Glowing tributes were paid to former President R. Venkataraman during the unveiling of his portrait at The Mylapore Academy's outreach unit in Mandaveli.
Unveiling the portrait, Gopalakrishna Gandhi, former Governor of West Bengal said Venkataraman was in every sense a renaissance man “who was part of a new awakening, contributed to the awakening and represented the awakening.”
He was a man of “speed not haste, gentle not soft and strong not arrogant,” he said.
According to Mr. Gandhi, Venkataraman, who promoted industrialisation in the conviction that an increase in the nation's wealth should go into the uplift of the underprivileged, epitomised the founding principles of India.
“The India of today is inconceivable without his contributions,” he said.
P.C. Alexander, former Governor of Tamil Nadu, said Venkataraman's life was a journey of karma and selfless service and whatever high posts that he graced along the way were incidental to his larger mission.
M.A.M. Ramaswamy, MP and Pro Chancellor, Annamalai University, hailed Venkataraman's contributions.
