Zehra Ali Yavar Jung

Through the Years

The National Society for Clean Cities runs a children’s home in Bandra that uniquely combines educational, medical, nutritional, vocational, and cultural welfare for poor children, a comprehensive model rare in 1970s Mumbai.

Zehra Ali Yavar Jung’s husband, Ali Yavar Jung, served as governor of Maharashtra from 1971 until his death in 1976, a period coinciding with her active social reform efforts in the state.

Despite being married to a diplomat who engaged with global leaders like Charles de Gaulle and Lyndon B. Johnson, Zehra Ali Yavar Jung focused her efforts locally, spearheading urban welfare in Mumbai rather than diplomatic social work.

Zehra Ali Yavar Jung’s founding of the Society For Clean Cities created a model of integrated slum welfare that combined sanitation, education, and vocational training, influencing subsequent urban social reform efforts in Mumbai. Her children’s home in Bandra became a prototype for NGO-run welfare homes addressing multidimensional poverty in urban India. Her work helped shape a practical approach within Maharashtra's social policies toward slum rehabilitation.