Delivering the T.S. Santhanam Memorial Lecture organised by the Indian Roads & Transport Development Association (IRTDA), Southern Region, Mr. G. Srinivasan, Chairman & Managing Director of United India Insuance Co. Ltd., said: the late T.S. Santhanam was a true visionary industrialist whose ideas and approach were far ahead of his times. Considered an authority on automotive and road transport industries, he is also remembered for his pioneering efforts in the areas of hire purchase and insurance. He gained rich experience in road transport, marketing of automobiles, manufacture of automobile components, general insurance and finance, and played a crucial role in the establishment of several auto component units in the TVS Group.
United India Insurance Company, as a PSU, was born in 1971 out of the amalgamation of many private insurance companies, of which Madras Motor General Insurance Company promoted by Santhanam was a major one. Today, it is widely accepted that upstream activities like financing provides a major push to vehicle sales, which Santhanam visualized in the 1940s and 1950s by establishing his credit and finance companies. Similarly the insurance business was thought of many decades ago by this visionary.
Santhanam’s financial acumen was always regarded highly, not just in the TVS Group but outside as well. He had the distinction of serving on the Government’s Direct Taxes Advisory Committee and the Study Group on Road Transport Financing, among others. For him, quality was paramount. This ensured that his auto component distribution companies provided transport operators genuine and quality products at fair prices.
Transport is an industry was close to Santhanam’s heart. It is often said that the transport system of a country reflects the efficiency of its economic activity. He thus pitched for more investment in the road sector. This contributed in no mean measure to the beneficial evolution of the roads and transport regulations in India over the past few decades.
With the emergence of the Indian Road Transport Development Association (IRTDA) as the nodal organization spearheading the evolution of the country’s surface transport sector, Santhanam who envisioned Chennai to become the automobile manufacturing hub of India became the first Indian to be elected its Chairman.
Earlier Mr. K.N. Krishnamurthy, Chairman, IRTDA (SR), delivered the welcome address and Mr. Sharath Vijayaraghavan, Executive Director, Sundaram Motors, Chennai, spoke about the contribution made by T.S.Santhanam to the Indian economy in general and the road transport sector in particular.