Malayala Manorama chief editor K M Mathew dies

K M Mathew, Chief Editor of Malayala Manorama daily and a doyen of Indian media industry, passed away at his Kottayam residence in Kerala  Sunday morning, family sources said. He was 93.

President Prathibha Patil, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi called up the bereaved family and conveyed their condolences.

Mathew was a former Chairman of Press Trust of India. He is survived by three sons, Mammen Mathew, Philip Mathew and Jacob Mathew and daughter Thankam. His wife Annamma Mathew had predeceased him. His funeral will take place at the Puthenpally Church cemetery on Monday.

Mathew had played a key role in making Malayala Manorama one of the major Indian language dailies after he took over the reins of the media house a few decades ago.

"We have lost a hardworking, dynamic and visionary journalist who made Malayala Manorama a major Indian language daily," President Pratibha Patil said condoling Mathew's death.

Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni recalled Mathew's contribution towards development journalism and said he was a pioneer for the development of language media in the country.

Chairman of PTI Board of Directors, Vijay Kumar Chopra, paid tributes to Mathew, recalling his services to the Indian media and to PTI in particular.

"He was a visionary who left a mark on the Indian media industry. His contribution to the growth of PTI was also significant," Chopra said.

Kerala Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan, leaders of political parties and people from different walks of life also expressed profound grief at the passing away of Mathew.

A recipient of Padma Bhushan and several other coveted honours, Mathew steered Malayala Manorama to grow into a major media house in the country as the flagship daily became a multi-edition newspaper.

The group is bringing out as many as 46 publications, including the English weekly The Week.

Mathew, born on January 2, 1917, is the son of K C Mammen Mappilai, a pioneer of Malayalam journalism, and Kunjannamma.

He became Malayala Manorama's managing editor in 1954 and chief editor in 1973.

Mathew's memoirs, Ettamathe Mothiram, published a few years ago, was highly appreciated for its literary and historical value.

He had also penned a moving memoir on his wife Annamma, who died a few years ago.

His sons Mammen Mathew is the Editor of Malayala Manorama, Philip Mathew its Managing Editor and Jacob Mathew the Executive Editor.