishna Mission has been founded after his name.
Ramanand : Ramanand was born at Allahabad. It was through him that the Bhakti movement became popular in North India. He was the first Hindu reformer who preached in the language of the people in Hindi. He preached the worship of Rama and Sita. He also strongly condemned caste system.
Ramanuja : Ramanuja preached Vaishnavism in the south and declared Bhakti to be the sole of Salvation. His doctrine is called Visishtadvaita. He is considered to be the first great exponent of Bhakti movement.
Ramaswami, E. V. : E. V. Ramaswami popularly known as “Periyar” was born in Erode. He fought
against irrational beliefs, outmoded customs and superstitious practices of all kinds. He also fought
for the progress of the backward classes. He participated in the struggle for securing for the
Harijans the right to go into the temple and earned for himself the title of “the hero of Vaikam Satyagraha”. (Vaikam is a temple at Kerala).
Rana Pratap : The most illustrious figure in the history of Rajasthan. He was a great patriot. He refused to submit to Akbar, the greatest monarch of his time, and make marriage alliance with him. He also made a vow that as long as he did not recover Chitor he would sleep on the ground, would eat out leaves instead of dishes, and would not twist his moustaches. Akbar sent Raja Mansingh against him. Rana Pratap was defeated. He was in fact, a true son of the motherland and a noble patriot.
Ranjit Singh : His title Sher-e-Punjab (Lion of Punjab). He united all the Sikhs to form into a powerful Sikh State in 1783 AD. He was a successful administrator and organised the central and provincial administration. He reformed the revenue and provincial systems.
Robert Clive (1725-1774) : He came to India as a clerk in the East India Company. He showed such remarkable military genius that he became Commander-in-Chief. He defeated Siraj-ud-Daulah supported by the French in the Battle of Plassey in 1757. Returned to England in 1760; his later years were marked by mental disturbance and ultimately he committed suicide.
Robert Walpole : He was opposed to war and his policy of peace gave England a much needed rest from war and led the country to economic prosperity during his 21 years of office as first Prime Minister of England.
Roosevelt, F.D. : The only American to be elected four times to the highest office in the United States. During his presidentship, America entered World War II and title the scales in favour of the allies. His name is also remembered for his New Deala Reform in America. President Roosevelt defined the “four essential human freedoms”as (1) Freedom of speech and expression, (2) Freedom to worship God in one’s own way, (3) Freedom from want, (4) Freedom from fear.
