D. S. Ramanathan (

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

: டி. எஸ். ராமநாதன்) was a Malaysian politician, mayor, teacher, unionist , Malayan Army and educationist of

Ceylonese Sri Lankan or Ceylonese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Sri Lanka * A person from Sri Lanka, see Demographics of Sri Lanka ** Sinhalese people, the ethnic majority ** Sri Lankan Tamils, an ethnic minority ** Sri L ...

origin. He was a member as well as chairman of the

Labour Party of Malaya The Labour Party of Malaya ( ms, Parti Buruh Malaya; abbrev. LPM) was a political party in Malaya that was active between 1952 and 1969. It was originally formed as a confederation of state based labour parties known as the Pan-Malayan Labour P ...

, and subsequently joined the

Malaysian Indian Congress The Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC; ta, மலேசிய இந்திய காங்கிரஸ், Malēciya Intiya Kāṅkiras; formerly known as Malayan Indian Congress) is a Malaysian political party. It is one of the founding membe ...

. Besides that, Ramanathan also served as the first mayor for the city of George Town, and is credited for his pioneering efforts to set up a university in

Penang Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay ...

. The idea of a university in

was first mooted by him in 1959 in the State Assembly and later crystallised when he was nominated chairman of the Penang University Project committee. The

Universiti Sains Malaysia Universiti Sains Malaysia ( 'Science University of Malaysia'; abbreviated as USM) is a public research university in Malaysia. Founded on 1 June 1969 as a statutory body with its own constitution, it is among the oldest institutes of higher l ...

opened in 1969 and is today one of the leading tertiary institutions of learning in Malaysia

Early life

D. S. Ramanathan was born to Sri Lanka Tamil family. He later married to Ruth Vanniasingham. D.S Ramanathan work as teacher on early days before joining politics. The former teacher, who began his career in Perak, was the president of the National Union of Teachers from 1959 to 1962 as well as vice-president of the Malayan Teachers National Congress from 1961-1962. During that period, he was also an active member of the National Joint Council of Teachers. Even, after finishing his term as mayor, he was appointed as the headmaster of the Penang Pykett Methodist School. He died in 1973 in

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = '' Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , su ...

Memorials

D. S. Ramanathan Road

Scott Road, a small road off Air Rajah Road, has been renamed in honour of Ramanathan.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramanathan, D. S. Malaysian people of Indian descent 1973 deaths Malaysian trade unionists Malaysian people of Sri Lankan Tamil descent Malaysian politicians of Tamil descent Malaysian Christians Malaysian socialists Malaysian political party founders Labour Party of Malaya politicians Members of the Penang State Legislative Assembly 1908 births