Udaipur, in the pre-independence period 1900-1947, was witness to an increasing awareness among educationalists and liberal thinkers of the particular backwardness and political stagnation of Rajasthan.This realisation provoked a move to change, and inspired certain individuals, who had imbibed ideas of voluntarism, to seize the initiative. Dr Mehta, not only played a very important role in founding Seva Mandir in 1966, but also was an inspiration to progressive change throughout Udaipur District. He was a true liberal influenced by the thoughts of Tagore, Gandhi, Dr. Kunzru, and Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya and by tenets of the scout movement. In pre-independence time he served as education minister and Prime Minister of Banswara in the State of Mewar and later as an Ambassador of independent India and as Vice Chancellor of Rajasthan University. He set up Vidya Bhavan at Udaipur in 1931, one of the pioneer co-educational institutions, with the philosophy of treating every child as a unique individual and molding them into citizens with sound moral character and a deep sense of social responsibility.