JOGINAPALLI NRUPENDER RAO-ENTREPRENUER FROM THE VELAMA COMMUNITY

 

I was compiling a brief on the VIP’s of Padmanayaka Velama and in the process came across the name of Nrupender Rao garu  (Joginapally Venkata Nrupender Rao). I did not know anything much about him than that he is the brother in law of Late Ramprakash garu and has set up Pennar Industries.

He had such a distinguished education as well as career. Not only did he graduate from IIT Kharagpur in Engineering. He also received the IIT Kharagpur Distinguished Alumnus Award for 2011 from the then PM Manmohan Singh. Considering that IIT Kharagpur awards only one single Alumni each year his achievement is extremely commendable.

After his Engineering he did his MS from the Purdue University USA. Purdue University is in the top 50 Universities of the USA and as a Public University it is ranked number 1 in the USA. He was also the National President of the Indo American Chamber of Commerce.

He worked with the National Cash Register of the USA, Union Carbide India and with the Nagarjuna Steels and the Pennar group. He was the founder and Executive Chairman of Pennar Industries. From July 2008 to May 2010 he was the Managing Director of Pennar Industries. Due to some misfortune that plagued him he had to pass on the Company to someone else later. But he continued as the Executive Chairman of Pennar Industries till August 2023. Today Pennar Industries has an annual sales turnover of around Rs 3000 crores and a net profit of Rs 100 crores with the annual outgo on salaries to employees alone being Rs 300 crores.    

Business is always fraught with risk and luck would also play its part. Sometimes perhaps an entrepreneur has to suffer from bad  luck. Nevertheless the success of Pennar Industries today despite it not being in his hands is a testimony to his achievements.

KOTAGIRI VIDYADHAR RAO-POLITICIAN EXTRAORDINRY

 

Sri Kotagiri Vidyadhar Rao was born into a farming family on April 28, 1946 at East Yedavalli Village in the Kamavarapukota Mandal of the Eluru district. He had two younger brothers and his father died when he was very young.

In education, he did his B.E.Mechanical from R.V. College of Engineering at Bangalore.

He entered into his political life in the year 1979. He began his career as a village Sarpanch for the Congress.

In 1981 he became the Vice President of the Panchayati Samiti. He was then in the Congress party and expected to get an MLA ticket from it in the 1983 assembly elections. When the ticket was denied to him, in anger he contested as an independent in that huge TDP wave and won with a majority of about 8000 votes.

This was the election when the Telugu Desam Party swept the Districts of East & West Godavari with the Congress drawing a blank. Together, there were 36 constituencies in both East & West Godavari districts put together.  Of the 36, 34 have been won by the TDP with only 2 constituencies being won by Independents and the Congress drawing a blank. The 2 independents that won were Sri Kotagiri Vidyadhar Rao from Chintalapudi and Sri Kotagiri Hanumantha Rao from Nuzvid. It is a great coincidence that both have the same surname, and belong to the Padmanayaka Velama Community.

NTR who had a regard for Padmanayaka Velamas later sent Rao Gopala Rao and weaned him into the Telugu Desam Party in 1984.

He was re-elected as an MLA in the 1985 elections.

In 1984 he was made the Chairman of APIIC, then in 1985, the Director of APIDC and Khadi & Village Industries.

In 1987 he was made the Director of APSRTC and later Chairman APSRTC, Satavahana Region.

In 1989, he became the Deputy leader of the opposition in the assembly. Between the years 1991-1994 he was leader of the opposition when NTR announced that he would not attend the Assembly in protest.

In 1994, he was appointed as Minister for Agriculture in the NTR Cabinet.

During 1995-96 he was appointed as Minister for Panchayati Raj, Rural Development & Rural water Supply in the NTR Cabinet.

During 1996-99 he was made the Minster for Agriculture under Chandrababu Naidu.

During 1999-2004 he was made Minster for large Scale Industries under Chandrababu Naidu.

So in all he had served 10 years in various ministries from 1994 to 2004.

Most unfortunately for him he lost the election with a margin of just 1600 votes in 2004 and thereafter his constituency was converted into an SC reserved constituency, so he lost his constituency altogether. Losing the constituency was a major blow to him as he had nurtured it since the time he entered into politics in 1979 itself.

Later when the PRP was formed by Chiranjivi he gave statements supporting Chiranjivi which resulted in his explanation being called for by the TDP resulting in his expulsion. He then joined the PRP and was made the Convener of PRP by Chiranjivi.

On the PRP ticket, he contested once from a neighbouring constituency of Unguturu in 2009 but lost the election coming in 3^rd with 29% vote share when the winner Congress polled 35% and the runner TDP polled 31%.

Later Chiranjivi dissolved the PRP and merged it with the Congress in February 2011. Thereafter Sri Vidyadhar Rao he opted out of politics.

He died in his home at Eluru from a cardiac arrest on 20.07.2013.