Obituary Notice

Summary

This obituary commemorates Dr. Hiralal (1867–1935), a renowned archaeologist, epigraphist, ethnographer and linguist from the Central Provinces. Beginning his career as a teacher and educationist, he promoted primary education for girls and lower‑caste communities and served twice as famine relief officer. He later joined the Census and Ethnography Department, where his studies of tribes and castes informed official reports. His Descriptive List of Inscriptions in the Central Provinces and Berar and his catalogue of Sanskrit and Prakrit manuscripts illuminated the region’s history and literature. He contributed substantially to the monumental “Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces,” presided over the Nagari Pracharini Sabha, and wrote scholarly papers for Epigraphia Indica. Dr. Hiralal was awarded an honorary D.Litt. and served as Deputy Commissioner of several districts. The obituary notes his charitable bequests to educational institutions and his enduring legacy.