Malayala Manorama's chief editor KM Mathew passes away

Kottayam/New Delhi, Aug 1, 2010 : A doyen of Indian media industry and chief editor of Malayala Manorama, KM Mathew, passed away at his Kottayam residence in Kerela on Sunday. He was 93.
He is survived by three sons, Mammen Mathew, Philip Mathew and Jacob Mathew, and a daughter. His wife had predeceased him.
Under Mathew's able guidance, Malayala Manorama had emerged as one of the major Indian language daily.
He is also a former chairman of Press Turst of India (PTI), India's premier news agency.
Born on January 2, 1917, Mathew had joined Malayala Manorama as Managing Editor in 1954 and became chief editor in 1973.
He has received many awards including the Padma Bhushan, National Citizen's award and B D Goenka Award.
Meanwhile, President Pratibha Patil, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi have condoled the death of Mathew.
Singh and Gandhi called up the bereaved family and conveyed their condolences.
The President, in her condolence message, said "We have lost a hardworking, dynamic and visionary journalist who made Malayala Manorama a major Indian language daily."
In a message, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni said Mathew was a "visionary" and recalled his contribution towards development journalism.
Paying tributes to Mathew, chairman of PTI Board of Directors, Vijay Kumar Chopra, recalled his services to the Indian media and to PTI in particular.
Kerala Chief Minister VS Achuthanandan, condoling the death of Mathew, said he was a stalwart of journalism who left a deep impression in socio-cultural spheres of the State.
"Though the Left had sharp differences with his political and ideological positions, Mathew was one of the few editors who deeply influenced the Kerala society over the last five decades," Achuthanandan said in a message.
Kerala Governor RS Gavai also mourned the death of Mathew, saying his passing away was a great loss not only to the state but also for the entire country.
The Editors Guild of India, in a condolence message by its president Rajdeep Sardesai, said, "As Chief Editor of Malayala Manorama group, K M Mathew set new benchmarks in language journalism, and spearheaded a media revolution."

(source: http://www.newkerala.com/news2/fullnews-11795.html)
--IBNS