UNIVERSITY NEWS LAST UPDATED : 28 JANUARY 2009
Birmingham City University's international ambitions will be further boosted by awarding an important ambassadorial role to a leading Indian business tycoon.
Mr MA Alagappan, Executive Chairman of the Murugappa corporation, a $3-billion business conglomerate based in India, is to be awarded an honorary doctorate by Birmingham City University.
Mr Alagappan is being recognised for his outstanding business achievements and will be given his honorary title at the University's Awards Congregation ceremony in Symphony Hall, Birmingham.
The prestigious event, which will take place from 10.30am on Thursday 29 January, will also celebrate the work and achievements of students graduating from Birmingham City University's business school.
A passionate anglophile Mr Alagappan, who has studied and worked in the West Midlands, acts as an enabler for regional businesses looking to enter fast developing markets in India.
"We are delighted to be awarding an honorary doctorate to Mr Alagappan, someone who has a long association with this area and a committed champion of Anglo-Indian trade links," said Paul Sabapathy CBE, Chairman of Birmingham City University and Her Majesty's Lord-Lieutenant for the County of the West Midlands.
Mr Alagappan's honorary degree coincides with the University opening its first office in India, in the bustling city of Chennai. This city centre office will act as a base for Birmingham City University in India and will further support its successful recruitment in this important region.
Also, in the run-up to the graduation ceremony Mr Alagappan will be sharing his expertise with students when he gives a talk at the University's business school entitled ‘The Global Downturn: An Indian Perspective'.
The lecture will be at the Birmingham City Business School on Wednesday, January 28 from 2.00pm.
Mr Alagappan is also a keen tennis enthusiast and played a significant role in helping to retain the ATP's international tournament - The Chennai Open - in Chennai. The Alagappans have a son and a daughter.
Notes to Editor
1) Companies in the Murugappa group are market leaders in diverse areas of business including Engineering, Abrasives, Finance, General Insurance, Cycles, Sugar, Farm Inputs, Fertilizers, Plantations, Bio-products and Nutraceuticals. The Group's twenty nine companies have manufacturing facilities in 13 states in India as well as in China, Russia and South Africa with further new plants coming up in other countries like Tunisia.