The Meenakshi group of colleges in Kodambakkam on Tuesday celebrated the birth centenary of their founder KR Sundararajan. The contributions of the man to the field of education, especially those of women, was recalled by Tamil Nadu Governor K Rosaiah, who was the chief guest at the function.
Rosaiah also gave away prizes to students in the presence of the college management and other educationists. Rosaiah said it was the Meenakshi College for Women started in the year 1975, which had been declared by the United Nations as the International Women’s Year.He praised the growth and impact that the college had in the field of women’s education.
“Late Professor KR Sundararajan, founder of Meenakshi Group of Institutions was a visionary, an educationist par excellence and a great philanthropist. By his dedicated service, he had lit the lamp of knowledge in the life of many a girl child,” said Rosaiah. “At a time when people used to hesitate to send their daughters for collegiate education, Professor KRS was the one who took a revolutionary step towards women’s higher education, by starting this college in 1975. I am told that without any hesitation, he donated all the land that he owned in the heart of the city for the cause of higher education. His dedication and magnanimity are most admirable and place him on a high pedestal in line with those who have sacrificed for the growth of our nation,” he added.
He also expressed concern over the fact that despite the strides made in the field of women’s education, there were many who remained illiterate, and termed this ‘worrying’. The college’s secretary K S Lakshmi, Sri Ram Group of Companies director GV Raman, Meenakshi Sundararajan Engineering College secretary K S Babai and Meenakshi College principal Karpagam Mahadevan were among those who took part in the function.