"Padma Bhushan Dr. RM. Alagappa Chettiar M.A., D.Litt. LL.D., Barrister-at-Law"
Birth:
6th April 1909 in Kottaiyur, Sivaganga District, Tamil Nadu.
Education:
M.A. Literature Presidency College, Madras Barrister at Law, Temple, England.
Business Acumen:
M.A. Literature Presidency College, Madras Barrister at Law, Temple, England.
• He launched his career by pioneering in textiles. In 1937 he started Cochin Textiles, later Alagappa Textiles at Alagappa Nagar near Thrissur in Kerala. The township for Cochin textile staff was named "Alagappa Nagar".
• As a business savvy tycoon he practiced diversification of portfolios with rubber plantations in Malaya, tin mines in Burma, textile mills in Kerala, insurance companies in Calcutta, hotels in Bombay, real estate in Bombay, plantations in Coorg, Cinema theatres in Madras, a flourishing stock exchange company and a private airline, namely Jupiter Airways. He has been referred to as the unsung business maharaja of South India in the thirties and forties.
• His stellar record as a business entrepreneur was acknowledged by the British Government when he was knighted in the 1946 New Year Honors at the age of 37. He renounced the knighthood when India attained independence.
• He proved himself a versatile business tycoon and an intrepid academician with a vision to change the mere scrub jungle of Karaikudi to a galaxy of educational institutions.
Awards:
• Conferred a doctoral degree (D.Litt.) by Annamalai University in 1943
• Conferred a doctoral degree (LL.D.) by Madras University in 1944.
• Knighted by the British Government in 1945 at age of 37. (Renounced title when India got independence)
• Conferred distinction of Padma Bhushan by the President of India on January 26, 1957.
Contributions in Education:
He harbored a firm conviction that education is an absolute must for a human being to become productive, wholesome and humane. His generous donations led to the establishment of the following primary and professional educational institutions:
• Alagappa College of Technology Campus- Anna University, Chennai
• Foundation of an engineering college at Annamalai University, Chidambaram
• Alagappa Chettiar Government College of Engineering & Technology at Karaikudi
• Alagappa Matriculation School, Chennai, Tamil Nadu
• Alagappa Arts College, Karaikudi, Tamil Nadu
• A donation to the Lady Doak College at Madurai
• Alagappa College of Polytechnic, Karaikudi, Tamil Nadu
• Alagappa Physical Education College, Karaikudi, Tamil Nadu
• Alagappa Primary School, Karaikudi, Tamil Nadu
• Alagappa Montessori School, Karaikudi, Tamil Nadu
• Alagappa Model Higher Secondary School, Karaikudi, Tamil Nadu
Social Service:
• A donation of Rs. 1 Lakh to Mahatma Gandhi at Thakkar Baba Vidyalaya
• A gift for the development of the township infrastructure of Kottaiyur
• A gift for the Meenakshi club at Kandanur, Tamil Nadu
• A donation for the H.M.I.S Fund
• A donation to establish higher education in Malaysia
• A donation to establish the South Indian Educational Society at New Delhi in 1948
• A donation for publishing Tamil Kalangiyam
• A donation to the Cochin Cyclone Relief fund
• A donation for geological research by the Travancore government
• A donation for establishing a maternity hospital and childcare centre in Cochin
• A donation for indigenous medicine research by Ernakulam Maharaja College
• A donation to fund students from Cochin to study abroad
• Funding the morning food scheme for Cochin children
• Establishing the South Indian chamber of commerce in Cochin
• The Ramanujam Institute of Mathematics in Chennai, center of mathematical research
A Visionary:
To bring prominence to the educational institutions he had the vision to convince Prime Minister Nehru to house one of the Government’s National Research Institutes in the heart of the Alagappa campus. As Dr. Radhakrishnan, the Vice President of India surmised at the opening of the Central Electro Chemical Research Institute (CECRI) on 14 Jan 1953.” The magnificent gift of 300 acres of land and fifteen lakhs of rupees by Dr. Alagappa Chettiar helped the Government of India to select Karaikudi as the seat of Electro Chemical Research Institute. Being a businessman himself, Dr. Alagappa Chettiar is aware of the industrial possibilities of our country and the need for scientific, technical and technological education in his lifetime he has built a monument for himself you have only to look around. “
A Patriot:
He was a patriot to the core. Apart from actively working with Mahatma Gandhi in supporting the Satyagraha movement, he helped the Government of India by lending his fleet of Aircrafts from his own Jupiter Airways for lifting troops during Hyderabad’s integration. He never flinched or swerved, even when some of his planes crashed in their mission.
Philanthropy:
• When he died prematurely at the age of 48, Dr. Alagappa Chettiar had redefined philanthropy and contributed more to the betterment of education in Tamil Nadu than any other person of eminence had done until then.
• Perhaps his crowning piece of philanthropy was giving away his own residence in Kottaiyur to found the Women’s college.
• As Rajaji remarked, “Dr. Alagappa Chettiar had given away freely. Students should develop that quality namely giving money earned for charity. Here is a book of life and students can learn from him how one can give to good cause, cultivate courage and emulate the spirit of Dr. Alagappa Chettiar”.
