Visvesvaraya, the great engineer, administrator and statesman, was born on 15 September 1861 in a village near the Nandi Hills in the Mysore State. He belonged to an orthodox middle-class Brahmin family that had migrated from a place called Mokshagundam in Andhra much earlier. He received his early education in the nearby town of Chickballapur and then joined the Central College, Bangalore, and passed his B.A. examination in 1880 with distinction. He won a scholarship and joined the Poona College of Science for his Engineering course. He took his degree in Engineering in November 1883.

As one who headed the list of engineering graduates in the Bombay University he received an appointment as an Assistant Engineer in the Public Works Department of the Bombay Government and joined service in March 1884. He worked in Nasik, and in Khandesh district and designed a water supply scheme for the town of Dhulia. After working for a short time in Poona, he completed the special work of water supply and drainage of Sukkur in Sind (1894-95). He executed the work of construction of wells in the Tapti river bed for providing water supply to Surat City.

When he was in charge of the Poona Irrigation District from April 1899, his measures to prevent wastage of water in irrigation were opposed by the cultivators and public men. But he was able to persuade all by calling a meeting of all affected and explaining to them the usefulness in the rotation system of distribution of water. He designed a system of automatic gates to raise the storage level of Lake Fire at Khadakvasla, permanently, be about 8 feet above the orginal surplus weir and thus prevented loss of water, and at the same time provided loss of water, and at the same time provided for the escape of flood water over and above the level. He took out a patent for this contrivance, but refused to rake any royalty on it.

In 1901, as Sanitary Engineer of the Poona Municipality, when G. K. Gokhale was head of the Municipality, Visvesvaraya prepared a project for a modern type of sewerage scheme for the first time for a modern type of becoming a Permanent Sanitary Engineer to the Government in 1904, he dealt with important water supply questions relating to advise and report on the sanitary engineering needs of Aden, Visvesvaraya was deputed and he submitted a valuable report on drainage and water supply. He was also responsible for preparing water supply schemes for Kolhapur, Belgaum, Dharwar and Bijapur Towns. He retired from Bombay service in 1908.

During his service in the Bombay Presidency, he came into contact with the great patriots, M. G. Ranade, G. K. Gokhale and B. G. Tilak. He was also responsible for starting in 1891 the Deccan Club, which was a meeting place for the finer spirits of his time in that centre of new enlightenment. He was also nominated a Fellow of the Bombay University in 1904 and was also elected a member of the Institute of Civil Engineers, London.

After his retirement, when he was spending his leave in Europe, he was invited to advise and assist in the reconstruction of Hyderabad City, which had been damaged in September 1908 by unusual floods in the Musi river which passed through that city. After a through investigation, he suggested construction of storage reservoirs to impound flood waters and for raising the river banks in places within the city. He also suggested a drainage scheme and completed his assignment in October 1909.

At the special desire of the Mysore Maharaja, he agreed to be the Chief Engineer of the Mysore State on the understanding that the Government also desired to utilise his services in the encouragement of industries and technical education on a larger scale. He became the Chief Engineer of the State on 15 November 199. At his instance an institution called the Mysore Economics Conference, consisting of high official and non-officals, was established in June 1911 to discuss and determine action to be taken on all aspects of improvement in the State.

Another notable scheme initiated by him was the Krishnaraja Sagara Reservoir, which consisted in building a dam 124 feet high across the Cauvery. This project was intended for purposes of irrigation, and for providing an even flow of water to the Hydro-Electric Power Station at Sivasamudram, which supplied power to the Kolar Gold Mines. It was the largest reservoir in India, built with the services of local engineers, and in spite of many obstacles the reservoir was completed by 1 July 1915 according to schedule. He initiated steps to build new railway lines and to take over the existing lines from the British Company managing them.

In November 1912 he became the Dewan (Chief Minister) of Mysore at the invitation of the Maharaja with the one aim, to plan, promote and encourage developments, chiefly in Education, Industries, Commerce and Public Works, to enable the people to work well, earn well and live well. Even though the First World War broke out within twenty-one months of his assumption of office and thus limited his action, he “hustled” the people for development.

By his prestige with the Government of India, he was able to secure more powers for the Maharaja in internal administration by a treaty with the British, substituted for the Unilateral Instrument of Transfer which had restored the State to the Maharaja. In order to give the Representative Assembly some real powers, the members were given the privilege of interpellation. The franchise of the Assembly was also broadened. The Assembly was convened twice a year, instead of only once as was the practice till then. Similarly the powers of the Legislative Council were increased.

In administration, he initiated action for the separation of the executive from the judiciary. He liberalised the constitution of Local Bodies, such as Municipalities and District Boards and also invited increased non-official participation in those bodies. A system of ‘Efficiency Audit’ to take continuous action necessary for preservation of discipline and efficiency in Government departments and Service personnel was introduced. For systematising the work introduced. For systematising the work in offices, Office and Departmental Manuals were prepared, or revised where they already existed.

Through the Economic Conference, which had three main committees dealing with (1) Industries and Commerce, (2) Education, and (3) Agriculture, plans were drawn up for improvements and the work done was reviewed. He was responsible for the establishment of the Mysore Bank, the Kannada Literary Academy and the Mysore University (1 July

1916). With the firm conviction that the neglect of education was the cause of economic ills, he introduced legislation for compulsory primary education and implemented it gradually. He started an Agricultural School (1913), a Mechanical Engineering College at Bangalore. The Maharani’s College in Mysore was raised to a first grade College, and the first hostel for women was established.

He took action for the development of sericulture, for starting sandalwood oil manufacture, for manufacture of soap, for the establishment of the Central Industrial Workshop and district workshops. He encouraged new cottage industries by granting subsidies to supplement the agriculturist’s income He improved the Hill Station at Nandi, initiated the Century Club in Bangalore and helped in the starting of the Modern Hindu Hotel at Bangalore and introduced Village Improvement Schemes.

The construction of the Mysore Iron and Wood Distillation Works was started in 1918 for the manufacture of Iron by using charcoal. The Railway Department was reorganised. During his administration the Budget showed a surplus, and Capital to the extent of Rs. 332 lakhs were invested in industries and productive public works.

When the cry for communal representation in the Services became strong and a committee for the purpose was proposed Visvesvaraya opposed the appointment of such a committee of grounds of efficiency and purity in Public Service. When his appeal proved of no avail, he resigned from his office as Dewan on 9 February 1918.

At the special request of the Maharaja he took charge of the Mysore Iron and Steel Works from 1923 to 1929 and made it profitable. The remuneration which the Government offered to him for his work was handed back for opening an Occupational Institute at Bangalore in the name of Maharaja Sri Chamaraja Wodeyar. He also worked as Chairman of the committee of the Cauvery Canal System and the New Bangalore Water Supply Scheme.

He was disappointed in his ambition to start an automobile industry in Mysore, but was able to help in the establishment of the Premier Automobile Company at Bombay. He was also responsible, with Walchand, for the starting of the Hindustan Aircraft Factory in Bangalore.

He advised the Bombay City Corporation (1924-25) and the Karachi Municipal Corporation (1924) about their finances and administration. Many of the cities in Western India, which have modern water supply schemes or drainage schemes, have had the benefit of his advice. The Orissa Government had the benefit of his advice on the flood problems in that State in 1937.

He was a member of the Bombay Technical and Industrial Education Committee (1921-22) but he did not agree with the European Members of the Committee in putting forward proposals for training only apprentices. As Chairman of the Bombay University Committee for promoting Chemical Industrial his scheme for a Department of Chemical Technology was adopted, and then such a Department was established.

He was Chairman of the Irrigation Enquiry Committee, Bombay (1938) and of the Indian Economics Enquiry Committee (1925). As Chairman of the Bangalore Political Disturbances Enquiry Committee (1929), he pointed out the urgent need for a responsible government. He presided over the All Parties’ Conference in Bombay in 1922 to bring about agreement on certain political issues of the time.

He presided over the South Indian State People’s Conference held at Trivandrum in 1929. The Conference passed resolutions to secure a better position to the people of the Indian States in the scheme of government both national and regional. It adopted a memorandum, on his suggestion outlining a Dominion Constitution for India including the States.

He toured in foreign countries six times in 1898, 1908, 1919,1926 and 1946 with the sole aim of studying developments in industry, Education and Sanitation in those developed countries.

When the Committee of the Association of Indian Industries, Bombay proposed to convene a Conference on an All-India basis and requested Visvesvaraya to preside over the first Conference, he agreed to it on condition that it should function as a permanent organisation and at least a dozen of the sponsors should devote four hours a week for the work. Thus started the All India Manufactures’ Organisation in June 1941 and he continued to be its President for many years.

He presided over the Indian Science Congress in 1923 and stressed the need for research. He was connected with the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, from, its Court from 1910 to 1947. He was a Director of the Tata Iron & Steel Company from 1927 to 1955.
He advised the Government of India about the construction of a bridge across the Ganga in Bihar in 1952.

He undertook to organise a Village Industrialisation Schemes in the Mysore State under his own direction when he was over 90 years of age.

The whole country celebrated the Centenary of Visvesaraya’s birth on 15 September 1960.
He was recipient of many honorary degrees from many Universities. He was made a C.I.F. in 1911 and a C. I. F. in 1915 and the Government of India conferred on him the title of Bharta Ratna in 1955.

Visvesvaraya is the first among planners in India. His ideas are elucidated in his books: ‘Reconstructing India’ (1920) which he wrote while in England,’ Planned Economy for India’ (1934) and many tracts on Village Industries, Rural industrialisation and on Automobile Industry. His ‘Memoirs of My Working Life’ (1951) is autobiographical. His ‘Sayings Witty and Wise’ is made up of selections from his scrapbook. He believed that the first requirement of Nation Builders was to prepare men with character. He prescribed harder work, planned and disciplined work, efficiency and courtesy and service as Rules of Conduct. His watchwords were ‘Investigate, Educate and Organise’.

Visvesvaraya was a puritan in temperament abhorring the unclean and the vulgar. He took scrupulous care to avoid all actions that may smak ok of nepotism or jobbery. He lived his whole life, every day and every hour of that life, according to well thought out time tables and devoted to making his countrymen work well and live well. In private life he was simple and modest, courteous and friendly to all.
He died on 14 April 1962.