Chennai: Unveiling a life-sized statue of former Chief Minister M. G. Ramachandran, fondly addressed as MGR, distribution of hearing aids to children and poor feeding besides release of special postal stamp marked the birth centenary celebrations of the legendary matinee idol and founder of the ruling AIADMK.
AIADMK General Secretary V. K. Sasikala and Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam led the birth centenary celebrations of their party founder on Tuesday.
Ms. Sasikala, who led the celebrations at the party headquarters here, garlanded a MGR statue and released a souvenir. She gave away welfare assistance to several persons. She unfurled the party flag and also unveiled a life-sized statue of MGR in the presence of Mr. Panneerselvam, Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker M. Thambidurai and others.
Ms. Sasikala later visited MGR’s Ramavaram residence where she was received by the late leader’s adopted daughter Sudha Vijayakumar and her son.
She visited a school for speech disabled and hearing impaired children run by MGR’s family and gave away hearing aids to children. Later, she served food and also shared a meal with the children there.
Accompanied by his Cabinet colleagues, Mr. Panneerselvam paid floral tributes to a portrait of Bharat Ratna MGR at Guindy. A postal stamp was also released by the Director General of Postal Services, India Post, T. Murthy, to mark the birth centenary of MGR and it was received by the Chief Minister.
The birth centenary was celebrated across the state in a grand manner and a several leaders including Union Minister of State for Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Pon Radhakrishnan, DMK Working President M. K. Stalin, MDMK chief Vaiko and BJP state president Dr. Tamilisai Soundararajan paid rich tributes to the leader.
