R. Thyagarajan

Veteran journalist and Dravidian ideologue, R Thyagarajan, known better by his pen name of Chinnakuthoosi, passed away on Sunday morning after a prolonged illness at the age of 77.

In the nearly four decades of shepherding the Shriram Group, R Thyagarajan, 75, has come to be recognised as an outlier.

Time and remuneration have never a subject of concern for Kilimanoor R Thyagarajan, who devoted his life to teaching violin, said health minister V S Sivakumar. He was inaugurating 'Thyagaraja Vybhavam', the 70th birthday celebrations of the famous violinist here on Friday.

The government also posthumously conferred the Padma Bhushan on superstar Rajesh Khanna and satirist Jaspal Bhatti. Actress Sharmila Tagore, cricketer Rahul Dravid and Olympic boxing medal winner Mary Kom too were conferred the Padma Bhushan.

A day after both IDFC and Shriram groups aborted the merger process, the stock prices of their group companies saw a smart rise on Tuesday, even as Shriram Group founder R Thyagarajan said, “There still is a probability that the merger might happen and that parties could restart the process.”

Piramal Enterprises on Thursday said it will buy a 20% stake in Shriram Capital, a Chennai-headquartered unlisted financial services company, for Rs 2,014 crore.

R Thyagarajan is the founder of Shriram Group, a multi-billion dollar conglomerate that employs 108,000 people and operates in everything from insurance to stockbroking. Thyagarajan built his fortune extending credit to low-income borrowers shunned by banks.

The quest for a banking licence played a key role in defining the contours of the deal between Piramal Enterprises and Shriram Transport Finance Company (STFC) concluded last Friday, said two persons with direct knowledge of the matter.

R Sridhar, managing director and CEO, Shriram Capital has quit from his full-time executive role in the company.

Residents of M K Siddhan Road near Pallichal canal in Thoppumpady have complained that the drinking water supplied by Kerala Water Authority in the area is contaminated with worms and larvae.

The Kochi Mayor, Tony Chammany and team is set leave for Russia with the intention of teaming up with Pyathigorsk City Corporation- a small city in western Russia.

The Madras high court has directed the Union railway ministry to consider the representation by Indian Railways’ Mobile Caterers Association (IRMCA) to restore their services, which have been suspended since lockdown was announced in March 2020. The court observed that the authorities should give sufficient opportunity to members of the association to put forward their contentions and pass orders within four weeks.

When the chips were down for Rajesh Khanna post-1976, producers of the southern film industry stood by him.

Ajay Piramal said he plans to resign as chairman of Shriram Capital Ltd, the Indian non-bank finance company backed by South Africa’s Sanlam Group, as he works to sell his stake in Shriram’s parent group.

Hinting at the need for pedestrian-friendly footpaths in the city, a transportation expert from the United States, Susan Zielinski, said it was possible to re-lay the city walkways without acquiring more land.