Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday paid tributes to renowned engineer and Bharat Ratna M Visvesvaraya on his birth anniversary, celebrated as Engineer’s Day in the country.
“Tributes to Bharat Ratna M. Visvesvaraya on his birth anniversary. An exemplary engineer himself, he is a source of immense inspiration,” Modi tweeted.
“I salute all engineers on Engineers Day & appreciate their paramount role in the development of our nation,” he added.
Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya was born on 15 September 1861 in a village called Muddenahalli in Karnataka and breathed his last on 12 April 1962.
He was a prominent engineer, scholar and the Diwan of Mysore from 1912 to 1918. He is a recipient of the country’s highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna which was presented to him in 1955.
Visvesvaraya was the chief engineer responsible for the construction of the Krishna Raja Sagara dam in Mandya district as well as the chief designer of the flood protection system for the city of Hyderabad.
Countries around the world celebrate Engineer’s Day to acknowledge the contributions of engineers in nation building. Different countries celebrate the day on different dates.