Remembering two IAS Officers of 1970s

By K.B. Ganapathy, Senior Journalist

Mysore/Mysuru: These are the times for the senior citizens of our city to remember some of the government officers who worked in Mysuru.

One was Jayakumar Anagol, the Divisional Commissioner (30.4.1977 to 1.2.1980), who also held the charges of other departments till the new appointees came in.

Once, the local evening newspapers carried an item about bonded labourers kept in a rich farmer-landlord’s house near Hunsur. The allegation was made by a local politician.

That very evening, the Divisional Commissioner Jayakumar Anagol directed the Police to investigate and take action. The result was four bonded labourers were released and given their freedom and dignity the very next day.

There was another officer by name David Syiem, IAS, who was the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) Commissioner during 1977-79. In those days, the city roads were in a very bad shape and some of them were not motorable at all.

D.R. Krishnamurthy, the owner of ‘People’s Book House’ (now closed), had written about the pathetic condition of the roads in the local newspapers.

The very next morning, Syiem telephoned the complainant (Krishnamurthy) and asked him to show the roads that he had complained about. Krishnamurthy readily agreed and went on his scooter to the Commissioner’s office thinking that from the office he would sit in the Commissioner’s car and drive around to show the damaged roads.

However, to Krishnamurthy’s utter surprise, Syiem, the young officer, beaming a smile shook hands with the complainant and said ‘Come let’s go.’ Both of them climbed down the steps to the portico where the Commissioner’s car was parked. Syiem asked Krishnamurthy how he came there and was told he came by the scooter. Syiem said, “Come let us go on your scooter.” Krishnamurthy was bewildered at the suggestion.

It was for the first time in the history of Mysuru City Corporation that its Commissioner went around the city as a pillion rider on a scooter of the complainant for inspection of roads. Next day it made news in the morning newspapers.

I remembered these two officers as I was driving this morning on the Karanji Tank Bund road, which had made news last evening as shown in the picture below.

Should we say more?