India, Dec. 9 -- Veteran social activist Baba Adhav, one of Maharashtra's tallest voices for unorganised labour and social equality, passed away in Pune on Monday after a prolonged illness. He was 95.

Adhav, who was battling cancer for the last four years, was hospitalised 12 days ago following a sudden deterioration in his health, was on life support at a private hospital. He died at 8.25 pm due to cardiac arrest, his aide Nitin Pawar said. He is survived by his sons Asim and Amber.

Born in Pune in 1930, Adhav grew into a figure who shaped labour movements in the state for more than six decades. For generations of headloaders, rickshaw drivers, market porters and other informal workers, "Baba"-as he was known across Pune's working-clas...