Ananth Kumar facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ananth Kumar
Ananth Kumar in 2017
Cabinet Minister Government of India
In office 26 May 2014 – 12 November 2018
Prime Minister	Narendra Modi
Ministry	Term
Minister of Parliamentary Affairs	5 July 2016 – 12 November 2018
Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers	26 May 2014 – 12 November 2018
In office 13 October 1999 – 12 July 2003
Prime Minister	Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Ministry	Term
Minister of Urban Development	1 September 2001 – 12 July 2003
Minister of Tourism	2 February 2000 – 1 September 2001
Minister of Culture	13 October 1999 – 1 September 2001
Minister of Youth Affairs & Sports	13 October 1999 – 2 February 2000
In office 19 March 1998 – 13 October 1999
Prime Minister	Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Ministry	Term
Minister of Tourism	30 January 1999 – 13 October 1999
Minister of Civil Aviation	19 March 1998 – 13 October 1999
Member of Parliament Lok Sabha
In office 1996–2018
Preceded by	K. Venkatagiri Gowda
Succeeded by	Tejasvi Surya
Constituency	Bangalore South
President Bharatiya Janata Party, Karnataka
In office 26 June 2003 – 31 December 2004
Preceded by	B.S. Yediyurappa
Succeeded by	Jagadish Shettar
Personal details
Born	Hegannahalli Narayana Shastry Ananth Kumar (1959-07-22)22 July 1959 Bangalore, Mysore State, (now in Karnataka) India
Died	12 November 2018(2018-11-12) (aged 59) Bangalore, Karnataka, India
Political party	Bharatiya Janata Party
Spouse	Tejaswini Kumar ​ (m. 1989⁠–⁠2018)​
Children	Aishwarya Ananth Kumar, Vijeta
Alma mater	Karnatak University

Ananth Kumar (born July 22, 1959 – died November 12, 2018) was an important Indian politician. He was a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He served as a Cabinet Minister in the Government of India. From 2014 until his death in 2018, he was the Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers. He also handled Parliamentary Affairs from 2016.

Ananth Kumar was a Member of Parliament (MP) for over 20 years. He was elected from the Bangalore South area. He won this seat in the Lok Sabha (the lower house of India's Parliament) six times, starting in 1996. During his career, he also served as a minister for Civil Aviation, Tourism, Sports, Urban Development, and Poverty Alleviation.

Early Life and Education

Ananth Kumar was born in a middle-class family in Bangalore, Karnataka. His father, H. N. Narayan Shastry, worked for the Indian Railways. His mother, Smt Girija Shastry, was a social worker. She even served as the deputy mayor of the Hubli-Dharwad city.

Ananth Kumar studied in Hubli. He finished his high school (matriculation) at Lamington School. He then completed his pre-university course in science. He earned a bachelor's degree in arts from Kadasiddeshwar Arts College. Later, he got a law degree from JSS Law College. Both colleges were part of Karnatak University.

In 1973, Ananth Kumar joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). This is a large Indian volunteer organization. He also took part in a big movement led by Jayaprakash Narayan in 1974. During a difficult period in India called "The Emergency," he was jailed for over 40 days.

Journey in Politics

Ananth Kumar started his political journey with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). This was the student wing of the RSS. He became the State Secretary of ABVP. Later, he rose to become its National Secretary in 1985.

In 1987, he joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He quickly became the State President of the BJP's youth wing. By 1996, he was made the National Secretary of the main BJP party.

Becoming a Member of Parliament

Ananth Kumar was first elected to the Lok Sabha in 1996. He represented the Bangalore South area. He was re-elected multiple times. In 1999, he became a Cabinet Minister in the government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee. During this time, he managed several important government departments. These included Tourism, Sports & Youth Affairs, Culture, Urban Development, and Poverty Alleviation.

In 2003, Ananth Kumar became the President of the BJP in Karnataka state. Under his leadership, the BJP became the largest party in the state assembly. They also won most of the Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka in 2004. He was then appointed as a National General Secretary of the BJP.

On May 26, 2014, Ananth Kumar was appointed Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers. This was in the cabinet of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In 2016, he was also given the extra responsibility of Minister of Parliamentary Affairs. This role involves managing the government's work in Parliament.

Lok Sabha Election Results

Here's how Ananth Kumar performed in the Lok Sabha elections:

Key Achievements

As a minister, Ananth Kumar worked on many important projects.

Healthcare and Fertilizers

• He helped reduce the prices of heart stents. Stents are small tubes used to open blocked arteries. This saved heart patients a lot of money.
• He made it compulsory for all urea (a common fertilizer) to be "neem-coated." This stopped urea from being used for other purposes. It also helped farmers use less fertilizer. This saved the government a lot of money.
• He mandated a 69% price reduction on knee implants. This made knee replacement surgeries much more affordable.
• Under his guidance, the number of Jan Aushadhi Kendras increased greatly. These are special stores that sell affordable generic medicines.
• He launched "Suvidha" – affordable, bio-degradable sanitary pads. These were sold for just ₹2.50 each.

Infrastructure and Economy

• He worked to restart six closed fertilizer plants. This was a huge investment to boost fertilizer production in India.
• As the Civil Aviation Minister, he signed an agreement for a new international airport in Bangalore. He also worked to improve the existing HAL airport.
• He helped create a policy for cities with over 1 million people to have metro systems. He played a key role in getting the Bengaluru Metro project approved.
• He helped pass the GST bill in 2017. This was a major tax reform in India. He convinced other lawmakers about its importance.

Digital Initiatives

In 1998, Ananth Kumar launched his own websites, www.raktadan.org/ and www.ananth.org. He was the first Indian MP to have his own website. This helped him connect with his voters.

He was known as the "Delhi Face of Karnataka." This meant that people from Karnataka, no matter their political party, could approach him in Delhi. He would then help them by contacting government officials to solve their problems.

Personal Life and Social Work

Ananth Kumar was married to Tejaswini. They had two daughters, Aishwarya and Vijeta.

Helping the Community

Ananth Kumar and his wife founded the Adamya Chetana Foundation in 1998. This is a non-profit organization dedicated to social service.

• The foundation helps underprivileged children by providing food in schools. This is part of the Midday Meal Scheme. They serve around 200,000 meals every day.
• He started the "Green Bangalore 1:1" initiative. This was part of a bigger plan called Sasyagraha. The goal was to plant enough trees so there would be one tree for every person in Bangalore.
• As part of the Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY), Ananth Kumar adopted Ragihalli village. This scheme aims to develop villages into model villages.
• He also introduced "Arogya Chetana," a health insurance plan for schoolchildren. This plan was launched by former President Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam.

Death

Ananth Kumar passed away on November 12, 2018. He was 59 years old. His death was due to pancreatic cancer and related health issues. He is remembered for his long service to the people of India.

See Also