Dan Singh Bisht

Thakur Dan Singh Bisht (1906 – 10 September 1964) was a timber industrialist and philanthropist from Kumaon, Uttarakhand, India.^[1]

Thakur Dan Singh Bisht
Born	1906
Died	1964 (aged 57–58)
Nationality	Indian
Occupation	Philanthropist
Known for	Philanthropy, education, timber industry
Notable work	DSB Campus College, Berinag tea

At its height, his timber depots with attendant offices and bungalows for managers extended across the Himalayas from Lahore to Wazirabad in what later became Pakistan, and from Jammu to Pathankot, Kartanya Ghat and Kaurilya Ghat, C.B.Ganj in Bareilly, Bihar, Tanakpur, Kathgodam, Pithoragarh, Haldwani to Goalpara and Garo Hills, as well as Bardiya district and Kathmandu in Nepal. The properties he and his father acquired across different regions gradually made him a well-known figure in local communities. His presence, combined with his approachable nature and acts of generosity, led to his remembrance in local accounts—often portrayed as a man on horseback, embodying the spirit of service and leadership. His father's company, D.S. Bisht and Sons,^[2] was formed by Dev Singh Bisht and included his sons, Dan Singh Bisht and Mohan Singh Bisht. At its peak, the company employed over 5,000 people and handled business worth millions of rupees.

Reports suggest that the firm was actively bidding for contracts as far as the Andaman Islands and even Brazil around the time Dan Singh Bisht died, shortly after acquiring the Beldanga Sugar Mill in Murshidabad. He had apparently collapsed in his suite at the Grand Hotel (Kolkata) due to health issues and the stress of the post-independence economic environment. He had recently sold the plant he had set up at a discount, as the Government had blocked the export of machinery from Calcutta Port despite earlier authorization and financial support. The Bisht Industrial Corporation Ltd., formed in 1956 to set up a sugar factory at Kichha, was aimed at supporting sugarcane cultivators in Nainital. However, after Dan Singh Bisht sold his shares in 1963 and died in 1964, the factory never became operational. The Government took it over in 1970, under the Bisht Industrial Corporation Limited (Acquisition of Undertaking) Act, 1971.^{[citation needed]}