| Birth Date: | 1842 5, df=yes |
| Death Date: | 8 May 1914 |
| Birth Place: | Karachi, Sindh |
| Death Place: | Mediterranean Sea |
| Allegiance: |  United Kingdom |
| Branch: | British Army/Military contractor |
| Battles: | Second Afghan War |
| Laterwork: | Philanthropy |
Seth Edulji (or Eduljee) Dinshaw (18 May 1842 - 8 May 1914) was a Karachi-based Parsi philanthropist during the British colonial era. Dinshaw had risen from poverty, and became the largest landowner in the city.[1]
Dinshaw was born in Karachi on 18 May 1842.[2] The following year Karachi along with the rest of Sindh was made part of the Bombay Presidency, and alignment that would continue until the 1930s.
Dinshaw was a member of the Parsi community, he made his initial fortune during the Second Afghan War (1878–1881) by being a contractor for the British Army. He then took his wealth and invested it in land and factories which reaped him huge rewards.[3] By the late nineteenth century, he owned around half of the city of Karachi,[4] and the local government is believed to have placed an informal ban on his acquiring any more.[5] His enterprises included a factory for pressing cotton and wool for export and an ice factory.[6]
He donated large sums of money for various charitable works which benefited both his own community as well as the general public at large. These included:
He was a Director of Land and Shipping Co and a delegate of the Parsi Matrimonial Court. He was also a Trustee of the Karachi Port Trust (KPT), located on Eduljee Dinshaw Road, and a member of Karachi Municipal Corporation (KMC).
For his services to the public, he was the first person in the city to be appointed a Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire (CIE). The award was announced in the 1899 New Year Honours list on 2 January 1899,[12] and he was invested by Queen Victoria at Windsor Castle on 1 March 1900.[13]
On 8 May 1914, while on his way to England, he died at sea, near Port Said, Egypt.
In recognition of his contribution and that of his first son Nadirshaw, to the city of Karachi, statues of them were placed at the intersection of Karachi's main roads in the 1930s. When unveiling the statue of Edulji Dinshaw, Sir Frederick Sykes, then Governor of Bombay, remarked that 'It is peculiarly appropriate that the city of Karachi should choose Mr. Edulji Dinshaw as a fitting subject to be honored by the erection of a statue in one of the most imposing and important sites in the whole town, for he had the vision to recognize fully the possibilities of greatness that the city held and also contributed very largely himself to developing it.'[14] After partition, the statues were removed, and can now be seen in the grounds of the Karachi Parsi Institute.
He had two sons, Nadirshaw Edulji Dinshaw and Framroze Edulji Dinshaw (known as FE Dinshaw).
His grandson Hoshang NE Dinshaw, who was Nadirshaw Edulji Dinshaw's oldest son, played an important part in the economic development of Pakistan, including as the President of the Central Board of Directors of the National Bank of Pakistan.[15]
The descendants of Seth Edulji Dinshaw have kept up his philanthropic tradition. The Edulji Dinshaw family remains particularly noted for their charitable donations, especially to non-Parsis.[16]