Mohan Dharia (14 February 1925 – 14 October 2013) was a former Union minister, a lawyer and social worker. During his last days he stayed in Pune. Dharia was an environmentalist and ran a non-government organisation Vanrai. He was elected to the Lok Sabha twice from Pune Lok Sabha constituency, first in 1971 as an Indian National Congress (INC) member and became a Minister of State, and later in 1977 as a Bharatiya Lok Dal member, and joined the Morarji Desai Ministry as Union Minister of Commerce. Prior to it, he remained member of the Rajya Sabha twice from INC, first 1964-1970 and then 1970- 1971.
He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan, India’s second highest civilian honour in 2005, by Government of India for his contribution in social work.
Born in at village Nate, then Kolaba district, present Mahad Taluka, Raigad district, to Manikchand Dharia, he did his schooling from Konkan Education Society, Mahad. Later he joined Fergusson College Pune to become a surgeon, but abandoned his studies to join the independence movement in 1942. Thereafter he studied law at ILS Law College, Pune University.
Awards:
Padma Vibhushan : Highest Padma Award,
D.Lit,
Indira Priyadarshini Vrikshamitra Awards,
Yashwantrao Chavan Award for Excellence,
Rajiv Gandhi Paryavaran Ratna Award,
Pune’s Pride Award,
Jeevan Gaurav Award,
Development Jewel Award,
26th Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration
(Ref : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohan_Dharia & The Hindu)