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Managing Director Einadu Ch. Kiron presents a cheque of Rs 10 crore to Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and Deputy Chief Minister K. Pawan Kalyan at a memorial meeting in Vijayawada on Thursday. | Photo credit: KVS GIRI
The TDP-led coalition government in Andhra Pradesh has announced its decision to set up the ‘Ramoji Vignan Centre’ in the capital Amaravati, modelled on the Vignan Mansion in New Delhi.
Addressing a meeting organised by the government on Thursday to honour media baron Ch. Ramoji Rao, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu reviewed the achievements and contributions of media barons and said, “They have left an indelible mark in every field including journalism, cinema and the social sphere.”
“It is our duty to pay befitting tribute to this great man who always led us when democracy was under threat,” Mr Naidu said.
Mr Naidu also proposed naming a road after Ramoji Rao in Amaravati. “It will be called Ramoji Rao Road, or Ramoji Rao Magam. Besides, we will also develop a film city ‘Ramoji Chitra Nagari’ in Visakhapatnam, where he launched the first edition of Einadu “I started my first newspaper in 1974,” he said.
Naidu said that the name of the new capital of Andhra Pradesh, ‘Amaravati’, was actually suggested to him by Ramoji Rao.
“After thorough research, he explained to me the relevance and importance of the name Amaravati,” the chief minister recalled, adding, “Even the Cyberabad project that I developed in Hyderabad city reflects the ideas he shared with me.”
Mr Naidu said the people of the state have been demanding that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) founder and president and former chief minister NT Rama Rao be awarded the title. “We have also urged the central government to posthumously award the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) award to Ramoji Rao,” he said.
Deputy Chief Minister K. Pawan Kalyan said Ramoji Rao was loved by people for his tireless dedication to upholding news values throughout his life.
“Running a newspaper was fraught with risks, but he persevered and always upheld honesty and integrity,” said Mr. Pawan Kalyan, who suggested setting up a statue of the patriarch in the state.
director, Hinduism N. Ram of the Publishing Group recalled his association with the media tycoon in the late 1980s, when the latter was the president of the Editors Guild of India.
“It was a period of deep unrest as the press investigated high-level corruption and abuse of power,” Ram recalls.
Referring to the Bofors case which is being actively investigated by the media, Mr. Ram said that in July 1988, the then Rajiv Gandhi government had introduced the Defamation Bill.
“This is a proposed amendment to the criminal defamation law that contains tough provisions specifically targeting investigative journalists and the independent newspapers they work for,” he said.
Mr Ram said there was a strong opposition to the bill from journalists across the country and during this period he worked closely with Ramoji Rao and was impressed by his leadership.
The government soon capitulated and withdrew the bill. “I still remember Ramoji Rao feeling calm and completely satisfied with what had been achieved. But there was no sense of victory at all,” he recalled.
Mr. Ram also praised the key role he played in the field of films and visual media.
Rajasthan editor-in-chief Patrica Gulab Kothari said Ramoji’s pen had immense power and became the voice of the common people in the state.
The ceremony was also attended by people associated with Telugu film industry like Jayasudha, SS Rajamouli and Murali Mohan, family members of Ramoji Rao, and ministers and MPs.
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