CHENNAI: R Krishnamurthy, a former editor of Tamil daily Dinamalar and a renowned epigraphist, died in Chennai on Thursday due to age-related ailments. He was 88.
Krishnamurthy was instrumental in making Dinamalar, which his father founded, one of the popular dailies in the Tamil Nadu.
He was also behind simplifying the Tamil script. He introduced the Periyar script with fewer alphabets. Though there was opposition from scholars, other newspapers picked up the script after Dinamalar made it popular. The government introduced the script in textbooks in 1979.
His interests in Tamil script reform led him to trace its origin which in turn kindled an interest in numismatics making him travel across the world scouring museums and private collections for coins relating to ancient rulers of south India.
He studied inscriptions in Vatteluttu in different parts of the state, discovered a coin with the name Peruvaluthi, a Sangam age Pandya king, engraved in Tamil-Brahmi script in Madurai that changed the perception about trade in the ancient times which was considered to be barter system. This also helped in changing the perception that Panya kings were chieftains who did not mint coins and used Mauryan coins.
Krishnamurthy published many papers and books on Tamil script, epigraphy and numismatics.
The Royal Numismatic Society elected him as a fellow and the Numismatic Society of India presented him the C H Biddulup Medal and T Desikachari
Medal, named after two renowned numismatists of India. Madurai Kamaraj University conferred doctorate on him.
He was the general secretary of All India Newspaper Editors Conference from 1991 to 1996.
Krishnamurthy was born at Vadiveeswaram near Nagercoil on January 13, 1933 as the second son of T V Ramasubba Iyer and L Krishnammal.
After completing his schooling in Sethu Lakshmi Bayi School, he joined Scot Christian College in Nagercoil. Later, he completed his graduation in geology from Karaikudi and joined a postgraduate course in Geology in Presidency College in Madras and secured a first class in the university examination.
He wanted to go abroad for further studies but was told to join the family business. He joined Dinamalar in 1956 and became its editor in 1977. He had served as its editor for almost 40 years.
He is survived by wife K Rajalakshmi, two sons and two daughters.