Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and other senior officials of the Ministry of Defence have condoled the passing of Natesan Andavan, the public relations officer of the defence ministry in Chennai, following injuries suffered in a road mishap on Monday.
Andavan passed away on Wednesday. He was 52.
Expressing his condolences over Andavan's passing, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said, "Shri Andavan was a professional communicator who excelled in every aspect of journalism and public relations. He made a definite impact among the media fraternity. My heart goes out to the bereaved family at this critical moment in their lives."
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Andavan had joined the DPR set up of the MoD in 2009, and in a very short time, had endeared himself with the media for his professionalism, amiable personality and an abiding interest in defence-related issues.
During his tenure, he had travelled to almost all defence establishments in South India and provided publicity on their activities and achievements.
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He took an active interest in recruitment rallies held in his area of responsibility and his contribution in generating enthusiasm among the youth for a career in the armed forces will be remembered for long.
He also worked for the publicity of several editions of Aero India, held in Bengaluru, the premier aero show of Asia.
Andavan had earned an M. Phil degree in mass communication and was an alumni of the 2009 batch of the prestigious Defence Correspondents' Course conducted by the Directorate of Public Relations, Ministry of Defence.
He was also a regular contributor to the fortnightly Sainik Samachar, the oldest defence journal of the country.
Before joining the DPR, he had worked with various media units of Ministry of Information and Broadcast, including AIR, Doordarshan, DAVP, PIB and DFP.
Andavan is survived by his wife S. Joy, a News Editor with All India Radio, Chennai, a son and a daughter.
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Defence Secretary R.K. Mathur and the Director General of Media and Communication in the MoD, Sitanshu Kar, have also condoled his tragic passing.