M. M. Jacob facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Mundakkal Mathew Jacob
9th Governor of Meghalaya
In office 19 June 1995 – 11 April 2007
Chief Minister	S. C. Marak B. B. Lyngdoh E. K. Mawlong Flinder Anderson Khonglam D. D. Lapang J. Dringwell Rymbai
Preceded by	Madhukar Dighe
Succeeded by	Banwari Lal Joshi
Governor of Arunachal Pradesh
Additional Charge
In office 24 January 2007 – 6 April 2007
Chief Minister	Gegong Apang
Preceded by	Shilendra Kumar Singh
Succeeded by	K. Sankaranarayanan (Additional Charge)
Personal details
Born	9 August 1926
Died	8 July 2018(2018-07-08) (aged 91) Pala, Kerala, India
Spouse	Achamma Kunnuthara
Children	4
Alma mater	University College Thiruvananthapuram, Lucknow University, University of Chicago, Sacred Heart College, Thevara, Loyola College, Chennai

M. M. Jacob (born August 9, 1926 – died July 8, 2018) was an important Indian politician. His full name was Mundakkal Mathew Jacob. He was a member of the Indian National Congress party.

Jacob was married to Achamma Kunnuthara from Tiruvalla, Kerala. They had four daughters. He became the Governor of Meghalaya in 1995. He served two terms, meaning he was Governor again in 2000. He also worked as the Governor of Arunachal Pradesh for a short time in 1996. He holds the record for being the longest-serving Governor of any Indian state, serving for over 11 years.

Jacob's Education

M. M. Jacob went to several colleges and universities. He studied at:

• University College, Trivandrum
• Sacred Heart College, Thevara in Cochin
• Loyola College, Madras
• Lucknow University

He earned a degree in Law. He also completed a master's degree in Political Science. He had a special diploma in Income Tax Law. Later, he studied social work at the University of Chicago in the U.S.A.

Working with Bharat Sevak Samaj

In 1954, Jacob joined an organization called Bharat Sevak Samaj. This group was not political. Its goal was to get people to help with India's development plans. The first Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, was its president.

Jacob helped train volunteers for this group. He worked in Delhi for about two years, training leaders. He also helped organize camps for students and young people in South India. Later, he became the Chairman of Bharat Sevak Samaj in Kerala. He was also the Vice-Chairman for the main group in New Delhi.

Helping Cooperative Movements

Jacob was a big part of the Cooperative Movement in India. Cooperatives are groups of people who work together for a common goal. He was the President of the Kerala State Cooperative Rubber Marketing Federation from 1975 to 1981.

He also served as a director for several other cooperative groups. These included the Kottayam District Cooperative Bank and the Pala Rubber Marketing Cooperative Society. He was also the Chairman of the Chitralekha Film Cooperative Society for over ten years.

Jacob also led or was a member of many government companies and boards:

• Chairman of Plantation Corporation, Ltd (1974–78)
• First Chairman of "Oil Palm India Ltd" (1977–1978)
• Member of the Governing Board of Hindustan Latex (1975–78)
• Member of the Indian Coffee Board (1973–75)
• Member of the Indian Rubber Board for many years
• Director of Indian Overseas Bank (1977–82)
• Director of Kerala State Red Cross

His Role in Politics

M. M. Jacob was a very active member of the Indian National Congress party. He held many important positions within the party. He was a permanent invitee to the Congress Working Committee, which is a very important group in the party. He also worked as the General Secretary and Treasurer for the party in Kerala.

As a Publisher and Editor

Jacob was also involved in publishing and media. He published a journal for social workers called 'Bharat Sevak'. He was the chief editor of 'Congress Review', a newspaper published every two weeks. He was also the Managing Director of Veekshanam, a Malayalam daily newspaper. He wrote many articles and books.

In the Indian Parliament

Jacob was elected to the Rajya Sabha, which is one of the two houses of the Indian Parliament. He was elected in 1982 and again in 1988.

In Parliament, he held important roles:

• Chairman of the Committee on Subordinate Legislation (1984–85)
• Chairman of the Parliament Standing Committee for the Ministry of Home Affairs (1993–94)

He was also elected as the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha in 1986. Later, he served as a Union Minister of State. This means he was a minister in charge of different government departments. He worked in the Ministries of Parliamentary Affairs, Water Resources, and Home Affairs between 1987 and 1993.

Representing India Globally

M. M. Jacob traveled around the world to represent India. He attended many international meetings and conferences.

• In 1957, he went to the VI World Youth Festival in Moscow.
• In 1956, he attended an International Conference of Work Camp Leaders organized by UNESCO.
• He led youth groups from India to North Vietnam (1957) and China (1957).
• He was a delegate at the Disarmament conference in Mexico (1985).
• He attended the United Nations General Assembly in New York in 1985 and 1993.
• He also attended Human Rights Conferences in Strasbourg, France (1993) and Vienna, Austria (1994).

Representing Parliament and the Commonwealth

As Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, Jacob also represented the Indian Parliament.

• He attended the Commonwealth Parliament conference in London in 1986.
• He led the Indian Parliamentary Delegation to Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) in 1986.
• He led the Indian delegation to the Inter-Parliamentary Union Conference in Budapest (1989).
• In 1994, he was a Commonwealth Observer. He helped watch the first general election in South Africa after apartheid.

Later Years

In his later years, Jacob was very interested in local democracy in tribal areas. He especially focused on Meghalaya. He believed that modern ideas and old traditions could work together to make democracy stronger in these areas.

M. M. Jacob passed away on July 8, 2018, at the age of 91.