R. Sankar

April 30, 2009

A commemorative postage stamp on the Birth Centenary of R. Shankar, 3^rd Chief Minister of Kerala (1962-64) :

Issued by India

Issued on Apr 30, 2009

Issued for : India Post is proud to issue a commemorative postage stamp on R. Sankar.

Credits :
Stamp & FDC : Suresh Kumar
Cancellation : Alka Sharma

Type : Stamp, Postal Used

Colour : Multi colour

Denomination : 500 Paise

Stamps Printed : 0.4 Million

Printing Process : Wet–offset

Printer : Security Printing Press, Hyderabad

Name : R. Sankar

Born on Apr 30, 1909 at Kuzhikalidavaka, Puthoor, Travancore, British India

Died on Nov 6, 1972

About :

Sree Narayana College founded in 1948 at Kollam became the largest college in the state in terms of student strength and the number of postgraduate courses. Sankar was the first to start in the private sector an exclusive women’s college called the Sree Narayana College for Women in 1951. By 1956, it had become the biggest women’s college in Kerala in terms of student strength.
When he became Minister for Education, Sankar carried forward the inclusive education movement by facilitating the setting up of several junior colleges in different parts of the State almost all of which were in the private sector, a revolutionary and innovative policy which made higher education accessible to economically poor sections who could not afford to go to major cities where most colleges were located.
As the secretary of the social organization, S.N.D.P. Yogam, Sankar also established an ‘Educational Fund’ aimed at enabling financially challenged students to continue their education. Such was the zeal and energy of his endeavour that in a single day in 1945, he was able to mobilise public contributions and raise more than Rs. 1,05,000. In 1946 and 1947, he successfully collected large contributions for the primary and secondary educational fund and the general education fund respectively.
If today Kerala is the most literate State in India with a literacy rate of around 95 per cent, it is because of Sankar‘s far-sighted initiatives. Significantly, the private sector has continued to play major role in the area of education in the State, accounting for over 80 per cent of its higher educational institutions. In the initial years, such institutions were set up mainly by Christian missionaries. Subsequently, other communities entered the field. But it is widely acknowledged that it was R. Sankar‘s dedicated efforts and his visionary emphasis on promoting inclusive education that has undoubtedly contributed to give Kerala its present position stands in terms of educational attainments. According to V.R. Pillai, the well-known educationist of Kerala : “Sankar’s enduring place in the annals of Kerala will be as a distinguished educationist who pursued the path of academic excellence“. Apart from being educationist he made his work in Journalism also. He founded and edited a Malayalam daily called Dinamani. It was during this period that he made a pioneering effort to bring out a ‘Year Book‘ in Malayalam. The Year Book published in 1956 was a great success.
In 1948 he was elected as Deputy Chief Minister holding the portfolio of Finance. He was the first Finance Minister of Kerala to have consecutively presented five budgets in the State assembly. R. Sankar became Chief Minister in 1962.
R. Sankar breathed his last on 06.11.1972.
Text : As per the material provided by the proponent.