Noted educationalist Mrs YGP passes away

Rajalakshmi Parthasarathy, founder of the prestigious Padma Seshadri Bala Bhavan (PSBB) group of schools popularly known as Mrs YGP, passed away here on Tuesday at the age of 93.

Mrs YGP, the wife of popular playwright Y G Parthasarathy and mother of Tamil actor Y Gee Mahendra, breathed her last on Tuesday afternoon at the Apollo Hospitals, where she was admitted on Monday night following complaints of breathlessness.

“She died of cardiac arrest,” Mahendra said.

A Padma Shri awardee, Mrs YGP is known for her contributions to the education sector through the PSBB group of schools that carved a niche for itself in Chennai.

Mrs YGP had worked as a journalist with The Hindu and Kumudam, weekly Tamil magazine, during her early life.

Born on November 9, 1925, Mrs YGP studied at St John's School and Holy Cross College and completed her post-graduation in journalism from Madras University in 1947. She quit her job after she was married to Parthasarathy and started Padma Sheshadri Bala Bhavan in 1958.

The school now has five branches, 8000 students and 500 staff members across Chennai. Her last rites will held at the Besant Nagar crematorium on Wednesday evening.