Elattuvalapil Sreedharan played a key role in the development of the Indian public transport system. He has been credited for the changed face of transport in India. So today, here I am to tell you about his life and journey in this E. Sreedharan Biography. He is considered the Metro Man of India as he led the planning, execution, and implementation of India’s first Metro System in Kolkata and the largest Metro System of India – Delhi Metro.
So let’s start the life story of E. Sreedharama from the beginning and understand his perspectives on life and success with this E. Sreedharan Biography.
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E. Sreedharan Biography
Metro Man E. Sreedharan was born on 12 June 1932 in Karukaputhur, Palakkad District, Kerala, India. He was a bright student from the beginning with a full head of dreams. The Metro Man of India has surpassed a long journey of life and has done uncountable commendable work. He not only lived his life as an engineer but also joined politics on 18 February 2021.
As of 2023, E. Sreedharan age is 91 years and there is a lot to learn about this genius man who has given us the most convenient transport system like Metro. So stay tuned and keep reading this Metro Man Biography.
| Full Name | Elattuvalapil Sreedharan |
| Date of Birth | 12 June 1932 |
| Age | 91 Years (As of 2023) |
| Birthplace | Karukaputhur, Palakkad District, Kerala, India |
| Residence | India |
| Father’s Name | Keezhveettil Neelakandan Moosath |
| Mother’s Name | Ammaluamma |
| Wife’s Name | Radha Sreedharan |
| Daughter’s Name | Shanti Menon |
| Qualification | Civil Engineering |
| College Name | Government Engineering College, Kakinada (Now, Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University) |
| Occupation | Engineer and Politician |
| Sobriquet Name | Metro Man |
| Completed Projects | Kolkata Metro, Konkan Railway, Delhi Metro, Kochi Metro, Lucknow Metro, Jaipur Metro, Visakhapatnam Metro, Vijayawada Metro, and Coimbatore Metro |
| Highest Civilian Awards | Padma Shri and Padma Vibhushan |
E. Sreedharan Education
Metro Man E. Sreedharan completed his early education at the Government Lower Primary School Chathannur and then attended the Basel Evangelical Mission Higher Secondary School. After completing his schooling, he then attended the Victoria College, Palghat. He wanted to become a civil engineer and thus he enrolled at the Government Engineering College, Kakinada to pursue his graduation in Civil Engineering. Presently, this college is known as Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University.
E. Sreedharan Family
Metro Man E. Sreedharan was born into a Hindu-Malayali family. His father’s name was Keezhveettil Neelakandan Moosath while his mother’s name was Ammaluamma. E. Sreedharan’s wife’s name is Radha Sreedharan and he also has a daughter named Shanti Menon, she is a Principal at the school of Bangalore – Deens Academy.
E. Sreedharan Professor Career
E. Sreedharan started his professional career journey as a Civil Engineering professor at the Government Polytechnic, Kozhikode but in 1953, he cleared the Indian Engineering Services Exam conducted by the UPSC and joined the Indian Railway Service of Engineers. In December 1954, he was assigned to the Southern Railway as a Probationary Assistant Engineer.
E. Sreedharan Engineering Career
E. Sreedharan’s engineering career was started in 1954, after 10 years of this, a cyclone damaged the Pamban Bridge between Rameshwaram and the mainland of Tamil Nadu. A Span of 6 months was given for the recovery of the bridge by the Railways but Sreedharan’s boss reduced this time to 3 months and handed over the responsibility to Sreedharan. He was awarded with Railway Minister’s Award for the successful restoration of the bridge in 46 Days.
After 6 years of this incident, E. Sreedharan was given the whole control of India’s first Metro project in Kolkata. Being the Deputy Chief Engineer, Sreedharan managed the planning, designing, and implementation of the Kolkata Metro Project. After the successful implementation of India’s First Metro Project in Kolkata, he has been known for founding modern infrastructure engineering in India.
E. Sreedharan Finished Projects
Konkan Railway
One of his most renowned and successful projects was Konkan Railway which he actually executed after his retirement in 1990. He was appointed as the Chief Managing Director of India one of the most typical Indian Railway projects by the then Railway Minister Goerge Fernandes by made it clear that Indian Railways still needed his service.
Delhi Metro
He was announced as the Managing Director of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation by the then CM Sahib Singh Verma. Under his leadership, the Delhi Metro Project was completed within the targeted time and investment. It was a huge success for India to set up a 350.42 km lengthy Metro System within time. He became the headline of every newspaper and media. The name, Metro Man is also given in the Indian Media.
For his ultimate contribution to the Delhi Metro System implementation and management, he was awarded the second-highest civilian award in India – Padma Vibhushan. It was also demanded by some political prominent bodies, that he should be honored with the highest civilian award in India Bharat Ratna.
E. Sreedharan retired on 31 December 2011, after 16 years of service with the Delhi Metro. But in these 16 years, he finished numerous popular projects. Here I am sharing the list of the rest finished projects in India below.
- Kochi Metro
- Lucknow Metro
- Jaipur Metro
- Visakhapatnam Metro
- Vijayawada Metro
- Coimbatore Metro
Want To Read: History Of Metro In India Till 2023 – Explained In Simple Words
E. Sreedharan Political Career
E. Sreedharan was not just an engineer but a vigilant and responsible member of the country as well. He praised Narendra Modi for his decision-making ability being the CM of Gujrat State ahead of the 2014 elections. When the Aam Aadmi Party announced free travel for women and children in buses and metro, he opposed this decision.
Apart from that, he also opposed the Kerala Government for facilitating the organizational activities in education institutes, for that his statement was – “campus politics is being encouraged by politicians and even by the government leading to disruption of classes, student clashes, Criminal activities such as murders, stabbing incidents, etc. Unfortunately, some teachers with political leaning give mute support to such activities”.
E. Sreedharan’s political career started when he joined the Bhartiya Janata Party on 18 February 2021. He contested from the Palakkad assembly constituency for the 2021 Kerala LA elections but lost to the opposition. However, he left active politics on 17 December 2021.
Do You Know: About the Under-Construction Metro Projects In India In 2023!
E. Sreedharan Awards & Recognitions
Till now, you must have understood with this E. Sreedharana biography, how honorable a person he is. For his ultimate contribution to the Metro and Railways, he has been honored with several prestigious awards. So here I am sharing the list of E. Sreedharan awards & recognitions below.
- Railway Minister’s Award – 1963
- Padma Shri by the Government of India – 2001
- Man of the Year by The Times of India – 2002
- Om Prakash Bhasin Award for professional excellence in engineering – 2002
- CII (Confederation of Indian Industry) Juror’s Award for leadership in infrastructure development – 2002–03
- One of Asia’s Heroes by TIME – 2003
- AIMA (All India Management Association) Award for Public Service Excellence – 2003
- Degree of Doctor of Science (Honoris causa) from IIT Delhi
- Dr.Y.Nayudamma Memorial Award
- Bharat Shiromani Award from the Shiromani Institute, Chandigarh – 2005
- Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honour) by the government of France 2005
- Qimpro Platinum Standard (Business) National Statesman for Quality in India – 2007
- CNN-IBN Indian of the Year 2007: Public Service – 2008
- Padma Vibhushan by the Government of India – 2008
- D.Litt by Rajasthan Technical University, Kota, Rajasthan – 2009
- Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Honoris causa) from IIT Roorkee – 2009
- Honorary doctorate by Cochin University of Science and Technology – 2010
- Newsmaker of the Year by Manorama News – 2012
- Sree Chithira Thirunal National Award, 2012
- SR Jindal Prize (honorary) awarded by the Sitaram Jindal Foundation – 2012
- TKM 60 Plus Award for Lifetime Achievement by TKM College of Engineering – 2013
- Degree of Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) by Mahamaya Technical University on its first convocation – 2013
- Rotary International for the Sake of Honour Award – 2013
- Lifetime Achievement Governance Award by Grifles – 2013
- Order of the Rising Sun, Gold, and Silver Star by Government of Japan – 2013
- KPP Nambiar Award by IEEE Kerala Section – 2017
- Lifetime Achievement Award by Project Management Associates (PMA) India – 2019
Read Also: 30+ Unknown Facts About Indore Metro Project
Interesting Facts About E. Sreedharan
In this E. Sreedharan biography, the Metro Man of India, I have shared all the details about him and thus you must have read up on these facts about E. Sreedharan that you might have never heard before. So here I am sharing the list of interesting and lesser-known facts about E. Sreedharan.
- He started his professional career journey as a civil engineering professor at the Government Polytechnic, Kozhikode in 1953.
- He also worked for around one year at the Bombay Port Trust.
- E. Sreedharan’s first Metro Project was the Kolkata Metro System which was actually the first metro introduced in India.
- Konkan Railway, which was one of the most typical Indian Railway Projects, was led by him.
- He Directed the Konkan Railway project after retirement, due to orders by the then Railway Minister George Fernandes.
- He planned, designed, and implemented the Delhi Metro as the Managing Director of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation within the targeted time and budget.
- After the successful implementation of the Delhi Metro Project, which is India’s largest Metro System, he was known as Metro Man.
- A book entitled ‘Karmayogi: E. Sreedharante Jeevitha Katha’ is written by M. S. Asokan as his biography.
- P.V. Alby has also written a short biography on him entitled – ‘Jeevithavijayathinte Paadapusthakam’
- There is another book has been written on his life named – ” India’s Railway Man- A Biography of Dr. E Sreedharan “ by Rajendra B Aklekar.
Check Here: All Metro Information Under One Roof.
Final Words
Through this E. Sreedharan biography, we have learned that working for our interests can make us the most successful. He chose his profession as an engineer over a professor and thus he is known as the Metro Man of India. What if he continues as a professor, and we never get him as the Metro Man? Another learning he gave us is that never stops working. He is 91 years old as of 2023 and is still working for the nation’s pride.
In this E. Sreedharan Biography, I have shared all the details about him including E. Sreedharan date of birth, E. Sreedharan age, E. Sreedharan education, E. Sreedharan family, E. Sreedharan wife, E. Sreedharan daughter, E. Sreedharan career, Metro Man E. Sreedharan, E. Sreedharan awards & recognitions, some interesting facts about E. Sreedharan, etc.
Hope this Metro Man E. Sreedharan life story was inspirational for you and the content I have provided was also useful and informative enough for you. Thanks for reading.
Read Also: A Complete Guide Of Indore Metro, Bhopal Metro, and Surat Metro.
FAQs
Why is Mr. E Sreedharan called the Metro Man?
Metro Man E. Sreedharan is the man behind the successful implementation of India’s first Metro, the Kolkata Metro System, and India’s largest Metro system, Delhi Metro System. He was given this sobriquet after the successful implementation of the Delhi Metro by the Media.
What is e Sreedharan known for?
E. Sreedharan is known for planning, designing, and successfully implementing multiple Metro Projects in India including the first Metro System of India, in Kolkata, and the largest Metro System in India in Delhi.
Who is called Metro Man of India?
E. Sreedharan or Elattuvalapil Sreedharan is called the Metro Man of India.
What is Metro Man E. Sreedharan age?
Metro Man E. Sreedharan age is 91 years as of 2023. He was born on 12 June 1932 in Karukaputhur, Palakkad District, Kerala, India.
