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FRIEND, PHILOSOPHER, GUIDE: RETD TAMIL NADU IAS OFFICER P.M. BELLIAPPA IS NO MORE

By P.T. Bopanna

P.M. Belliappa (in picture), aged 89 years, retired IAS officer of Tamil Nadu cadre, passed away in the early hours of January 29 at Chennai.

Pemmanda Belliappa was a friend, philosopher and guide to me. Over the years, he had funded a couple of my projects through the Pemanda Monappa Foundation, set up in memory of his father. His father headed the police forces of three southern states, including Karnataka.

Though I had heard about Belliappa during his tenure as an IAS officer, I got to meet him only after he was selected ‘Coorg Person of the Year’, 2011.

He took interest in my various projects and wrote the foreword for my book ‘My Coorg Chronicles’.

I used to meet him during his visits to Bangalore and he was very particular that I shared a meal with him at Bangalore Club where he used to stay. Last couple of years, we could not meet as he was suffering from age-related issues.

He was a philanthropist who donated to various causes and was one of the major donors of Coorg Education Fund towards education of poor Kodava children.

Belliappa was given the MBE award for his contribution towards improving the Indo-U.K. relationship, especially in his capacity as President of the Association of British Scholars (ABS), over many years.

Belliappa, in his 35-year-long service in the IAS, had occupied important posts, starting as District Collector and also held the posts of head of the National Hydro Electric Corporation of India and the Chairman and Managing Director of the Rural Electrification Corporation of India.

Belliappa had Masters degrees in both Economics and English, and also a law degree. He was a Research Fellow at the Centre for South Asian Studies, Cambridge University, and also obtained a Diploma in Development Administration from Manchester University, United Kingdom.

Belliappa is the maternal grand-father of squash champion Joshna Chinappa, daughter of Kuttanda Anjan Chinappa and Sunita.

Belliappa’s profile has been featured in my book ‘Coorg Role Models’ available on Amazon: