Raghupathi Venkataratnam Naidu

Dewan Bahadur Sir
Raghupathi Venkataratnam Naidu
Born
Raghupathi Venkataratnam Naidu

1 October 1862
Machilipatnam, Madras Presidency, British India (now in Andhra Pradesh, India)
Died26 May 1939(1939-05-26) (aged 76)
NationalityIndian
Occupation(s)Social reformer, educationist, writer

Dewan Bahadur Sir Raghupathi Venkataratnam Naidu[1] (1 October 1862 – 26 May 1939)[2] was an Indian social reformer and educationist who hailed from present-day Andhra Pradesh.[3][4] He was described as "the most powerful orator of his day".[5] He worked for the eradication of untouchability and upliftment of Dalits.[6][7] He strived for the reformation of the Devadasi system in Andhra, and succeeded to a considerable extent.[8] He promoted widow remarriages and encouraged women's education.[9]

Venkataratnam Naidu worked as the Principal of the Mehboob College, Secunderabad, and later the PR Government College, Kakinada.[10] In 1925, he became the first elected Vice Chancellor of Madras University and in that capacity was responsible for creating several new departments of research and teaching.[4][1]

Naidu also served on several municipal councils, the District Board of Godavari and the Taluka Board. He became a Member and the Deputy President of the Madras Legislative Council.[1] Government recognised his contribution to public work by awarding the Kaiser-i-Hind Gold Medal and conferring a knighthood on him in 1924.[11][12] The Andhra and the Madras Universities conferred on him the honorary degrees of D.Litt. and LL.D.[1] The Brahmo Samaj honoured him with the title of "Brahmarshi".[13]

  1. ^ a b c d Cite error: The named reference :8 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Chetti, Sri A. S.; Sarma, G. V. L. N. (1975). Great Indian Social Reformers and Philanthropists. Sri A.S. Chetti Sanmana Sangham. p. 67. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
  3. ^ Rao, P. Raghunatha (1983). History of modern Andhra. Sterling Publishers. p. 186. ISBN 978-0-86590-112-4.
  4. ^ a b "Tributes paid to educationist". The Hindu. 2 October 2009. Archived from the original on 6 October 2009. Retrieved 4 January 2010.
  5. ^ Rādhākr̥ṣṇaśarma, Callā (1978). Ramblings in Telugu literature. Lakshminarayana Granthamala. p. 85. OCLC 8215741.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Bhattacharya was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Journal of Social Research. Council of Social and Cultural Research, Bihar. 1975. p. 54.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Itihas (1984) Vol 12. Government of Andhra Pradesh. p. 24
  10. ^ "Fulfilment is his reward". The Hindu. 16 December 2002. Archived from the original on 21 March 2004. Retrieved 4 January 2010.
  11. ^ Kumar, A. Prasanna (1978). Dr. B. Pattabhi Sitaramayya: A Political Study. Andhra University Press. p. 13. OCLC 5414006.
  12. ^ The London Gazette, 29 August 1924
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference :4 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).