The Karnataka government on Tuesday, September 15, declared Engineers Day, an official event of the state. The Engineer’s Day which falls on September 15, the birth anniversary of former Dewan of the erstwhile princely state of Mysore, Sir M Visvesvaraya, is observed annually.
The government has also officially allowed engineers to use the prefix “Er.” before their names.
The Government Order issued on Tuesday said the decision was taken to honour the contribution of engineers to the development of the country and its economic progress. It also made the celebration of Engineers Day on September 15 an official State event.
The order came hours after Chief Minister DK Shivakumar announced that he had approved a proposal to officially celebrate Engineers Day in Karnataka.
“Annually, more than one lakh engineers graduate in the state. India has the highest number of engineers and it is important to recognise them. The finer details of the official celebration of Engineers Day will be drawn after discussion,” Shivakumar said after garlanding the statue of Sir M Visvesvaraya.
The government’s decision to allow engineering professionals to use the “Er.” prefix comes shortly after it permitted teachers to use the prefix “Tr.”.
Last week, Congress MLC B S Shivanna had urged the government to allow engineers to use “Er.” and lecturers to use “Lr.”. He welcomed the government’s decision to officially recognise the “Er.” prefix for engineers.