Engineers Day In India – 15 September
15th September is celebrated as National Engineers Day in India every year to pay tribute to the greatest India Engineer Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya “The builder of India“.
A Bharat Ratna awardee Visvesvaraya is popularly known as Sir MV was an Indian Civil engineer who served the country from 1912 to 1919. Sir Visvesvaraya, an eminent Indian engineer and statesman was born in a remote village of Karnataka, the State that is incidentally now the Hi-tech State of the country. He completed his Bachelor of Arts (BA) from the University of Madras and pursued civil engineering in Pune.
He was a scholar, builder, statesman, and educationist and was known for his contribution in the field of engineering by building a dam which was the biggest reservoir in Asia, and prevented flooding. He installed automatic weir water floodgates at Khadakvasla Reservoir near Pune and also installed Gwalior’s Tigra Dam and Mysuru’s Krishnaraja Sagara (KRS) dam.
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He was called the “Father of Modern Mysore State” and during his service with the Mysore government, he founded Mysore Soap Factory, Parasitoid Laboratory, Mysore Iron & Steel Works Sri Jayachamarajendra Polytechnic Bangalore, Bangalore Agricultural University, State Bank of Mysore, Century Club, Mysore Chamber of Commerce (Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce & Industry), apex Chamber of Commerce in Karnataka, University Visvesvaraya College of Engineering (Bangalore) and numerous other industrial ventures.
He was appointed as a companion of the Order of the Indian Empire (CIE) in 1911 and Diwan of Mysore in 1915 was knighted as a Knight Commander of Order of Indian Empire (KCIE) by the British. After India attained independence he was awarded Bharat Ratna in 1955 and a fellowship from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore. He even was awarded honorary membership of the London Institution of Civil Engineers. Various universities and colleges were named after him including Visvesvaraya Technological University. He breathed his last in 1962 and his memorials stand at Visvesvaraya National Memorial Trust and various other universities have his name lives on.
It is to honor his achievements and contribution towards the country that India celebrates Engineer’s Day on his birthday, 15 September.
“No one person can shape the life of another. Your success and happiness depend upon your own self. Think for yourself and have a plan of life.” – Sir M Visvesvaraya
Suggested Read: Quotes Of Sir M Visvesvaraya
