Sudha Murty facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sudha Murty
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Murty at Rashtrapati Bhavan in 2023
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| Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha | |
| Assumed office 8 March 2024 |
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| Nominated by | Droupadi Murmu |
| Constituency | Nominated (Philanthropy, Literature & Education) |
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Sudha Kulkarni
19 August 1950 Shiggaon, Mysore State (present-day Karnataka), India |
| Spouse | |
| Children | Akshata Murty (daughter) Rohan Murty (son) |
| Relatives | Shrinivas Kulkarni (brother) Sunanda Kulkarni (sister) Gururaj Deshpande (brother-in-law) Rishi Sunak (son-in-law) |
| Alma mater | KLE Technological University (BE) Indian Institute of Science (ME) |
| Occupation |
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| Awards |
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| Organisation | Infosys Foundation |
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Notable work
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Sudha Murty (born August 19, 1950) is an Indian teacher, writer, and a person who helps others a lot (a philanthropist). She is married to N. R. Narayana Murthy, who helped start a big company called Infosys. She is also the founder and leader of the Infosys Foundation, a group that does good work without making money.
In 2024, Sudha Murty became a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha (which is like a part of India's government). She was chosen for this role because of her great work in helping society and education. She received the Padma Shri award in 2006, which is India's fourth highest civilian award. In 2023, she was given the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award in India.
Sudha Murty started her career in computer science and engineering. She is also part of public health projects by the Gates Foundation. She has helped create many orphanages and worked on projects to improve villages. She also supported giving computers and library books to all government schools in Karnataka. She even started the Murty Classical Library of India at Harvard University.
Murty is well-known for her kindness and for her books written in Kannada and English. Her novel Dollar Bahu (meaning Dollar Daughter-in-Law) was made into a TV show. Another story, Runa (meaning Debt), became a Marathi film called Pitruroon. Sudha Murty has also acted in this film and in a Kannada film called Prarthana.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Sudha Murty was born on August 19, 1950, in Shiggaon, Karnataka, India. Her family spoke the Kannada language. Her father, R. H. Kulkarni, was a surgeon, and her mother, Vimala Kulkarni, was a schoolteacher. Sudha Murty was raised by her parents and her grandparents. Her childhood experiences inspired her famous book, How I Taught My Grandmother to Read, Wise and Otherwise and Other Stories.
She earned a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from KLE Technological University. Later, she completed a Master of Engineering degree in Computer Science from the Indian Institute of Science.
Career Journey
Sudha Murty was the first female engineer ever hired at TATA Engineering and Locomotive Company (TELCO), which was India's largest car maker. She started as a Development Engineer in Pune and also worked in Mumbai and Jamshedpur. She once wrote a letter to the company's chairman because they only hired men. Because of her letter, she got a special interview and was hired right away. Later, she worked as a Senior Systems Analyst at the Walchand Group of Industries in Pune.
In 1996, she started the Infosys Foundation, a charity organization. She retired from it in 2020. She also taught at Christ University.
Sudha Murty has written many books. These include novels, non-fiction books, travel stories, technical books, and stories about her own life. Her books have been translated into many different Indian languages. She also writes columns for English and Kannada newspapers.
Helping Others: Philanthropy
Sudha Murty's Infosys Foundation is a public charity that was started in 1996. This foundation works to help people in many ways, like building schools, providing clean water, and supporting healthcare.
Personal Life
Sudha Murty is married to N. R. Narayana Murthy, who helped create the company Infosys. They got married when she was working as an engineer at TELCO. They have two children: a daughter named Akshata Murty, who is a fashion designer, and a son named Rohan Murty. Akshata Murty is married to Rishi Sunak, who used to be the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
Her siblings include Dr. Sunanda Kulkarni and Shrinivas Kulkarni, who is an astrophysicist. Her sister Jaishree Deshpande and her husband Gururaj Deshpande helped start a technology innovation center at MIT.
Awards and Recognition
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Sudha Murty has received many awards for her work in literature and social service:
- 2004: Raja-Lakshmi Award from the Sri Raja-Lakshmi Foundation
- 2006: India's fourth highest civilian award, the Padma Shri
- 2006: R.K. Narayana's Award for Literature
- 2010: Daana Chintamani Attimabbe Award from the Karnataka Government
- 2011: An honorary Doctor of Laws (LL.D) degree for helping legal education in India
- 2013: The Basava Shree-2013 Award, shared with her husband, for their contributions to society
- 2018: Crossword Book Award in the popular (Non-Fiction) category
- 2019: An honorary Doctor of Science degree from IIT Kanpur
- 2023: Padma Bhushan by the Government of India
- 2023: Sahitya Akademi Bal Sahitya Puraskar (an award for children's literature)
- 2023: The Global Indian Award, worth $50,000. Her husband also received this award in 2014, making them the first couple to both receive it. She donated the award money to the Field Institute at the University of Toronto.
See Also
In Spanish: Sudha Murthy para niños
