Hyderabad: Engineers play an essential role in the development of a country. September 15th is celebrated as 'Engineer's Day', honouring the birth anniversary of engineer, and statesman Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya, who is credited with pioneering engineering achievements.
It was first observed in 1968 and it has been one of the most significant occasions in Indian academia especially observed by engineering communities across the country. Visvesvaraya’s achievements are also celebrated in Sri Lanka and Tanzania on September 15th as Engineers Day.
Who was M Visvesvaraya?
Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya was born on September 15, 1861, in Muddenahalli village in Karnataka. At the age of 15, he lost his father, who was a Sanskrit scholar. He completed his early education in Chikkaballapur and then he moved to Bangalore (now Bengaluru) for higher education. He joined the Science College in Pune to study Engineering and in 1883, he got the first rank in the Examination. After completing his education, he got a job offer for an Assistant Engineer at Nasik from the then Government of Bombay. He successfully implemented various projects as an engineer.
He is popularly known as Sir MV. He was also called the “precursor of economic planning in India”, according to the Institution of Engineers India (IEI)
Father of Indian Engineering
M Visvesvaraya was the Diwan of Mysore from 1912 to 1918. In actuality, he was the brain behind the Krishnaraja Sagar dam in Mysore and the chief designer of the flood protection system for the city of Hyderabad. Krishna Raja Wadiyar IV Maharaj of Mysore constructed the dam during the famine despite the critical financial condition of the state. The dam was named in honour of him.
M Visvesvaraya is also credited with inventing the block system, automated doors that close the water overflows. Sir Visvesvaraya designed and patented the floodgates first installed at the Khadakwasla reservoir in Pune in 1903.
M Visvesvaraya is known as the first engineer of India for his vital contribution to the field of engineering and education. He is regarded as one of India’s greatest nation builders, who played a vital role in constructing the dams, reservoirs, and hydroelectric power plants of modern India.
Awards and achievements
Due to his exceptional contribution to society, the Government of India conferred 'Bharat Ratna' on him in the year 1955." He was also awarded British knighthood by King George V, and hence has the title "Sir". In 2018, Google launched a Doodle on his birthday to celebrate his work.
A Role model
Apart from being an engineer and an educator, he was highly industrious. Sir M. Visvesvaraya was a member of the Governing Council of 'the Indian Institute of Science' in Bangalore (now Bengaluru). Later, he would become a member of the Tata Iron and Steel governing board. Besides, he has also authored some books in his eminent career - Reconstructing India, Nation Building etc.
He passed away in the year 1962, but his legacy and spirit remain alive in the minds and imaginations of today's nation-building engineers.
