Jayant Salgaonkar (1 February 1929 – 20 August 2013) was an Indian astrologer, businessman, historian, publisher and writer. He is known for founding Kalnirnay, a calendar published in India. Kalnirnay is the world's largest selling publication (almanac).
Education and career
He was born in 1929 in Malvan in Sindhudurga district of Maharashtra. Salgaonkar did his schooling till the 10th grade. He has been interested in astrology since his childhood. In 1973, he founded Kalnirnay, a yearly almanac of all religions providing simplified information about the Panchang, auspicious days, festivals, holidays, sunrise and sunset. He sold over 10 million copies in nine languages. He was the pioneer of the daily horoscope and the daily crossword in the Marathi language newspaper.
Published books
Sundarmath
Deva Tuchi Ganeshu
Dharma-Shatriy Nirnay
Kalnirnay
Panchang
Devachiye Dwari
Rastyvarache Dive
Awards and recognition
He has been awarded Jyotirbhasakr by Sakeshwar Vidhyapeeth and Mumbai Jyotirvidyalay. He holds a D.Lt. from Maharashtra Jyotish Vidyapeeth. He was conferred with a Lifetime Achievement award by Konkan Marathi Sahitya Parishad. In May 2013, he was given Saraswat Chaitanya Gaurav Purashkar by Saraswat Prakashan.
Death
He died on 20 August 2013 in the Hinduja Hospital in Mahim, Mumbai after a brief illness. He was cremated at at the Dadar crematorium. His last rites were attended by political leaders such as Ajit Pawar, Narayan Rane, Jayant Patil, Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray. He is survived by his wife and three sons.