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PERSONS IN NEWS - January 2021

Jan 2021

May 18, 2021

Poondi K. Thulasiah Vandayar Passes Away

Veteran Congressman and educationalist Poondi K. Thulasiah Vandayar passed away at the age of 92 due to age-related health problems.
A scion of the Vandayar family of Poondi, near Thanjavur, which founded the A. Veeriya Vandayar Memorial Sri Pushpam College to educate the rural masses in 1956, he shouldered the responsibility of running the institution till his death.
He had served as the president of Thanjavur District Congress Committee in the 1970s and was a Member of Parliament representing Thanjavur constituency from 1991 to 1996.

Eminent Tamil Writer Ki Rajanarayanan Passes Away

Ki. Rajanarayanan the grand old man of modern Tamil literature and winner of Sahitya Akademi award, died in Puducherry. He was 98.
Born in Idaiseval near Kovilpatti, Rajanarayanan popularly known as Ki.Ra, moved to Puducherry in 1989 after his appointment as the professor of folklore of the Tamil Department of Pondicherry University.
A pioneer in writing stories in dialects, Ki. Rajanarayanan also authored a dictionary of dialect — Karisal Kaatu Sollagarathi — which paved way for similar dictionaries from other regions of the state.
He won the Sahitya Akademi award in 1991 for his novel 'Gopallapurathu Makkal' depicting the Telugu people who had migrated to southern parts of Tamil Nadu. It was followed by another novel 'Andaman Naicker.'

May 17, 2021

Famous Mathematician MS Narasimhan Passes Away

Distinguished mathematician Prof. M S Narasimhan FRS passed away.
Famous for Narasimhan-Seshadri theorem, he made pioneering contributions to differential & algebraic geometry.
He played key role in development of Mathematics in India.
He was the only Indian to be awarded with King Faisal International Prize for Science & First Chair of National Board for Higher Mathematics.
Prof. M S Narasimhan contributions are in the areas of Algebraic Geometry, Differential Geometry, Representation Theory of Lie groups and Partial Differential Equations.
Several distinguished Indian mathematicians were his former research students.
Prof. M S Narasimhan has played a key role in the development of Mathematics in India and in developing countries by influencing several mathematicians and by creating structures for promoting research in Mathematics.
He was the founding-Chairman of the National Board of Higher Mathematics of the Government of India.
He is a recipient of Srinivasa Ramanujan Medal of INSA (1988).
Among the other distinctions and awards he received are: King Faisal International Prize for Science (2006), TWAS Award for Mathematics (1987), CV Raman Birth Centenary Award of Indian Science Congress Association (1994), SS Bhatnagar Prize and Honorary Fellowship of TIFR.
He was awarded Padma Bhushan by the President of India and "Chevalier de l'ordre du Merite" by the President of France.

May 16, 2021

Former CBI Officer K. Ragothaman Passes Away

Retired CBI officer K. Raghothaman, who was the chief investigation officer of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) that probed the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case in the early 1990s, died. He was 76.
In his career spanning nearly four decades, between 1968 and 2006, the Rajiv Gandhi assassination probe alone took almost a decade. He was awarded the Police Medal in 1988 and President Medal in 1994.
Although he probed several high-profile cases across the country, it was a book he authored after retirement – "Conspiracy to Kill Rajiv Gandhi" – that stoked a huge controversy because of the claims he made against the then CBI director D. R. Karthikeyan and former IB chief M. K. Narayanan.

May 15, 2021

Fire Services, Civil Defence & Home Guard Chief Passes Away

Senior IPS officer Mohammed Jawed Akhtar who headed the directorate general of fire services, civil defence and home guard under the Home Ministry died. He was 59.
The 1986-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer of Uttar Pradesh cadre was appointed as the director general (DG) of fire services, civil defence and home guard in August last year.
He was set to retire from service in July.
The central police organisation that works under the command of the Union home ministry is headquartered in the national capital.
Akhtar, before being appointed to the post, was serving as the Special DG with the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).

Times Group's Indu Jain Passes Away

Times Group chairperson Indu Jain died due to Covid-related complications. She was 84.
Hailing her as a visionary, Times Now TV channel, part of the Times Group, described Jain as a lifelong spiritual seeker, pioneering philanthropist, distinguished patron of the arts, and passionate proponent of women's rights.
After becoming chairman of the Times Group in 1999 she evolved a distinctive leadership style, characterised by compassion and inclusiveness that helped propel the group to new heights.
She set up The Times Foundation in 2000, with sustainable development and transformational change as its key goals. One of India's most respected non-profits, it provides community services and runs the Times Relief Fund to offer assistance during cyclones, earthquakes, floods, epidemics and other crises.
She was the founder president of FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO), established in 1983 to promote entrepreneurship and professional excellence among women in India. From 1999, she also served as chairperson of Bharatiya Jnanpith Trust, founded in 1944 by Sahu Shanti Prasad Jain, her father-in-law, to promote literature in Indian languages.

May 13, 2021

Former Acting Chief Justice of Gujarat HC Vijay Manohar Sahai Passes Away

Former acting Chief Justice of the Gujarat High Court, Justice Vijay Manohar Sahai, died. He was 68.
Justice Sahai, who was a Judge in the Allahabad High Court, graduated in Law from the University of Allahabad in 1975 and got enrolled as an advocate in January 1976.
Justice Sahai, who was appointed Standing Counsel for the New India Assurance Co., Union Bank of India, and Allahabad Bank, was elevated as permanent Judge on February 5, 1999 and was later on transferred to Gujarat High Court.

Manisha Kapoor Joins Executive Committee of ICAS

Advertising industry watchdog Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) announced that its general secretary Manisha Kapoor has been appointed to the executive committee of the International Council for Advertising Self-Regulation (ICAS).
She will be one of the four global vice-presidents on the executive committee. Set up by the European Advertising Standards Alliance in 2008, ICAS is a global platform of self-regulatory organizations (SROs).
Until April, ASCI served on the executive committee as a member for a two-year term. Now, Kapoor will play a leadership role on the committee till 2023.
In her role as part of the ICAS leadership team, she will promote advertising self-regulation as an optimal mechanism for consumer protection, strengthen ICAS as a global alliance and facilitate knowledge sharing among SROs to establish best practices and monitor global trends in the advertising ecosystem that impact self-regulation.

Eminent Assamese Writer Homen Borgohain Passes Away

Eminent writer, veteran journalist, Sahitya Akademi award winner, and former president of Asom Sahitya Sabha, Homen Borgohain passed away. He was 88.
Homen Borgohain was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award in the Assamese language for his novel Pita Putra in 1978, but he returned his Sahitya Akademi award in 2015 in protest against the lack of tolerance being created in the Indian society.
His other notable literary works are Saudor Puteke Nao Meli Jay, Halodhiya Soraye Baudhan Khai, Astarag, Timir Tirtha, Matshyagandha, Subala, Nisongota, Aatmanuxandhan, Gadyar Sadhana, Progyar Sadhana, etc.
Borgohain edited several Assamese dailies and weekly newspapers including Nilachal, Nagorik, Amar Asom, Asom Bani, Xutradhar, Xatxori, Niyamiya Barta. The prominent journalist, novelist's death has been widely mourned across the state.

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