J Alexander, former Karnataka minister of Kerala origin, passes away

Bengaluru: J Alexander, former Karnataka minister and chief secretary who hailed from Kollam in southern Kerala, is no more.

He was 83 years old.

The end came at the Chinmaya Mission Hospital at Indira Nagar in Bengaluru on Saturday. He was being treated here for the last several days following a heart attack.

Alexander was born on August 8, 1938 at Mangad in Kollam. He belonged to the Puthuvelthara Family.

He entered the Indian Administrative Service in 1963 while serving as a lecturer at the Fathima Matha College in Kollam town.

His civil service career began with appointment as the sub-collector of Mangalore. He went on to become the chief secretary of Karanataka Government in 1992.

Prior to that he had took graduation in English Literature with first rank after studies in SN College, Kollam. Thereafter, he had his post-graduation from the University College in Thiruvananthapuram.

Alexander commenced a brief political career after his retirement from the government service after a stellar 33- year career as a bureaucrat.

He represented the Bharati Nagar constituency in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly after getting elected as a Congress candidate.

In 2003 he became the Tourism Minister in the SM Krishna Government and later served as the vice president of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee.

Alexander's funeral was held on Saturday.

He is survived by sons Dr Jose and Dr Johnson. His wife Delphin had pre-deceased him.