With Sri Morarji Desai, Former Finance Minister, at the Raj Bhavan, Chennai
TSS, as he was popularly addressed in journalistic circles, passed away at his Bangalore residence on April 6. In a Rotary club meeting facilitating him for serving in the press for five decades, he was lauded for his extraordinary versatility and unflinching commitment to neutral reporting. His colleagues and mentees respected and admired him for upholding high reporting standards across all the articles he wrote.
Born on February 28, 1923, the first of three children of Subramania Iyer, Mr. T.S Srinivasan grew up in Singanallur and Tiruvidaimarudur before completing a Bachelor's degree in History at the St. Joseph's College in Tiruchirappalli. It was then that his uncle, A.S. Bharathan, general manager at the Press Trust of India in Mumbai took him in as an apprentice. He advised him to pursue a career as a journalist, instead of appearing for the IAS examination. In the next seventeen years, Mr. Srinivasan worked tirelessly in the PTI offices in Gujarat.
His contributions there are best summarized in the words of Mr. Indulal Yagnik, Member of the Lok Sabha. In his farewell letter, he said: "I was agreeably surprised to see you quickly mastering the Gujarati Language, rarely learned by any non-Bombay friends in similar circumstances. As a leftist, I was surprised from the very beginning to see your keen desire to appreciate our points of view and your readiness to give correct and cogent publicity to any opinions or demonstrations in connection with the Kisan movement or the Mahagujarat struggle."
His next assignment was with the Indian News Service at Madurai. It came as no surprise that he continued his stellar work because he had the blessings of Sri Morarji Desai, a dear friend and Former Finance Minister of India. He appreciated Mr. Srinivasan for setting up six centers of the News Agency in Gujarat. Mr. Morarji Desai also observed that Mr. Srinivasan had taken "considerable care" in giving out good news reports that helped to build a healthy public opinion.
In the early sixties, Mr. Srinivasan shifted to Madras to join the Indian Express under Mr. Ramnath Goenka. He served here till the late eighties and retired as a chief reporter. He never failed to research deeply on a topic before writing a report. In an Express obituary of the music composer Papanasam Sivan, he wrote about a stammer that disappeared every time he sang about the presiding deity of the Kapaleeswarar temple. This fact was unknown till then, and his senior remarked that the Express had come out with the comprehensive report, thanks to his efforts.
India Cements K.S Narayan, who fondly called him "Srini, " often remarked about how he covered the activities of the Chamber of Commerce thoroughly. Over the years, he developed a close friendship with Mr. A. Sivasailam, after giving publicity to the evolution of J Farm and actively tracking the growth of the Amalgamations group. In later years, Mr. Sivasailam would speak of how he was yet to come across an industrial reporter with the depth and integrity of Mr. Srinivasan.
Mr. Srinivasan had a rare sense of humor. The famous article he wrote comparing a newspaper and a child for the Reuters Telegram was appreciated by many. He had a keen sense of perception; he wrote on a broad range of topics varying from Bank Nationalization and India's salt industry to Ayurveda and musical therapy.
He actively followed the growth of the leather cloth industry and the subsequent establishment of the Central Leather Research Institute, earning him the respect of Mr. Nagappa Chettiar and Yelavarthy Nayudamma. His many reports on the handloom and textile industry helped him forge a deep association with Mr.Sathyanarayanan and in later years, Mr. Nalli Kuppuswamy Chetty.
He is survived by his daughter Vijayalakshmi, son-in-law Chandrasekar, and grand-daughter Krithika.
With Dr. M.G Ramachandran, Former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu at a Press Conference
