FOUNDER’S MEMORIAL DAY
The 15th Founder’s Memorial Day was observed on 14th February 2021 at Hindustan College, Mysuru. Homage to Late Dr. K.C.G. Verghese, Founder Chairman, Hindustan Group of Institutions was paid with due benevolence and respect for the person.
A philanthropist by birth, an educationist with a noble vision true to his words “To Make Every Man a Success and No Man a Failure”, a pioneer who established institution in early 1960s to train young aspirants and technocrats, an activist with keen interest to uplift the underprivileged, and above all, a true humanist, is Late Dr. K.C.G. Verghese.
Founder’s Memorial Day was graced with the presence of Mr. Abel Mathew, Special Officer, Capt. K S Bharadwaj, Chief Flight Instructor, Orient Flights Aviation Academy, staff and students of Hindustan College and OFAA. Dr. Mamatha, Assistant Professor, Department of Commerce and Management welcomed the gathering.
Floral Tribute was offered to Late Dr. K.C.G. Verghese which was followed by a documentary video presentation on the life achievements of Dr. K.C.G. Verghese. Few extracts of his autobiography “Wheels and Wings” was read by Dr. Kruthi R, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science. The programme was concluded with vote of thanks, rendered by Ms Bhagyalakshmi, Assistant Professor, Department of Commerce and Management.
During the late eighties, Dr. K. C. G. Verghese decided to purchase land on the banks of the river Pamba. He was on the look ut for a scenic place near his ancestral home in Kunnam. Mr. Thomachan, brother of Dr. K. C. G. Verghese, owned a timber mill at Vechoochira and used to supply wood for making furniture for HIET. After seeing few properties at Ranni, Dr. Verghese left it to the decision of his brother and left to Chennai.
Mr. Thomachan finalised the property and placed a call to Dr. Verghese. He was asked to get the title deeds examined by their advocate. Dr. Verghese informed that he would travel to Ranni later to complete the formalities. Taking an Ambassador car, along with his friends, Thomachan travelled to Chennai. The next evening, Dr. Verghese received a phone call from a Police Station near Trichy, stating that Thomachan and his friends had been seriously injured in a road accident. The injured people were admitted to a hospital in the vicinity. Unfortunately, the person who spoke to Dr. Verghese did not have the details of the name of the hospital. Dr. Verghese spent some anxious moments contacting various people to get information.
After two hours, Dr. Verghese was reported that the vehicle was damaged beyond repair as it had been hit by a truck. He was also informed that the occupants of the car were hospitalised. Dr. Verghese contacted the District Medical Officer and the police authorities to ensure that the best treatment was made available to the injured. In the meantime, Abraham, Dr. Verghese’s brother made preparations to rush to the spot and found that only Thomachan was seriously injured and the other friends of Thomachan had escaped the accident with minor injuries. They were discharged from the hospital and they moved to Kerala for further treatment. Later, when Abraham spoke to the driver, he narrated the entire incident. Thomachan had driven the car until they reached Madurai at around 4.00 AM and then, the driver took the seat. Thomachan sat in the front seat and tried to sleep. After driving for a while, the half- asleep driver drifted into a peaceful slumber. There was a head – on collision when a big truck came from the opposite direction and the car flung off the road. All occupants of the car fell out of the vehicle.
The driver, who was not severely injured, managed to board a bus and got off at the nearest police station. The police jeep arrived at the accident spot and took the injured to the hospital.
Abraham informed that Thomachan was semi-conscious and had to be shifted to Chennai urgently surgery. Dr. Verghese spoke to his former student, Mr. Gupta and made arrangements to take Thomachan to Chennai by a charter which was large enough to carry a stretcher. They landed at Trichy airport at around 9.30 PM and with the help of few friends, DMO and the police, Thomachan was brought to Trichy airport and Dr. Verghese was glad to see him. He was taken to Apollo Hospital. During the next three months, Thomachan had several operations on his leg and it was a painful experience for him to be in hospital for such a long time. He began to suffer from diabetes and its attendant symptoms. Later he sold his Timber Mills as the accident restricted his movements.
