Jaydev Mohanlal Dave

Jaydev Mohanlal Dave

Passed away peacefully at Rose Arbor Hospice on Thursday, December 16, 2021. He was 94.

Born on 29th of November, 1927 as the fifth son of Mohanlal Dave and Kantaben Dave, he spent his childhood in western India. He attended Birla Vishvakarma Mahavidyalaya (BVM), Gujarat in 1948, earning his Civil Engineering degree from there, after which he traveled to the USA for postgraduate studies, earning his MS and MPH from the University of Minnesota followed by a PhD from UNC Chapel Hill. After his doctorate, he worked for the US Federal Government at the Robert A. Taft Sanitary Engineering Center in Cincinnati, Ohio, (now part of the EPA) until his return to India in 1963. There he met Arun and they were married in 1965.

His life's work has been to help provide clean air, clean water, sanitation & environmental conservation in India and many other developing countries around the world. Upon his return to India, he focused on public health, water and air pollution control. In 1989 he retired from Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, India, having served as Dean and Professor Emeritus at the School of Environmental Sciences. After retirement, he continued to make his knowledge and expertise available as a consultant on air and water pollution control to several national and international agencies. He had traveled around the world, having visited every continent save Antarctica.

A believer in the simple way of life built around "Satya", the Sanskrit word for Truth, coupled with a practical idealism as espoused by Mahatma Gandhi. From 1964 until 2017 he volunteered his time and expertise at the Kasturba Health Society located in Wardha, the place of Mahatma Gandhi's residence.

Closer to home, he was particularly fond of road trips which dovetailed with his affinity for working on cars. He enjoyed gardening and was a voracious reader. He had a great sense of humor and enjoyed having company over for meals at every opportunity. He was always willing to lend a helping hand to family, friends and complete strangers alike, no matter what.

He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Arun Dave; his younger brother, Harshad Dave, residing in Alpharetta, GA; his sons Gaurav (Vipra) Dave of Kalamazoo, MI and Malay (Katyayani) Dave of Alpharetta, GA; his granddaughters, Keshavi and Nitya. He was preceded in death by his parents; four of his older brothers and two younger brothers.

Memorial and prayer service followed by cremation will be on Wednesday, December 22nd, 2021, 11:00 am, at Langeland Family Funeral Homes, Westside Chapel, 3926 S. 9th St. Kalamazoo, MI 49009.

In lieu of flowers, we suggest donations to: Rose Arbor Hospice, 5473 Croyden Ave, Kalamazoo, MI 49009, Phone: (269) 345-0273 or Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes, 901 Portage St. Kalamazoo, MI 49001, Phone: (269) 488-2617.

To leave an online condolence or memory of Jaydev, please visit https://www.langelands.com