It is with great sadness that TSEWA announces the untimely demise of Colonel M K Veeramani (Retd), President, Charity Division and a member of Executive Committee of TSEWA on Tuesday, 23 Oct 2018 at Secunderabad.

Col MK Veeramani (Retd) was commissioned in Jun 1963 into Corps of EME from IMA, Dehradun. He served in various EME units and formation HQs. His notable tenures included in EME unit in Dehu Road, 5 Mtn Div EME Battalion, Advanced Base Workshop in Udhampur, J & K, EME Directorate in Army HQ. In the 1970s he was seconded to DGQA and after putting in almost three decades of service in the Army, he took premature retirement.

Post retirement, he joined a small scale industry as a partner, doing engineering fabrication and manufacture of special purpose machines. He worked as a consultant on setting up of small scale industries and on hi-tech fabrication.

He was a founding member of TSEWA when it was raised on 12 Jun 2015 and has been actively involved in all its activities. Being in charge of the Charity Division of TSEWA, he would carefully scrutinise each case and visit the proposed beneficiaries in remote areas. Only then would he recommend that TSEWA provide financial assistance. He was actively involved in conducting awareness programmes, especially in Tamilnadu to educate ESMs and family pensioners of their entitlements. Whether it was arranging accommodation for out-station guests, arranging social get-togethers, liaising with the press, Col Veeramani was always ready to take on the responsibility. His financial contribution to TSEWA, in cash and kind has been immense.

He was a very religious man. He would regularly organise satsangs and take jathas or groups of 60 to 90 elderly personnel to visit various temples in Tamilnadu. He used to subsidise the cost of expenses to some of the old ladies who could not pay the total cost for such trips by paying the shortfall from his own pocket. In fact, he had just returned from one such yatra when he fell ill.

He was married to Dr Manjari, who predeceased him. He is survived by his two sons, daughters-in-law and two grandsons.

Brig Vidyasagar writes, “The loss of Col Veeramani cannot be filled in TSEWA for many years to come. He was a great friend, guide and philosopher to most of us. His charming smile, childlike innocence, maturity, wisdom kept TSEWA together. If TSEWA in short span of three years could be what it is today, it is to a great extent due to great contribution from Col Veeramani.”

TSEWA mourns the loss of one of its pillars of strength.