Sir Emvee, as he was also known, made the journey to set the prelude for a huge change Mandya was to witness, in the form of Mandya Mahila Samaja.

As September 15, Sir M Visveswaraya’s birthday, is being celebrated as ‘Engineers Day’, in honour of the engineer-statesman, Mandya remembered him in a different manner, by way of recollecting the bond the city shared with him. Mary, a resident of Mysore, who was present on the occasion, remembered the fact that Sir M V had, in a way typical of him, had lauded the efforts of Mahila Samaja which was training women to become economically independent.

The Samaja, which started in 1935, was registered in 1936 with Gangabai Gulabsingh as the president and Ruthamma Wesly as the secretary, and had about 25 members.

Training was given in tailoring, embroidery, woollen works, agarbatti making and other income-generating activities, apart from preparing the candidates for tailoring exams conducted by Pathaskar Tailoring Institution, based in Pune.

Now, with the passing of time, the Samaja has lost its sheen and activities have also reduced. The only bright patch on this institute is the memories associated with its journey.