Ramco Group Chairman P R Ramasubrahmaneya Rajha Passes Away At 82

Industry news

Ramco Group Chairman P R Ramasubrahmaneya Rajha Passes Away At 82

Ramco Group Chairman P R Ramasubrahmaneya Rajha, 82, passed away at Rajapalayam in Tamil Nadu, after ailing for some time.

He is survived by his wife Sudarsanam, his son P R Venketrama Raja as well as two daughters, R Nalina Ramalakshmi and S Sharada Deepa, besides five grandchildren. Popularly known as the Raja of Rajapalayam, Rajha became Ramco’s chairman in 1962, when he was still in his 20s, with just two businesses, namely Rajapalayam Mills (a textile mill) and Madras Cements (now Ramco Cements).

He took over the reins of the Ramco Group after the demise of his father P A C Ramasamy Rajha and grew these businesses into a U$ $1-billion conglomerate. Expressing deep regrets over Rajha’s demise, N Srinivasan, Vice-Chairman and Managing Director, India Cements, who has known him for over four decades, said, “I am shocked to hear the news of the passing away of Shri Ramasubrahmaneya Rajha. It is hard to express my feelings when I have known him for over 40 years”.

TVS Motor Company Chairman Venu Srinivasan said, “He was one of the outstanding leaders known for his vision, values and philanthropy. His death is a great loss to Tamil Nadu and the country”. As much as an industrialist, Rajha was known for his spiritual outlook, philanthropy and as a patron of arts. A graduate in physics from the Loyola College, he started his career in the textile business in mills in Madras, as Chennai was known then, and in Madurai.