Kakinada: Former Bhimavaram municipal chairman Grandhi Venkateswara Rao (81) passed away at his residence in Bhimavaram of West Godavari District on Tuesday after a prolonged illness. He is survived wife Venkata Ratnam, three sons and two daughters.
Present Bhimavaram MLA Grandhi Srinivas is his elder son.
Venkateswara Rao was Bhimavaram Town Congress treasurer and town congress president from 1977 to 1997. He was president of Bhimavaram Urban Bank and AP Urban Bank Association; treasurer, West Godavari District Marketing Society; and special invitee for AP Congress Committee. He was a close associate of late chief minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy.
Several leaders have expressed condolences at the demise of Venkateswara Rao. Deputy Chief Minister Alla Kalikrishna Srinivas (Nani) described the departed leader as a man of principles and a great philanthropist.
