Cadambi Sheshachar Venkatachar (11 July 1899 – 16 June 1999) was an Indian Civil Servant, diplomat and the second Chief Minister of

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...

Early life and education

Venkatachar was born in a village about 25 km from

Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

, in a

Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...

family. Both his father and uncle had been educated in English, and were employed by the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

. Venkatachar was educated at Maharaja's Central College, Bangalore and thence at

Madras University The University of Madras (informally known as Madras University) is a public state university in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Established in 1857, it is one of the oldest and among the most prestigious universities in India, incorporated by an a ...

, where he graduated in Chemistry in 1920. In 1921, he travelled to London and sat for the

Indian Civil Service The Indian Civil Service (ICS), officially known as the Imperial Civil Service, was the higher civil service of the British Empire in India during British rule in the period between 1858 and 1947. Its members ruled over more than 300 million ...

exam and was one of the 16 successful entrants (13 Indian and 3 European) out of the Approximately 150 who sat for the exam. He completed his probationary year of service at

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

and joined the

in 1922.

Career

Initially, Venkatachar served in

United Provinces of British India The United Provinces of British India, more commonly known as the United Provinces, was a province of British India, which came into existence on 3 January 1921 as a result of the renaming of the ''United Provinces of Agra and Oudh''. It corre ...

and was associated closely with the Census of India, 1931. He was then appointed to the Indian Political Service - a rare honour, as this service was ''de facto'' reserved for British Military Officers. From 1939 to 1941, he was the Agent of the Government of India in

British Malaya The term "British Malaya" (; ms, Tanah Melayu British) loosely describes a set of states on the Malay Peninsula and the island of Singapore that were brought under British hegemony or control between the late 18th and the mid-20th century. U ...

. Venkatachar was appointed an

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(OBE) in the

1941 Birthday Honours The King's Birthday Honours 1941 were appointments in the British Empire of King George VI to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of various countries. The appointments were made to celebrate the official birt ...

. In 1942, he was the commissioner of Allahabad, and was appointed a

Companion of the Indian Empire The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria on 1 January 1878. The Order includes members of three classes: #Knight Grand Commander (GCIE) #Knight Commander ( KCIE) #Companion ( CIE) No appo ...

(CIE) in the

1946 Birthday Honours The 1946 King's Birthday Honours, celebrating the official birthday of King George VI, were announced on 13 June 1946 for the United Kingdom and British Empire. The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before their new h ...

Post-Independence

In 1947, he was elected to the

Constituent Assembly of India The Constituent Assembly of India was elected to frame the Constitution of India. It was elected by the 'Provincial Assembly'. Following India's independence from the British rule in 1947, its members served as the nation's first Parliament as ...

. In October 1948, Venkatachar became the Diwan of

Jodhpur State Kingdom of Marwar, also known as the Jodhpur State under the British, was a kingdom in the Marwar region from 1226 to 1818 and a princely state under British rule from 1818 to 1947. It was established in Pali by Rao Siha, possibly a m ...

and the Prime Minister of Bikaner State, succeeding the eminent scholar and diplomat, Sardar

Kavalam Madhava Panikkar Kavalam Madhava Panikkar (3 June 1895 – 10 December 1963), popularly known as Sardar K. M. Panikkar, was an Indian statesman and diplomat. He was also a professor, newspaper editor, historian and novelist. He was born in Travancore, then a ...

. From 10 April 1949 to 5 January 1951, he was the Regional Commissioner and Advisor (Home and Finance) to the

Rajpramukh Rajpramukh was an administrative title in India which existed from India's independence in 1947 until 1956. Rajpramukhs were the appointed governors of certain Indian provinces and states. Background The British Indian Empire, which includ ...

Rajasthan state Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...

, Maharaja

Man Singh II Major General Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II GCSI GCIE (born Sawai Mor Mukut Singh; 21 August 1912 – 24 June 1970) was an Indian prince, government official, diplomat and sportsman. Man Singh II was the ruling Maharaja of the princely state ...

. After the resignation of

Heera Lal Shastri Pandit Hiralal Shastri (24 November 1899 – 28 December 1974) was an Indian politician and the first chief minister of Rajasthan state in northern India. He was in office from 7 April 1949 to 5 January 1951. Early life Hiralal Shastri was bor ...

, he held the office of the

Chief Minister of Rajasthan The chief minister of Rajasthan is the head of government, chief executive of the Indian state of Rajasthan. In accordance with the Constitution of India, the Governors of states of India, governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto' ...

from 6 January 1951 to 25 April 1951. On 26 April 1951, a new ministry headed by

Jai Narayan Vyas Jai Narayan Vyas (18 February 1899 – 14 March 1963) was an Indian politician and the third chief minister of the State of Rajasthan. He hailed from Jodhpur city and was a leader of Indian National Congress party. Early life He was born on 1 ...

assumed the office. In 1951, Venkatachar became the

secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a w ...

to the Ministry of States of the Government of India. In 1955, he was appointed the secretary to the

President of India The president of India ( IAST: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces. Droupadi Murmu ...

Rajendra Prasad Rajendra Prasad (3 December 1884 – 28 February 1963) was an Indian politician, lawyer, Indian independence activist, journalist & scholar who served as the first president of Republic of India from 1950 to 1962. He joined the Indian Nationa ...

. He served in this position till January 1958. In August 1958, Venkatachar was appointed the High Commissioner of India to Canada. He relinquished charge of the High Commissioner in October 1960, handing over to

Birendra Narayan Chakraborty Birendra Narayan Chakraborty (also Birendra Narayan Chakravarty) (20 December 1904 – 26 March 1976) was an Indian civil servant, politician and the second governor of Haryana. He attended Kolkata's Scottish Church College, and continued hi ...

. He died a month short of his 100th birthday on 16 June 1999.

Major works

A collection of his writings edited by S. Sapru and K. M. Acharya was published under the title, ''Witness to the Century: Writings of C.S. Venkatachar, ICS''.

References

External links

Raj Assembly photos
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Venkatachari, C. S. 1899 births 1999 deaths Chief Ministers of Rajasthan Indian civil servants Companions of the Order of the Indian Empire Indian Officers of the Order of the British Empire Indian Civil Service (British India) officers Members of the Constituent Assembly of India People from Kolar district Chief ministers from Indian National Congress Indian Political Service officers