K. P. P. Nambiar: Difference between revisions
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Revision as of 18:46, 7 May 2014
K. P. P. Nambiar | |
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| Born | April 15, 1929 Kalliassery, Kannur, Kerala, India |
| Spouse | Uma Devi |
| Children | Padman Nambiar Kiran Nambiar Sarojini Nambiar |
| Parent(s) | Chindan Nambiar Madhavi |
| Awards | Padma Bhushan Electronics Man of the Year Award Distinguished FIETE Vasvik Award National Design Award Science & Technology Award Republic Day Award Institution of Telecommunication Engineers Award London County Council Major Award |
K. P. P. Nambiar MSc (Lond), DIC (Lond), FIEE (Lond), CEngg (Lond.) is an Indian industrialist and technocrat, known for his work in the field of industrial development and technology. He was awarded Padma Bhushan by Government of India for his contributions to the field of technology in 2006[1].
Biography
Kunnath Puthiyaveettil Padmanabhan Nambiar was born in a middle class family in Kalliassery, Kannur in North Kerala to Chindan Nambiar and Madhavi. He has two brothers, Prabhakaran and Ramachandran and one sister, Janaki. His early education was at Taliparamba High School, 8 kms away from home which he walked every day. With no colleges nearby, he moved to Madras and graduated in Physics. In 1951, he joined Imperial College of Science & Technology, University of London[2] for for higher studies in Transistors and Semi-Conductors.
Nambiar started his career as a research scholar in semi-conductor technology at Imperial College from 1954-57 and moved to Texas Instruments, USA. 1963 saw him leaving his job in Texas Instruments to come to India , as Scientist Pool Officer under the C.S.I.R, to teach modern semiconductor electronics in the Electrical Engineering Department of the Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi, as a part of the Scientist pool scheme initiated by Late Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to bring back talented Indians working abroad[3]. Nambiar stayed there till 1964 before joining Philips India as Manager of Projects. in 1967, he left Philips and joined Bharat Electronics Limited as Joint Head of the Piezo Electric Crystal Division in Bangalore, where he set up the first communication crystals factory in India[4] during his brief stay there.
Towards the fag end of 1967, Nambiar joined Tata as the General Manager of National Radio & Electronics Co. Ltd ., (NELCO). In two years with the company, he set up the first applied Electronic Research and Development Centre for industrial electronics in India. He was also instrumental in introducing a number of new products under NELCO banner such as speed control for AC and DC Motors, Static Inverters and Converters, Calculators, Electronic Clocks and Display Systems. Silicon transistor Radios were introduced for the first time in the country in 1968 by NELCO during this period. That was when he received an invitation from Kerala Government to set up an electronics manufacturing firm in Kerala.
Kerala State Electronics Development Corporation Limited (KELTRON) was formed in 1973 with K. P. P. Nambiar as its first Chairman and Managing Director. He remained in that position till 1983 when he was made the Executive Chairman till his retirement in 1985. In 1985, Nambiar was appointed as the Chairman and Managing Director of Indian Telephone Industries Limited, the largest Public Sector Company in Telecommunication in India and retired from Government service in 1989.
Kerala Government, in 1989, appointed him as the Honorary Special Advisor and that was when he drew up the blue print for Techno Park in Thiruvananthapuram. The Park came into existance on 31 March 31 1991.
Whie acting as the Special Advisor, Nambiar set up a private company in Bangalore, Namtech Electronic Devices Limited, for the manufacture of Fail Safe Gas Discharge Tubes used as Surge Arresters in Electronic and Telecommunication equipment. Namtech is also involved in the manufacture of quartz crystals, crystal oscillators, light emitting diodes (LEDs) and LED Displays[5].
In February 1995, Nambiar launched an INR 1500 crore project to generate 513 MW of Power under the name of Kannur Power Projects (P) Limited in his native Panchayat of Kalliasseri in Kannur District in North Kerala. However, the project ran into political and supply issues and had to be abandoned[6].
He was also instrumental in the launching of a joint venture company Bowthorpe Thermometrics India (P) Limited, with Bowthorpe of UK and Namtech Consultants (P) Limited to manufacture Thermisters (a temperature dependent Resistor) in 1996. Bowthorpe has since transferred its ownership to GE in October 2001.
Legacy
As the Secretary, Department of Electronics of Government of India (1986-89), Nambiar was successful in the establishment of C-DAC, STPI, CEDTI and VLSI laboratories[7].
During his stint (1989 to 1991) as the the Special Advisor to the Government of Kerala on Industries, Nambiar set up India's first Electronic Technology Park (Techno Park) in Trivandrum to provide infrastractural support required to set up high technology electronic units in the State. He also set up a chain of Electronic Industries in different parts of Kerala from Trivandrum to Kannur in the major areas of electronic components, industrial electronics, consumer electronics and telecommunication between 1973-84.
He was responsible for expanding Palakkad unit of Indian Telephone Industries Limited from a INR 4 Crore unit to an INR 200 Crore enterprise[8]. Nambiar is credited with evolving a new concept of consortium of ancillary industries by mobilising all the 41 ancillary industries of Indian Telephone Industries in Bangalore to form a consortium company to manufacture plan 103 telephone instruments with a turnover of more than INR 20 crores.
As the Founder Chairman of Keltron, Nambiar was instrumental in taking electronics to the villages by setting up 50 women's co-operatives that produced most of the consumer products sold by Keltron. He also developed the R&D Center for Keltron, the Electronics Research & Development Center, which was later taken over by the Department of Electronics and has now been brought under C-DAC[9]. KELTRON, was the first autonomous Corporation in the State sector in India, an example later emulated by several state Governments in the country.
Keltron | |
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| Keltron Logo |
During his tenure in Keltron, he set up the Electronics Research and Development Centre (ER & DC) as an autonomous society at Trivandrum in 1974 for application oriented electronic research and development which is now a national centre for excellence in Applied Electronics.
During his stint as the Honorary Special Advisor to Government of Kerala on Industries, Nambiar influenced Ratan Tata, the Chairman of Tata Industries, to invest in Kerala, resulting in the formation of Taj Hotels and Resorts, Kerala and Tata Ceramics (Kerala) Limited.
Positions held
- Research Scholar - Imperial College of Science & Technology, University of London
- Technical Management - Texas Instruments
- Scientist Pool Officer - CSIR
- Manager (Projects) - Philips India
- Joint Division Head - Piezo Electric Crystal Division, Bharat Electronics Limited
- General Manager - National Radio and Electronics Co. Limited (NELCO)
- Founder - Tata Electronic Research and Development Labs
- Founder Chairman and Managing Director - KELTRON
- Executive Chairman KELTRON
- Founder Chairman of Electronic Research & Development Centre
- Secretary to Government of India - Department of Electronics
- Chairman & Managing Director - Indian Telephone Industries Limited
- Special Advisor to the Government of Kerala on Industries
- Chairman, Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Kozhikode
- Chairman - Indian Institute of Information Technology and Management (IIITM-K), Kerala
- Chairman - Namtech Electronic Devices Limited
- Chairman - Namtech Tai Ltd
- Promoter - Bowthorpe Thermometrics India (P) Limited
- Vice Chairman - World Malayalee Council
Awards
Template:Infobox Indian Awards
- Padma Bhushan - 2006
- Electronics Man of the Year Award by Electronic Component Industries Association (ELCINA) - 1995
- Distinguished Fellow of the Institution of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineers – 1986
- Vasvik Award – 1986
- National Design Award by the Institution of Engineers - 1985
- Science & Technology Award by Kerala Government - 1978
- Republic Day Award by the Invention Promotion Board of CSIR - 1973
- Institution of Telecommunication Engineers Award – 1963
- London County Council Major Award for the post graduate studies – 1955
External links
- Keltron site
- Profile
- Wiki Reference
- Report
- Controversy
- on Economic and Political Weekly
- Profile
- Personal tragedy
- Geneology
- Report on Padma Bhushan
- Report on Padma Bhushan
- Thiruvananthapuram Techno Park site
- World Malayalee Council site
References
- ^ http://www.business-standard.com/article/economy-policy/padma-bhushan-for-corporate-honchos-106012701021_1.html
- ^ http://www.ciol.com/ciol/news/106534/kpp-nambiar-unsung-giant-india
- ^ http://shijinprasad.wordpress.com/kpp-nambiar-role-model/
- ^ http://shijinprasad.wordpress.com/kpp-nambiar-role-model/
- ^ http://www.bloomberg.com/quote/NED:IN/profile
- ^ http://www.ciol.com/ciol/news/106534/kpp-nambiar-unsung-giant-india
- ^ http://www.ciol.com/ciol/news/106534/kpp-nambiar-unsung-giant-india
- ^ http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/person.asp?personId=27081239&privcapId=12704492&previousCapId=236296103&previousTitle=HORIZON%20INFRASTRUCTURE%20LTD
- ^ http://www.ciol.com/ciol/news/106534/kpp-nambiar-unsung-giant-india