Satpal Maharaj

Satpal Maharaj (born Satpal Singh Rawat, 21 September 1951) is an Indian spiritual guru turned politician. He is a national executive member of the BJP. Currently, he serves as the tourism, cultural, and irrigation minister in the cabinet of the Government of Uttarakhand. He is the founder of Manav Utthan Sewa Samiti.

Early life Childhood Satpal was born as the eldest son of Hans Maharaj, a spiritual guru, and his second wife, Rajeshwari Devi, in a small town named Kankhal in Haridwar district. Since childhood, he has had an interest in spirituality and often practices deep meditation techniques. His brothers, Bhole Rawat and Prem Rawat are also spiritual gurus.

Satpal went to St. George's College, Mussorie for formal education.

Spiritual Master His father died in 1966, giving him the task of communicating spiritual knowledge to the world. He used to address a large crowd of followers with his spiritual discourses at very young ages. His message is "God is neither Hindu, Muslim, nor Christian. God is one and is our father".

Recognition as a Social Figure Since the early years of his life, he has been a social activist, bringing about reforms. He has opened multiple non-profit clinics and brought other important services to the people of remote areas, who do not have access to government programs due to their geographical conditions. In his teenage years, he became familiar with the problems faced by people living in mountainous, remote areas of then-Uttar Pradesh, and he out-reached people living in such areas and supported their demand for a separate state of Uttarakhand. He set up a socio-spiritual society with the objective of uplifting mankind from the morass of ignorance and superstition. The society is called "Manav Utthan Sewa Samiti", with its headquarters in Delhi, India.

Socio-Spiritual Initiatives He established a socio-spiritual organization called Manav Utthan Sewa Samiti.

Manav Utthan Sewa Samiti He founded Manav Utthan Sewa Samiti with the motive of preaching the meditation techniques called "Knowledge". The Society stands for sanskritizing the lower classes in the society and sharing with them the joys and sorrows of life as brethren by providing them with spiritual succor. It fights for their rights and against atrocities on the lower castes and condemns depriving their entry into the place of worship. Community lunch and commune living is a common feature of society.

Padyatras (Foot Marches) He headed many padayatras, both nationally and internationally, many social causes, and to bring awareness and peace. He is connected to the motive of building a better, healthy, and contented society and has made many efforts to this end, as listed below: Name of March Date Started Date Ended Place From Place To Distance Covered (Approx. in km.) Description

This foot march traversed from the often dangerous mountainous terrain and walked through 500 villages, Maharaj Ji met more than 300,000 people along the way, talking with them and listening to their grievances. The poor and needy were given medicines and blankets. At each of the 24 stops along the way, evening programs were held to discuss the problems of the local people and to inform them of the aims of the padayatra. The march culminated with a gathering of 60,000, calling for social and political awakening. A campaign to clean up the polluted Ganges also began during this march.

11 March 1985 Date unknown Gandhi Maidan, Siliguri, West Bengal Gangtok, Sikkim 250 km. The aim of this foot march was to inspire youth to create a congenial atmosphere for the development of the hilly region and demand the Government to recognize and alleviate the endemic problems of the hill areas and to listen to the grievances of the local people, who felt ignored and neglected by the authorities. It also supported and re-ignited the long-standing demand for recognition of the Nepali language, which was ultimately successful with its inclusion in the 8th Schedule of the Constitution of India.

Political career Shri Satpal Maharaj is the current Cabinet Minister in the State of Government of Uttarakhand, serving as the Minister of Tourism, Irrigation, Culture.

Works in Uttarakhand Role in the formation of Uttarakhand He had played a vital role in the formation of Uttarakhand.

Rail Line Project

He inaugurated a survey to this project as a Union Minister, and Minister of Railways of State of Uttar Pradesh (Now, in Uttarakhand) in 1996. This project got budget allocation and other clearances from the government, it is said to be the longest tunnel rail project in the country, which will play a vital role in the security of the country, and livelihood of the people of Uttarakhand. The Rishikesh to Karnprayag Rail Line is proposed to serve a vital role in the country, for prompt movement of Army (as the geographical location of the line is near India-China Border), pilgrims and locals. The foundation stone for the project survey was laid down by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, on 9 November 2011 at Rishikesh, this was a 125-kilometer railway line project. The survey of the project completed somewhere by the year 2013, however, the project was delayed by state ministers to provide necessary land to Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) for the commencement of the project construction due to nonfinalization of land acquisition rules of Uttarakhand.

Private bill in 8th schedule He brought a private member's bill to include Garhwali and Kumaoni language in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution of India.

Protein Revolution

Uttarakhand Government has inked a tourism promotion horticulture research agreement with Peru. State Government will have intergovernmental interaction of scientific communities from both the countries in order to boost horticulture and wool production in the State. According to Maharaj, the president of Peru will visit Uttarakhand in January to explore the possibilities and economic opportunities here. The MoU for tourism promotion was signed between the Uttarakhand tourism minister Amrita Rawat and Peru president Carlos Canales in the presence of the vice president of India Mohammed Hamid Ansari in their recent visit to Peru. As per agreement tourism officials and other related agencies of Peru will visit the State to study tourism activities and further possibilities of promotional chances here. Besides this Uttarakhand will also import seeds of Peru's native protein-rich high altitude cereal crop Quinoa to cultivate it here. left

International activities 1. On 17 October 2011, he delivered a speech at 66th United Nations General Assembly session held in New York City on the topic "Sport for Peace and Development".

2. On 19 October 2011, he presented the statement by India in the First Committee Thematic Debate on Conventional Weapons at 66th United Nations General Assembly session held in New York City.

COVID-19 disease Satpal Maharaj, his wife, and his 22 family and staff members tested positive for Covid-19 on 30 May 2020. Satpal Maharaj and his wife had been admitted to AIIMS hospital, Rishikesh and the couple recovered from the coronavirus within 3 weeks; they were discharged from AIIMS hospital, Rishikesh on 17 June 2020.