R. Krishnaswamy passes away

R. Krishnaswamy

R. Krishnaswamy, retired Chief Reporter of The Hindu in Chennai, died here on Monday. He was 85 and served the institution for 40 years.

Born on June 28, 1926, Mr. Krishnaswamy graduated from the St. Joseph's College, Tiruchirapalli. After a brief stint with the Indian Express in Tiruchi, he joined The Hindu in 1950 as its Staff Correspondent at Chidambaram. He covered the growth and activities of the Annamalai University before being transferred to the head office in Chennai in 1954. He became the Chief Reporter in 1970, which position he held till June 1990.

He covered the Secretariat, government beats, the Assembly, and politics. He was known for his discipline, note-taking ability, and meticulous planning. Knowing the needs of a newspaper, he even wrote out a few paragraphs for his obituary, which was given to

The Hindu by his family. After retirement, he served as a consultant for a couple of years.

Mr. Krishnaswamy was the president of The Hindu Cooperative Building Society for 15 years, and its Director till it was superseded by the State government along with other cooperative institutions. He, along with the late M.R. Madhavan, who was the Office Manager, was largely responsible for developing the infrastructure in The Hindu colony at Nanganallur, where he lived and died. The colony got its own community hall, a secondary school, and a hospital.

He was the president of The Hindu Colony Venkateswara Middle School, and a founder of the Sri Krishna Fine Arts Society at Nanganallur. He was also its vice-president for 10 years.

Mr. Krishnaswamy is survived by his wife, a son, and two daughters, besides grandchildren. One of his daughters, Dr. K. Ranga, is the Chief Medical Officer at The Hindu Welfare Centre in Chennai.