‘Premji, a father figure’

‘Premji, a father figure’
Deccan Herald

“He is like a father figure for all politicians including me,” this is how Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy praised Wipro Chairman Azim Premji on Sunday after visiting the Wipro campus.

Speaking to reporters after his visit, Mr Kumaraswamy said Wipro’s contributions to the State were commendable. “Wipro is the pride of Karnataka. Its chief Azim Premji, through social service and his noble contribution towards the field of education has been a father figure for politicians, including me,” he said.

Mr Kumaraswamy visited the campus on an invitation from Mr Premji for lunch. The Wipro chief took the chief minister around the campus and explained his expansion plans in the State. Mr Kumaraswamy had recently paid a similar visit to the Infosys campus and held discussions with its mentor N R Narayanamurthy.

The chief minister said: “Wipro is the pride of Karnataka. It has created more than one lakh jobs. And its expansion plans in the State are expected to create more jobs. The government will provide all sort of cooperation needed for its expansion.”

Mr Kumaraswamy also lauded Mr Premji’s service in promoting quality education in the primary schools of the State. Thousands of children, particularly in the rural areas, are getting quality education through the foundation, he said.

During his visit to the campus, the chief minister is said to have had a one-to-one meeting with Azim Premji.

The Wipro chief is said to have given him a few tips regarding infrastructure development to lure larger investment to the State. However, issues discussed at the meeting have not been disclosed.